All About Buyer Personas: What They Are, Why You Need Them and How to Make Them Effective Industry leaders encourage constructing buyer personas. Here's what you need to know about them.

By Small Business PR

This story originally appeared on PR Newswire's Small Business PR Toolkit

Blend Images - Colin Anderson | Getty Images

Constructing buyer personas has been encouraged by industry leaders for a considerable period of time, and the majority of marketers have listened to this recommendation -- 85 percent according to a study conducted by Relevance. Yet only 15 percent of respondents from the study indicated their buyer personas were effective. How is that possible when, according to Business Grown, persuasive personas usually account for over 90 percent of a company's sales? They key word here is "persuasive." About 80 percent of Relevance's study participants disclosed they were confused about how to properly create influential personas.

What is a buyer persona?

HubSpot defines a buyer persona as a "semi-fictional representation of your ideal customer based on market research and real data about your existing customers." This persona allows you to understand what your customers need, how they think, behave and how you can address them accordingly. The more details you can outline, the more successful the persona -- and your marketing efforts -- will be.

Demographics

First, configure the age, sex, income level, marital status, education level, geographic location and any other characteristics you think are important for defining your target audience. Once you've narrowed down the key demographic factors, you can begin to build a consumer profile.

Psychographics

While determining the demographic qualities of your target audience is important, identifying those factors alone is not sufficient. Take, for example, this profile: Ideal consumer is a married male, at least 60 years old, with a net worth of over 30 million and has a passion for playing golf. The consumer could be Bill Gates or Alice Cooper, and it's unlikely that both are receptive to the same tone or type of content.

Therefore, understanding the attitudes, aspirations and values of your target audience is also necessary to ensure marketing efforts are worthwhile. To further develop your persona, answer these questions:

  • Why would a shopper prioritize my content? What problems does my buyer feel passionate about?
  • How would a purchaser benefit from my content?
  • What hindrances might prevent a user from paying attention to my content? Or doubt my products and services are dependable?
  • How can I influence a user to take an actionable step?
  • What criteria will influence whether or not a shopper decides to make a purchase? How can I prove my products or services are superior to alternative options?

By digging deeper into the mind of your target purchaser, you can properly create a buyer persona and inbound marketing campaign that successfully reaches and influences your ideal shopper.

(Written by Phillip Thune)

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Side Hustle

'I Was Called Crazy': This 27-Year-Old's Side Hustle Hit $30,000 a Month in Under a Year — Now It's Worth Millions

Changing regulations forced Angel Rodriguez's jet ski rental company to shut down, and the young entrepreneur had to figure out his next move — fast.

Side Hustle

This 30-Year-Old's $6,000-a-Month Side Hustle Started Making Money 'Immediately' — But He's Not Quitting His Day Job

Derrick Mathy works in orthopedic surgical device sales and is on a mission to bring people together in real life.

Business News

'Unprecedented in Our 53-Year History': Southwest Airlines Announces Its First Mass Layoffs Ever

The airline is eliminating 15% of its corporate workforce, including many in senior leadership positions.

Business News

Elon Musk's xAI Claims Its New Grok 3 AI Is Better Than ChatGPT and DeepSeek: 'Seeing the Beginnings of Creativity'

xAI debuted the new AI on Monday, claiming it has 10 times the computational power of Grok 2.

Business News

Your Old Apple AirPods Can Soon Act as an Over-the-Counter Hearing Aid, According to the FDA

The new software is compatible with the Apple AirPods Pro and accessible through iOS — for free and now FDA-authorized.

Business Ideas

70 Small Business Ideas to Start in 2025

We put together a list of the best, most profitable small business ideas for entrepreneurs to pursue in 2025.