How do I build a client avatar for a video business?

Build it from a real client you'd happily work for again, from the clients your audit shows are worth more of, and answer 13 steps in writing: who they are, what they need from the decision, what success and failure look like to them, how aware they are of the problem, who else has a say, and what would turn them into a fan. Write it up on one A4 page, give it a first name, and write every email, post and proposal for that type of client to that one person.

What should a client avatar for a video business include?

Thirteen things: their wants, needs, desires and aspirations; demographics and psychographics; their ranking of Seth Godin's hierarchy of business needs (avoid risk, avoid hassle, gain praise, gain power, have fun, make a profit); the dream scenario; the nightmare scenario; their emotional triggers when they decide; where they sit on Eugene Schwartz's five levels of customer awareness; their current problems and causes; the five things that will solve them; what they should hear from you; what they want to hear; who else has a say; and the experience that would turn them into a raving fan.

How many client avatars does a video business need?

One for each type of client you serve, usually one to three, run through the 13 steps separately. Start with the clients your audit shows are worth more of, and base each one on three to five recorded ASK interviews with real clients of that type rather than on guesses.

How to build a client avatar for a video business

A client avatar is one buyer described in enough detail that you can write every quote, email and web page to that person. Build it from a real client you'd happily work for again, in 13 steps that run from who they are, through how they decide and who else has a say, to what would turn them into a fan. Build one for each type of client, starting with the clients your audit shows are worth more of.

Why does a pitch about selling more products miss the buyer?

A pitch about selling more products misses the buyer whenever sales aren't that buyer's main trigger. Plenty of production companies open with some version of "a video will help you sell more of your products." For a head of communications in a large organisation, getting a policy across to the internal team, or a safety briefing that brings the accident rate down, may matter far more.

A client avatar makes you choose one buyer and learn what they weigh when they decide, so the pitch answers their trigger. Writing to one person will put some people off, and a few will tell you how to run your marketing. Ignore them. Why a long list of services gets ignored is covered in the message equation.

Which client should the avatar be built on?

Build the avatar on a real client you like working with. Most of your sales come from a small share of your clients (the 80/20 principle), so start with the clients your twelve-month audit shows are worth more of.

An ideal client is fair, says clearly what they want, understands you're in business to make a profit, pays what you charge, gives you room to decide, and comes back because they trust you. If you don't have one yet, describe the one you want.

Pick one to three types of client and run the 13 steps for each. In an early workshop I put two side by side: the client I wanted to keep, and the client I'd avoid at any cost.

How to build a client avatar: the method, step by step

The 13 steps move from the facts about the buyer, to how they decide, to what you'll say and do. Before you start, run three to five recorded interviews with clients you'd like more of using the ASK framework, so steps 1, 8 and 13 come from their words rather than your guesses.

Copy and paste: five lines that answer a buyer's problem

We know your market, and we'll make a film that delivers the business outcome you want.

Where it helps, we'll suggest another way of looking at it, based on work we've done before: "We did a project for [similar client] and I think that concept may work here."

We'll deliver within budget and make it easy for you, even if you've never done this before.

We'll make a film to your brief, not to our own creative needs.

We'll communicate consistently, so you know what to expect at every stage of production.

Write the avatar up on one A4 page and give it a first name. Paste the worksheet into a document and fill it in.

Copy and paste: the client avatar worksheet

Avatar first name: [ ]. Type of client: [ ]. Built from (real client or interviews): [ ]

1. Wants, needs, desires and aspirations, in their words: [ ]

2. Demographics: [ ]. Psychographics: [ ]

3. Business needs ranked 1 to 6 (avoid risk, avoid hassle, gain praise, gain power, have fun, make a profit): [ ]

4. Dream scenario, and how it feels: [ ]

5. Nightmare scenario, and how it feels: [ ]

6. Emotional triggers when deciding: [ ]

7. Awareness when they first meet us (unaware, problem, solution, product, most aware): [ ]

8. Current problems, and what's causing each: [ ]

9. Five things that will solve their problems: [1] [2] [3] [4] [5]

10. Three to five things they should hear from us: [ ]

11. Three to five things they want to hear: [ ]

12. Who else has a say: [role]. What matters to them: [ ]. What they want to avoid: [ ]. What they want to achieve: [ ]. What they think our buyer is thinking: [ ]

13. The experience that would turn them into a raving fan: [ ]

The client we'd avoid, in three lines: [ ]

A worked example: two buyers for the same production company

Beth and Bill are illustrations from my avatar workshop, not real clients. Either could hire the same production company, and you wouldn't talk to them the same way.

Step	Beth	Bill
2. Who they are	29, marketing lead at a large healthcare device manufacturer, lives in the London suburbs. Yoga, vegan, lives as green as she can.	62, owns an engineering firm making parts for aircraft and yacht vacuum toilets. His wife is the CFO. Golf every Saturday, likes to spend on quality.
3. Top needs	Gain praise, have fun. Profit sits low.	Avoid risk, avoid hassle, make a profit.
6. Emotional triggers	Spending part of her department's budget on a product launch. Two video campaigns behind her, stretched across several projects, nervous about the spend next to print.	Spending his own money. Can't be fooled by flashy creative, wants a tangible outcome.
7. Awareness	Solution aware: she worked with a production company in her last job and still knows the crew.	Problem aware: his daughter, who works in marketing, keeps telling him to make a video for Facebook.
12. Who else has a say	Her boss, who fears a budget blowout and is testing Beth on a bigger project before promoting her.	His wife, protecting profit ahead of an exit in three years, and his daughter, wary he'll get ripped off.
13. Raving fan	Her boss credits her judgement, the MD praises the campaign, and the team line you up for a chat about more projects.	A lapsed client sees the video on LinkedIn and places an order. He recommends you to his suppliers.

Beth needs the step 10 lines: a clear brief, on time and on budget, an enjoyable process, and a film that earns her praise for the decision. Bill needs the budget, the outcome and a reference: "We did a project for a wheel manufacturing company last year, and I think that film might work well here."

The mistakes that undo it

The rule of thumb for client avatars

One avatar for each type of client, built from a real client, with every message written to that one person. Benchmark: one to three client types, three to five ASK interviews, all 13 steps answered, and the result on one A4 page with a first name at the top.

Hold yourself accountable

Your one move this week

What's the one thing you can commit to implementing this week? If you're not sure, start here.

Pick the client you'd most like ten more of. Paste the worksheet into a document and fill in steps 2, 3, 6 and 12 from what you already know, in one sitting. Then ask that client for an ASK conversation to check the rest.