Social Control

24 February 10

Personas are used by marketers to help them identify and define who they are marketing to. A persona is a short description of a person – a name might even be attached – who typifies the audience that a marketer is trying to target. But with many brands – especially new ones – bypassing the world of traditional marketing, personas run the risk of becoming extinct.

But we need them. In fact, with the web making everything accessible to everyone, we need personas even more!

So, what should your persona look like? Start with something like this imaginary persona for an HR recruiting brand who wants to reach businesses about to hire their first employee.

Jim is a 34 year-old entrepreneur with a graduate degree. He's married with one child and a second one on the way. On the weekends he plays baseball with a local league and he and his wife volunteer at an animal shelter on the weekends. Jim's business is successful and growing and right now Jim does all the work himself and earns a low six-figure income. Jim is interested in investing wisely into his business while reducing the risks to his family's financial health. And this year, he'll be looking to hire his first employee. At this point, he doesn't know where to start or what to do but it's not entirely on his radar yet. He is active in various social media, including Twitter and LinkedIn, and it's highly likely that he will turn here first when looking for guidance.

Based on this type of persona, the HR recruiting brand can identify a few key points about Jim (and people like him) and perfect their digital marketing that way. For example, a presence on Twitter and/or LinkedIn is a start, but there should be more. Using this persona as a guide, a brand can communicate to Jim (and his peers) in ways that Jim understands, appreciates, and connects with. And, brands that represent an array of services might be able to find a back door into Jim's awareness through other offerings first.

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