Do You Really Know Your Prospect?

I'd like to introduce you to someone. I don't actually know his name, but I'm hoping you do. I'm hoping you know quite a bit about him.

He's your target customer ? the person most likely to buy what you have to offer. He is the person responsible for your paycheck. He pays your rent and feeds your kids. Or at least, he will, once you convince him to buy from you.

But to convince him, you have to know him. Intimately.

I know, I know ? this is elementary stuff. Marketing 101. But you'd be amazed how many people are in business without a clue about who they're selling to. Even if you have a pretty good idea about what makes Mr. Prospect tick, you could stand to learn more.

Because the better you know him, the better you know how to sell to him.

Dig deep. Get way down into his psyche. What are his core beliefs? What are his fears? What keeps him awake at night? What kind of person does he really want to be? (That one is actually far more important than who he actually is. Can your product or service help him be that person?)

Do you know what Mr. Prospect does with his spare time? If he's online, what newsletters does he subscribe to, or what forums does he hang out in?

Once you know him better than his own spouse, you know how to speak to him. You know precisely what benefits to stress, what emotional buttons to push. And you know where to find him when you're ready to do it.

Let's say Mr. Prospect is a middle aged male who works in corporate middle-management. But you dig deep, and find out that he's also typically a political junkie. You could use that knowledge to advertise in Time or Newsweek. But you're not satisfied, so you dig even deeper and find out that Mr. P is left-leaning in his politics, and has a passion for environmentalism. His greatest fear is that the planet won't be in good shape for his grandchildren.

Now, you can focus on Mr. P like a laser. Skip Time and Newsweek and advertise in Mother Earth News. Send him sales letters on recycled paper, and find a way to connect your product or service to a healthy planet. Now you're pushing his buttons, and Mr. Prospect becomes Mr. Customer.

It takes time, effort, and research. But once you really know your target, hitting him where it counts is that much easier.

Lisa Packer, author of "How To Dramatically Increase Your Business... Without A Blockbuster Budget" and "7 Ways To Get A Pay Raise From Your Web Site" is an independent Copywriter and Marketing Consultant. Find out how to get these two reports, plus more helpful articles like the one you just read at http://www.dramatic-copy.com/.

Dramatic Copy: Copywriting That Dramatically Increases Your Business.