Buyer Persona: What it is, types, how to create it and examples

by Moises Hamui December 14, 2023

A buyer persona is a semi-fictional representation of your ideal client, based on real data and specific market studies .

It helps you define who this audience is that you want to attract and convert , and above all, it helps you humanize and understand a target audience in greater depth.

In this article, we will explain what a buyer persona is, what types exist, how to create one step by step, and some practical examples so you can apply it to your business.

What is a buyer persona?

A buyer persona is a marketing tool that allows you to understand the demographic, psychographic and behavioral characteristics of your ideal customers.

In other words, they are fictitious but realistic profiles that reflect the needs, motivations, challenges and consumption habits of your target audience.

The goal of creating a buyer persona is to have a clearer and more detailed vision of who you are when selling your product or service, what problem you solve for them, and how you can communicate with them effectively.

To create a buyer persona, it is not enough to simply collect general data about your current or potential customers. You need to do a deeper, more immersive analysis that allows you to identify common patterns among them and segment them according to their distinctive characteristics.

Digital Marketing Strategy: What it is, Types and How to create one

What types of buyer personas exist?

There are different ways to classify buyer personas depending on the criteria used. Some of the most common categories are:

According to the purchasing process: this refers to the moment in which the potential client is in relation to your offer. It can be from the first contact to loyalty.

Buyer persona 1 : These are potential customers who do not yet know your product or service and have no intention of purchasing it.
Buyer persona 2 : These are potential customers who have learned about your product or service but are not yet convinced or determined to buy it.
Buyer Persona 3 : These are potential customers who have purchased your product or service but are not yet satisfied or do not recommend it.
Buyer persona 4 : These are customers who are satisfied with your product or service and recommend it to others.

According to demographic profile: refers to the basic characteristics of the potential client such as age, sex, geographic location, educational level or income.

Buyer persona 5 : These are potential customers who are of a certain age (for example: between 25 and 35 years old).
Buyer persona 6 : These are potential customers who have a certain gender (for example: women).
Buyer persona 7 : These are potential customers who live in a specific geographic location (for example: Madrid).
Buyer persona 8 : These are potential customers who have a certain educational level (for example: bachelor's degree).
Buyer persona 9 : These are potential customers who have a certain income (for example: between 3,000 and 5,000 euros per month).

According to the psychographic profile: it refers to the most profound characteristics of the potential client such as personality, values, attitudes or interests.

Buyer persona 10 : These are potential customers who have an extroverted personality (for example: sociable).
Buyer persona 11 : These are potential customers who share certain values (for example: sustainability).
Buyer persona 12 : These are potential customers who have certain attitudes (for example: innovative).
Buyer persona 13 : These are potential customers who have a certain income level (for example: between 5,000 and 10,000 euros per month).
Buyer persona 14 : These are potential customers who have a specific geographic location (for example: Barcelona).
Buyer persona 15 : These are potential customers who have a certain educational level (for example: master's degree).
Buyer persona 16 : These are potential customers who have specific interests (for example: traveling, reading, playing sports).
Buyer persona 17 : These are potential customers who have certain values (for example: sustainability, social responsibility, diversity).

Lead nurturing: what it is, benefits and how to apply it

How to create a buyer persona?

To create a buyer persona, it is not enough to collect general data about your current or potential customers.

A deeper, more immersive analysis is needed to identify common patterns between them and segment them according to their distinctive characteristics.

The process of creating a buyer persona can vary depending on the type of business, the product or service you offer, and the goal you pursue. However, there are some basic steps you can follow to make this process easier:

Step 1: Define your needs

The first step is to define what needs you want to satisfy with your product or service. What problem do you solve? What value do you provide? What benefits do your customers get from using it?

To answer these questions, you can brainstorm with your team, analyze your competition, research your target audience, and validate your hypotheses with surveys or interviews.

Step 2: Collect information about your customers

The second step is to gather information about your current or potential customers. You can use different sources such as your CRM , your social networks , your databases, your web analytics tools or mentions on the internet.

The important thing is to obtain real and current data on the demographic, psychographic and behavioral characteristics of your customers. For example:

Demographic data: age, sex, geographic location, educational level or income.
Psychographic data: personality, values, attitudes or interests.
Behavioural data: consumer habits, purchase frequency, brand loyalty or level of satisfaction.

