In this article, we have Mr. Paritosh Sharma, Professor at the Bada Business, who shares an informative piece on how to build a strong end-user profile. Knowing your end-user in detail is fundamental for developing your product, perfecting your sales approach, and growing your business.

Key Note #1: Who is an End-User?

One of the most important pieces of information that you need in order to interact with your customers is who the end-user is. An end-user is the person who actually uses the product or service and pays for it. With regards to the business sector, the end-user is the individual who is part of the Decision Making Unit, or DMU, but does not use the product.

End User:  The individual paying for and using the product. Using a soap making company as an example, the end-user in this case would be the individual who buys the soap from the shop. This is typically a housewife, for instance, who is purchasing soap for her family.

Decision-Making Unit (DMU): This unit has the power to influence the decision to purchase a particular product. This unit consists of three main parts:

Champion: This individual can recommend or suggest your product, but does not buy it. They can help give your product good word of mouth.

These types of buyers pay for the product without using it. Like in this example where a housewife gets soap to be used by a maid. This would be classified under primary economic buyers.

Аn influencer is someome who impacts a decision being made. When it comes to Business to Business dealings, the purchasing Influencing departments have a very important role in the final negotiations on the wage rate and the deal’s terms.

“Take good care of your customer, or else you will quickly become another push sales business surviving on scant few customers.”

Such remarks suggest that attention should not be solely put on sales and that there are other aspects to consider. You have to know how to deal with your clients, otherwise your company runs the risk of going out of business.

Key Note #2: Why Create an End-User Profile?

There are many reasons for developing an end-user profile, however, the most important is being able to know who your end-user is because that helps you target your product appropriately, along with formulating a relevant sales strategy. There are two primary reasons to create an end-user profile:

Varied End-Users: After you streamline your beachhead market, chances are you’ll come across different categories of end-users. Profiling assists in determining many customers, out of the numerous available, are likely to purchase your product. For example, suppose you have 40 customers, each using either product A, B, C, or D. If your product collaborates with only one, you would not be able to serve all these customers. Profiling ensures to focus on homogenous customers, making it much easier to strategize product development and marketing.

Golden Statement:”As a startup, your aim is to target as many homogeneous peoples as possible within the end user base.”

In other words, to achieve success for your startup, it means that you have to focus your efforts on a specific audience who share particular traits, preferences, and interests.

End Users Shape Your Sales Strategy: When you identify your end-users, you’ll know how best to approach your sales strategy. This works in both B2B and B2C sales – knowing what the customer wants will help you decide how to sell your product.

For instance:

A B2C client of us is Patanjali, an FMCG company that knows its ideal end-users are in Tier 2 and 3 cities. Patanjali, therefore, concentrates on smaller towns and villages rather than attempting to establish a foothold in the metropolitan areas.

A B2B client is ZOHO which builds software for small businesses. Initially, ZOHO’s marketing efforts were focused on small business owners. This allowed ZOHO to build value for small businesses and gradually increase its product offerings to larger companies.

It’s vital to understand who the end-user is to make sure marketing and sales activities are in sync with the needs of the customer.

Key Note #3: 11-Point Template for Building an End User Profile

To develop a comprehensive end-user profile, the 11 questions provided should be analyzed. You will gain knowledge of your customer base and adjust how you market your services or products:

What is their gender?

Determine if your product is targeted towards one gender or if it is for all.

What is their age demographic?

Their age impacts their spending habits. Understanding the age of your end-users will assist you in custom-designing your product and marketing campaign.

What is their income demographic?  

Knowing your customers’ income level is critical in setting the right price for the service/ product offered.

What is their region of residence?

Marketing and products could be influenced by and designed for particular regions, and geographical area can impact where and how the product is marketed.

What inspires or motivates them?  

Understand the things that inspire your customer’s buying behavior. What wants, aims, or necessities that your product fulfills do they possess?

What do they fear the most?  

A customer’s fear such as FOMO (fear of missing out) matters when trusting you and understanding your product’s concerns.

Who do they look up to?  

Every customer has someone who they look up to for inspiration. This could be a celebrity, a professional or someone whose traits they admire.

What place do they visit for holidays?  

This form of questioning can assist in knowing what lifestyle they live and their interests.

What news paper,website or video do they follow?  

Understanding where your customer sources his/her information from helps you to market and advertise your product to him.

What’s the main reason people purchase this product?

Savings: What’s the perception regarding your product’s economy or cost-effective nature?

Image: Does the product usage intervene the wearing or status increasing social or self-imaging effect?

Peer Pressure: Do social associates force buying desires toward this product?

What makes them identifiable & special?  

Everyone should understand who differentiates them and how they relate with the product or brand. Knowing their story makes it easier to relate to the customer base.

The M.A.P (Massive Action Plan)

To enact, observe these steps:

Make Your End-User Profile:

Using the 11-points template, sketch an exhaustive description of your end-user here.

Revisit Your Beachhead Market:

Go back to the second/video article about definition of a beachhead market. Try understanding how many possible users there are in your given market division and try to change your plan accordingly.

Alter Your Sales Strategy:

Conform your sales strategy to the needs of the end-user.

Conclusion

Creating a detailed end-user profile is a key component to working a successful startup. This profile allows you to better understand your customers and what drives them which helps you enhance the product, upgrade your sales strategies, and secure sustainable growth. If you follow the steps in this article, you will be able to understand your end-users better and drive your business towards success.