When we think of a great side hustle, we often tend to focus on the product or service beyond all other things. And to be fair, that makes a certain amount of sense.
But have you thought about who will buy your product? What kind of person do you see buying from you?
Take a minute to picture that individual. That mental image is what’s known as an Ideal Client Avatar, or Ideal Customer Profile. And you’d be surprised how important knowing your ICA is.
When I started my website, I didn’t just think about the type of content I wanted to write. I also spent time putting together a mental picture of the kind of person who would enjoy and read my content.
This helped me fine tune my ideas and find the best way to deliver what my potential customers really wanted. And that’s what an ICA will do for your side hustle too. This is essential, fundamental stuff if your goal is to create a solid income stream with your side hustle.
That’s why in this newsletter, we’re unpacking how to create a solid ICA for your side hustle! Let’s get to it!
This week’s newsletter brings you:
- Strategies. Learn the importance of developing an ICA for your business, how to do so, and a few examples of ICAs for some businesses.
- Tool of the Week. This we we bring you a free tool that will help you build your very own Ideal Client Avatar!
- Strategies
- Why you need an ICA if you want to make money
- Creating an ideal customer avatar for your hustle
- Step one: Gathering data
- Step two: Conduct market research
- Step three: Create a persona
- Step four: Define pain points and goals
- Step five: Identify buying motivations
- Step six: Refine and update
- Step seven: Use your ICA
- Examples of side hustle ICAs to draw inspiration from
- Side hustle that sells physical products
- Side hustle that sells digital products
- Tool of the Week
Strategies
Now, let’s learn all about Ideal Client Avatars and why you need one.
Why you need an ICA if you want to make money
An ideal customer avatar, also known as a buyer persona, helps businesses to understand their target audience, their needs, pain points, behaviors, and preferences.
By having a clear picture of your ideal customer, you can tailor your marketing efforts, product development, and overall strategy to better meet the needs of that specific audience. This leads to more effective communication, higher conversion rates, and ultimately, more money in your pocket.
Having an ideal customer avatar is crucial if you want to make money from your side hustle as it helps to ensure that your efforts are focused and aligned with your target market, leading to better results and increased profitability.
Here are a few ways in which having a solid understanding of your ICA will benefit your side hustle:
- Product development: By understanding the specific needs, wants, and pain points of your ideal customer, you can develop products or services that better meet their needs, leading to higher customer satisfaction and greater sales.
- Marketing and promotion: When you know who your ideal customer is, you can tailor your marketing messages, promotions, and advertising to be more relevant and appealing to that audience. This increases the likelihood that they will engage with your brand and become paying customers.
- Customer engagement: An ideal customer avatar can help you to identify the best channels for reaching your target audience and engage with them in a way that feels personal and relevant. This leads to a stronger emotional connection and increased customer loyalty.
- Sales and revenue: By understanding your ideal customer and making targeted efforts to meet their needs, you are more likely to generate sales and increase your revenue.
Resources:
What Is an Ideal Customer Avatar by Forbes
The Truth About Your Ideal Client Why You Need an ICA by Marketing Troubadour
Creating an ideal customer avatar for your hustle
Creating an ideal customer avatar (ICA) is an important step for any business, big or small, as it helps to ensure that your efforts are focused on the right target market. An ICA is a fictional representation of your target audience, based on data, research, and personal experience.
Here are the steps to create an ICA for your side hustle:
Step one: Gathering data
The first step in creating an ICA is to gather data about your existing customers. This can include demographic information such as age, income, and location, as well as information about their habits, behaviors, and preferences. You can gather this data through surveys, customer interviews, and analytics tools such as Google Analytics.
Step two: Conduct market research
In addition to gathering data about your existing customers, it’s important to conduct market research to understand your target market as a whole. This can include researching industry reports, competitor analysis, and online forums and communities related to your side hustle.
Step three: Create a persona
With your data and research in hand, you can begin to create personas, or fictional representations of your ideal customers. Start by creating a list of common traits and characteristics that you have identified in your research, and then use this information to create a few different personas. Each persona should have a unique name, background, and set of characteristics.
Step four: Define pain points and goals
It’s important to understand the pain points and goals of your ideal customers. What are they struggling with in their lives or businesses, and how can your side hustle help to solve those problems? What are their goals and aspirations, and how can your side hustle help them to achieve those?
