While the customer may not always be right, you still have to start with them. All too often founders start with only the product. Even worse, many brands assume customer identification is the responsibility of social media algorithms...
This is not a winning a strategy. You need to outline who your customer is, as early as possible, in detail.
That persona will likely change, over time, as you get more data or your brand/products evolve. However, you need a "North Star", especially in the early days.
Below is a good template to get you started.
This was from a brand that was creating globally-inspired spice kits, sold exclusively online, for home cooks in smaller markets with more limited access.
Name
Pam
Background
Stay-at-home mom
College educated
Demographics
Female
Has two kids
Mid 40’s
$175k+ HH income
Suburban/rural
Identifiers
Former working professional
Big city interests but lives in a smaller town
Buys Annie's and Coca-cola products
Influencers
Bon Appetit
Home and Garden
Food Network
Goop
Preferred channels
Instagram
Pinterest
Traditional TV
Goals
Providing unique, healthy meals to her family
Ensuring the “trains stay on the tracks”
Challenges
Access to high quality, interesting ingredients is limited in her small town
How we help
Our products spice up the 10+ meals and lunches she’s making on a weekly basis
We deliver directly to her door via Prime shipping to augment her typical weekly shopping
Marketing keywords
Quality
Ease/simplicity
Adventure
Real quotes
“Gosh. There’s nothing too exciting in our pantry being that we’re in the Ozarks”
