Write less, not more. Make it easy for people to remember what you talk about.
It sounds counterintuitive, but dialing in your single target audience helps you keep a consistent message, makes creating content easier because you've narrowed your scope, and, most importantly, helps your audience understand and remember who you are and what you do.
Here's a 20-minute exercise to get it done.
Step 0: Why (3 minutes)
Think of this step as defining your campaign for the year. What do you want to help more with, sell more of, or expand into? We only have so many units of energy, so deciding why we want an audience will help us pick WHO meets the WHY.
Step 1: High Level (4 minutes)
Who is your ideal customer? Based on everything you know today, what is their age, sex, location, family status, job or role, and experience? Give this person a name.
Step 2: Beliefs and Motivators (4 minutes)
What beliefs keep people from moving forward, prevent them from calling you, or make them think they can do it themselves? What myths are prevalent in your industry? What do clients believe to be true, whether or not they are correct?
Step 3: Research and Challenge (6 minutes)
Take five minutes to research and challenge these ideas. Google the questions your clients might ask. What answers are on the first few pages? What related videos are on YouTube? What questions do your colleagues or sales team get asked?
Then amplify this in your favorite AI tool. Try a prompt like: "You are a market research assistant and expert in customer analysis. My business is [describe your product/service]. I believe my clients buy because of [describe beliefs/motivators]. Tell me more about who my ideal client is and what motivates them to buy from me. Create the perfect client avatar."
Follow up with: "Tell me why this client isn't a good fit. Why wouldn't they buy?" This challenge prompt is great for highlighting counterpoints that may resonate with you.
Step 4: Create Your Single Target Audience (3 minutes)
From these answers, create a short profile: Name, Description, Moves Toward (Desires), Moves Away (Concerns).
Dialing in your single target audience makes content easier to create, your message easier to remember, and your book far more effective.
Your aim is to do this short exercise once. Put it away for three days, then revisit and refine it to create your guiding audience avatar.
Then start writing.
