💡 Using AI to Target Ideal Customers (Issue 142)
Here is a prompt you can try
One of the most essential tasks for a business owner is identifying their ideal client or customer. This is sometimes referred to as an Ideal Customer Avatar (ICA). Once you know who this person is, you can dive deeper into understanding them, their needs and problems, and how to capture their attention with the right messaging in the right places.
Unfortunately, most business owners often use shallow descriptions of their ICA. For example:
Anyone with money!
People who enjoy eating burgers.
Busy moms.
People on a budget.
People who want to lose weight.
Vague descriptions like that won’t help you much when you’re trying to create marketing campaigns and sales pages that speak to real potential customers. You want to be as specific as possible when creating a fictional description of the person who would be your dream client or customer.
Use a name and profile photo to make them feel real.
What is their descriptive data (e.g., gender, age, marital status, income, profession, education)?
What is their personality like?
How do they behave?
What are their goals (life, career)?
What problems are they facing?
What motivates them?
What are their biggest fears and worries?
What are their values?
Where do they spend time?
Where do they get information?
How do they make decisions?
Another powerful strategy is to identify a real person who you think represents your ICA. This could be someone with whom you’ve already done business before and would love more clients like this person (i.e., they were a dream client). Or, it could be someone you think would be a fantastic customer to land.
It would take a considerable amount of time to review their profiles on social media and LinkedIn, as well as scroll through all their posts and interactions. So, this is where an AI service can help!
Instructions for the AI
For example, I used ChatGPT to generate marketing insights based on a previous coaching client who was a delight to work with.
First, I created a project titled “Improving My Marketing” and provided the following instructions before entering the prompt (i.e., in the Instructions field). I tweaked it from a post by someone who shared this very helpful instruction on Substack. It makes a huge difference in the quality of the response you will receive.
From now on, do not assume my ideas are correct just because I came up with them. Your role is to be an intellectual partner, not an assistant who simply agrees.
Play the role of a marketing expert who knows the best ways to reach new audiences, market to get attract their attention, and persuade them to click and buy my coaching services. You know how to use email marketing, social media marketing, and LinkedIn marketing to drive engagement and conversion.
Your goal is to offer responses that promote clarity, precision, and intellectual growth — even if it hurts. Tell me where I am going wrong with my marketing on social media, LinkedIn, and my newsletters.
Maintain a constructive but relentlessly critical approach. Do not argue for the sake of ego, but question for the sake of depth. Every time I present an idea, your job is to challenge it to the limit.
Operating rules:
- No praise, softening, or sugarcoating.
- Challenge my assumptions, spot my excuses, highlight areas where I may be stuck or making mistakes.
- If my request is vague, ask direct and specific follow-up questions.
- Think through your reasoning in a structured way, but only deliver the final, clear, and direct conclusion.
Also apply, when relevant:
- Analyze the hidden assumptions behind what I’m saying. What am I treating as true without questioning?
- Present strong counterarguments. What would a skeptical expert say against my position?
- Test the logical consistency of my reasoning. Are there leaps, contradictions, or flaws?
- Show alternative perspectives from people who are successful coaches. How might someone from another field, culture, or background see this?
Correct me firmly. Prioritize truth, even if it challenges me. Explain clearly why my idea might be wrong or incomplete. Provide new ways for me to see new opportunities.
The prompt
Then, I used the following prompt, which generated some intriguing insights and ideas for future content that might appeal to more clients like this person. Try it yourself and seed it with someone you think might be your ICA:
“I am a (your business title) offering services such as (service 1, service 2, service 3) tailored to my ideal client. What marketing strategies should I use to reach an ideal client like the person located at this LinkedIn profile: (their URL)?”
For my career coaching business, the prompt might look like this:
“I am a career coach offering services such as job search strategies, job interview preparation, and LinkedIn profile optimization tailored to my ideal client. What marketing strategies should I use to reach an ideal client like the person located at this LinkedIn profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cornett/?”
Let me know how that works for you!
Larry Cornett is a business coach who works with ambitious professionals to help them reclaim their power, become more invincible, and create better opportunities for their work and lives. Do more of what you love and less of what you hate! Check out his new Invincible Solopreneurs Daily Journal!
