After you identify what is the customer’s pain your idea or business concept is going to solve, you also want to know specifically who is feeling the pain caused by this problem and how many such people are out there. In developing an overall business strategy and market plan, the entrepreneur should be able to talk in detail about specific people in specific roles at specific companies that have decision-making power and who would pay for the solution your company is proposing. Here are some good questions to consider in evaluating your knowledge of the target market:
- What does the ideal customer for your business look like? Where do they live?
- How many of them are out there? How do you know?
- How will you get your message to this audience?
- Assuming you can “reach them” – what sort of value do customers place on a solution to the problem the company is addressing (price elasticity)?
- How do you know? Has anyone bought the solution the business is offering at that price?
- What departments in what industries (or what consumers) have budgets specifically allocated to solving the problem?
- How will the customer’s job or life change (be improved) if the problem is solved?
- How long is the sales cycle?
- What are the customer’s key criteria in making a purchase decision?