Step five: Identify buying motivations
Understanding the motivations behind why someone would buy from your side hustle is crucial for creating an effective marketing strategy. What do your ideal customers value most about your products or services, and what motivates them to make a purchase?
Step six: Refine and update
Once you have created your ICAs, it’s important to continually refine and update them as you learn more about your target market. Regularly gathering data and conducting market research can help you to keep your ICAs up-to-date and relevant.
Step seven: Use your ICA
Once you have created your ICA, it’s important to use it in all aspects of your business, from product development to marketing and sales. Keep your ICA in mind when making decisions, and use them as a reference point to ensure that your efforts are aligned with your target market.
Creating an ideal customer avatar is a critical step in the success of any business, including side hustles. By taking the time to understand your target market, you can make informed decisions, improve your results, and ultimately, increase your revenue.
Resources:
How to Create an ICA by easywebinar
Understand your Client Avatar by AOK Marketing
Examples of side hustle ICAs to draw inspiration from
Feeling stuck about where to get started when it comes to building out your ICA? Here are a few examples of ideal customer avatars for side hustles.
Side hustle that sells physical products
- Name: Sarah Green
- Age: 35
- Occupation: Marketing Manager
- Income: $75,000 per year
- Location: Urban
Sarah is a busy, urban professional who values sustainability and wants to minimize her environmental impact. She is concerned about the chemicals used in traditional cleaning products and is looking for an alternative that is both effective and eco-friendly. She has a busy schedule and wants cleaning products that are easy to use and require minimal time and effort.
Pain Points: Sarah is frustrated with the lack of environmentally friendly options in the cleaning products market and is concerned about the long-term effects of exposure to chemicals in traditional cleaning products.
Goals: Sarah wants to find a reliable source of eco-friendly cleaning products that are effective, affordable, and easy to use. She also wants to feel good about her purchase and is looking for a brand that aligns with her values.
Buying Motivations: Sarah is motivated by the desire to minimize her environmental impact and to find a product that is both effective and eco-friendly. She is willing to pay a premium for a product that meets her needs and aligns with her values.
This ideal customer avatar provides a clear picture of the target market for the eco-friendly cleaning products side hustle. By understanding Sarah’s pain points, goals, and buying motivations, the business can tailor its marketing and product development efforts to better meet her needs and increase the likelihood of attracting and retaining customers like her.
Side hustle that sells digital products
Here is an example of an ideal customer avatar for a side hustle that sells digital products:
- Name: Mark Tech-savvy
- Age: 30
- Occupation: Software Developer
- Income: $90,000 per year
- Location: Suburban
Mark is a tech-savvy software developer who is always on the lookout for tools and resources to help him improve his skills and stay ahead in his field. He values efficiency and is always looking for ways to streamline his workflow. He has a busy schedule and wants digital products that are easy to use and can save him time.
Pain Points: Mark is frustrated with the lack of high-quality digital products that are specifically designed for software developers and is tired of sifting through countless options to find the right tools.
Goals: Mark wants to find a reliable source of digital products that are specifically designed for software developers and are effective, affordable, and easy to use. He wants to feel confident in his purchases and is looking for a brand that has a strong reputation in the industry.
Buying Motivations: Mark is motivated by the desire to improve his skills and stay ahead in his field. He is willing to invest in high-quality digital products that will help him to achieve his goals. He is also motivated by the desire to save time and streamline his workflow.
This ideal customer avatar provides a clear picture of the target market for the digital products side hustle. By understanding Mark’s pain points, goals, and buying motivations, the business can tailor its marketing and product development efforts to better meet his needs and increase the likelihood of attracting and retaining customers like him.
Resources:
Examples of Client Avatars on Pinterest
5 Examples of Ideal Customer Profile by Aeroleads
Tool of the Week
Successful small business owners and side hustlers share a common understanding — you can’t reach your target customers if you don’t know who they are!
That’s why they build ideal customer profiles, also known as buyer personas. But this can be a challenging, time-consuming process. That’s where a customer profile template comes in. If you have an account with Monday.com (you can sign up for free) you’ll have access to their free customer profile template.
This template will help you to build out your ICA easily and make sure you’ve included all the relevant information.