We have all heard how you are supposed to create a profile of your ideal client so you can focus on what she cares about and mold your creative business around her. As with most things, it is like telling someone to wear a coat when it is cold, valuable advice, though not particularly seismic.
Instead of writing who you think she is, I am at a complete loss as to why you do not actually talk to her. There are infinite ways to discover who she is. Did she comment on any of your social media posts? Have you met her, well, anywhere? Of course, has she enjoyed your work directly at any point? Been to a client’s home, wedding, etc.?
Why not a composite of your favorites? After all what you are looking for is a Venn Diagram (think the Olympic symbol) and the points and depth of intersection that you share with her. Your clients do not need to be your clones. In fact, quite the opposite. They just have to deeply care about what you do as an artist and creative business. Amount of intersection matters, depth matters more.
What then to do with this information? You can craft your sales pitch to make sure you touch on your intersection, make posts more relevant to her, maybe even hone your business process to work better for her. All good stuff. Though more like telling someone to wear layers and not just a coat. Better but not all that helpful.
No, what needs to be done with your ideal client is to establish community. Community means dialogue and connectivity. Up until now, the idea of actual, proactive conversation with prospective clients was a pipe dream. And the thought of connecting those who come to you with each other was also virtually impossible. Today, it should be expected with you, your art and your creative business as the hub. Relevant, meaningful conversation with those you are directly trying to reach (clients) and they to each other. You might be the catalyst to the conversation but you are not the only voice. Yours is to inspire others to use their own voices. From there, opportunity will abound. You do not need an audience of thousands, hundreds of the right voices will be more than enough.
No doubt, you must really know what you, your art and your creative business stand for to be the linchpin of the community. Definitely look hard in the mirror to see your entire reflection as you would want others to see it. Radical authenticity will today and forever more be redundant if you choose to honor the power of the gift you possess and desire to share.
Then let your community teach you what could be and be open to the possibilities it presents. It could be as simple as a style book you write for those that care about how you see the world to as complex as an entirely new business that is bigger than the one originally contemplated. In today’s world, you, your art and your creative business are expected to pivot. If you are having real, authentic dialogue with your community you just might (ok, probably will) see the road ahead before everyone else.
Want a quick example of something happening? Warren Buffet’s fund Berkshire Hathaway just made an investment in Restoration Hardware (admittedly, not that big relative to his other investments, but still). BH also happens to own CORT furniture rentals. CORT is that granddaddy (fuddy duddy?) of rentals for temporary living (mostly for corporations). CORT also happens to be a large player in the event rental business. The chic furniture rental business is gaining tractionwith millions of dollars in venture capital pouring in to several startups like Fernish, Feather and now, Oliver Space. I will not speculate further. But if you are in the interior design, architecture, wedding/social event business, what do you do with this information. What can your community teach you about what YOU could do here? Or you can draw up who you think your ideal client is, throw out a few pieces that might make her bite, have a one way conversation and call it a day if she says yes. Your choice.