Step 3: Concretize the key points

The third step is to pinpoint the key points that define each buyer persona. These points should be specific and relevant to your business and your ideal customer. For example:

Name and photo
Objectives and challenges
Motivations and frustrations
Solutions sought
Sources of information
Decision criteria
Moment of the purchasing process

Step 4: Build your buyer persona

The fourth step is to build your buyer persona from the information you've gathered. You can use a template or an online tool to give your profile shape and structure.

Ideally, you should include both objective and subjective data to create a more complete and realistic representation.

Step 5: Share and keep improving

The fifth step is to share your buyer persona with your team and other business-related areas. This will help you better align your marketing, sales, and customer service strategies with the needs and interests of your ideal customer.

Additionally, you should keep your buyer persona updated periodically to reflect changes in the market, consumer behavior, or technological trends.

What examples are there?

Below we show you some practical examples of buyer personas for different types of businesses:

Example 1: B2B buyer persona

A typical example is as follows:

Name: Ana Garcia
Photo: [image]
Goals: increase sales of the commercial department
Challenges: get new qualified clients
Motivations: improve your professional performance
Frustrations: wasting time on administrative tasks
Solutions sought: Automate the sales process from prospecting to closing: blogs, podcasts, webinars or ebooks on digital marketing
Decision criteria: price, features, technical support or testimonials from other customers
Moment of the purchase process: consideration

This buyer persona is an example of a B2B business that offers a software solution to automate the sales process.

Ana García is the head of the sales department of a medium-sized company and is looking for a tool that will help her optimize her time and increase her sales.

How to create a personal brand and an online reputation

Example 2: B2C buyer persona

Another common example is as follows:

Name: Carlos Perez
Photo: [image]
Age: 35 years
Sex: male
Geographic location: Mexico City
Educational level: degree
Income: 8000 pesos per month
Personality: introvert
Values: health, family, environment
Attitudes: responsible, calm, thrifty
Interests: reading, exercising, watching series
Consumption habits: Buy online, look for offers, compare reviews
Purchase frequency: monthly
Brand loyalty: high
Level of satisfaction: half

This buyer persona is an example of a B2C business that sells eco-friendly personal care products. Carlos Perez is a regular customer who values the quality and sustainability of the products he consumes.

However, he is not entirely satisfied with the customer service or the variety of options offered by the brand.

What mistakes should I avoid when creating a buyer persona?

Some of the mistakes you should avoid when creating a buyer persona are:

Not doing proper research on your target audience

It is important to collect real and current data on the characteristics, needs, motivations and behaviors of your potential customers.

To do this, you can use different sources such as your CRM, your social networks, your databases, your web analysis tools or mentions on the Internet.

Not segmenting your buyer persona according to the purchasing process

You need to identify the stage your potential customer is in in relation to your offer and adapt your message and strategy to each stage .

For example, if it's a buyer persona 1 (who doesn't yet know your product or service), you should focus on raising awareness and educating about the problem you solve; if it's a buyer persona 3 (who has purchased your product or service but is not satisfied), you should focus on building customer loyalty and improving the customer experience.

Do not use templates or online tools to create your buyer persona

It is a good idea to use a template or an online tool to help you shape and structure your profile. This way, you can include both objective and subjective data to create a more complete and realistic representation.

Plus, you'll save time and effort by avoiding common mistakes like repeating the same questions or including irrelevant information.

Not sharing or updating your buyer persona with your team and other business-related areas

It's critical to share your buyer persona with the people you work with to better align marketing, sales, and customer service strategies with the needs and interests of your ideal customer.

You should keep your buyer persona updated periodically to reflect changes in the market, consumer behavior, or technological trends.

What is an empathy map and how does it relate to the buyer persona?

An empathy map is a tool that allows you to understand the emotions, thoughts, motivations and problems of your ideal client. It is a visual representation that helps you put yourself in their shoes and better understand their behavior and needs.

The relationship between the empathy map and the buyer persona is that the former is a method for creating the latter. That is, the empathy map allows you to generate hypotheses about the characteristics of your ideal client, while the buyer persona allows you to validate those hypotheses with real data.

To create an empathy map, you need to ask yourself a series of questions about what your ideal client thinks, feels, says, does, sees, hears, is frustrated by, and motivates them.

Written by Moises Hamui Abadi : I am an entrepreneur, founding partner of Viceversa and SoyMacho. After leading several digital businesses and advising several other businesses, I decided to form MHA Consulting, a digital marketing consultancy dedicated to growing and empowering digital businesses in more than 7 countries and generating more than 1,500 million pesos.