Step-By-Step Guide To Creating A Customer Avatar For Your Coaching Business

You decided to become a coach and launch your online business so you could make an impact in the lives of people who need your genius, earn more money than your measly 9-5 paycheck, and never have to ask for a day off ever again. Am I right? 

But after weeks or even months of telling all your friends and family, posting on social media channels, and networking your butt off, all you hear is crickets. Nothing.  

Not a single client in sight. Talk about frustrating!

But let me ask you a question: Who is your dream client? Who do you imagine talking to when you’re posting to the ‘gram or sending an email? If you can’t answer these questions quickly and with precision, then I’m willing to bet that’s the roadblock between you and booking clients. 

As someone who’s nailed down who their dream client is, I can promise you one thing: Knowing you want to work with is ridiculously important to your business, and it’s the difference between burnout and success. 

That’s why I’m letting you in on my step-by-step process to creating a crystal clear customer avatar, so you can craft messaging, build courses, and offer services your dream clients will swoon over. 

Shake up a spicy marg and grab your notebook—it’s time to dive in! 

What Is A Customer Avatar? 

Buyer persona. Ideal customer. Marketing avatar. Target customer.

These are commonly used words to describe one of the most foundational elements of a successful, six-figure, and beyond business. And that’s what you’re aiming for, right? 

By definition, a customer avatar is a detailed profile of YOUR dream client. Notice how I didn’t say your average buyer. We’re not simply talking about people who purchase your digital products or book your services. 

A customer avatar outlines that one particular person you would kill to work with…the “I officially made it” factor. They’re the high-spending, loyal, buy-everything-you’re selling type of customer. 

But that type of person looks different to every coach.

It includes more than the superficial elements of their age, gender, occupation, and income (not to say those aren’t important). It encompasses their goals, values, and pain points. It includes the types of stores they shop at, the publications they read, the kind of coffee they drink. Get my point? 

It outlines everything you need to know, so you can write words that connect with them and build offers that make an impact in THEIR lives. 

Step 1: Create An Artificial Character

The first rule of creating a customer avatar is to focus on a singular person—not a grouping of similar people. Attach a name to your dream client—this will help you visualize the specific person you want to work with. 

Then start by jotting down the basics: 

• Age 
• Gender 
• Marital status 
• Number of children & age 
• Location 
• Occupation/income 
• Job title 

The key is getting as specific as possible. If you asked your dream client how old they are, they would never respond by saying 25 – 35. While they might lie about their age (almost all of us are guilty of that), they would give you a specific number. Don’t worry about getting too specific—I promise this fictitious person you’re creating does exist! 

Step 2: Determine Their Goals And Values

Congratulations, you’re officially diving further into your customer persona than the vast majority of business owners. Taking the time to go through these next few steps is the difference between consistently chasing clients that aren’t paying anywhere close to your worth and signing swoon-worthy clients that give you the time, freedom, and income you’re working so hard for. 

Now, ask yourself: What is the big picture transformation your ideal client wants to achieve? What are their short and long-term goals? What are the values they won’t compromise on? Don’t skimp on answering these questions. Don’t guess or make assumptions. You’ll need to conduct in-depth market research to get these answered. 

Pay attention to the questions your potential clients are asking on social media and dive into the comments section. Create a poll on your IG Stories. Conduct a focus group. The answers to these questions will largely dictate the types of freebies, digital products, courses, webinars, and anything else you create. 

Step 3: Identify Their Challenges And Pain Points 

Whether they are trying to transform their personal life or business (or both because we know it’s allll connected), your clients have big, lofty goals. And they’ve likely tried and failed to achieve them multiple times. 

So, what’s stopping them from the success they so desperately want? Why haven’t they dropped those 60lbs they’ve promised they would lose every New Year’s Eve? Why haven’t they saved enough to buy the dream house that’s been on their vision board for the last five years? Why haven’t they quit their soul-crushing 9-5 or reached six-figures? 

They’ve hit a roadblock or multiple. And those challenges are what’s stopping them from handing over their hard-earned cash to buy your products or book your services. Unless you can show your dream clients how you can help them achieve the transformation they dream about. 

Step 4: Dive Deeper Into Their Personal Life 

Alright, I know what you’re thinking…“How the heck will knowing what stores my ideal customer shops at or what coffee they drink help me market my coaching business?” Stay with me; I promise it’ll all make sense. 

Remember that time you saw a photo of someone sipping on a spicy margarita in their PJs at 10 AM on a Saturday? Or a video of someone filling their shopping cart with every Hearth and Home decor product Target carries? I bet you quickly double-clicked their content, stalked their account, and gave them a follow because, “heck yeah, girl, you get me!” 

You see, too many business owners are afraid of showing the real and the raw of their lives because they don’t want to turn people off or alienate any of their followers. But the reality is, if you lean into things you and your dream clients have in common, you’ll have an easier time establishing and building a relationship with them. And over time, they’ll get to know you better, trust you, and turn to you when they need your services.

Are you ready to start working with the clients of your dreams? The ones who connect with you on all levels, who value your pricing, who are easy to talk to, and who make all the time and energy you put into your business worth it…

Creating a crystal clear customer avatar is the foundation for building a successful business. It’ll allow you to grow a community of like-minded people, generate qualified leads ready to buy, and easily convert followers into paying customers without breaking a sweat. And the best part? Once you’ve mastered these steps, you can use them over and over again to create additional avatars. 

Now that you’ve gone above and beyond to create your customer avatar, are you ready to take your marketing to the next level? Download my Six-Figure Marketing Strategy guide, where I’ll show you how to develop a holistic digital marketing plan so you can crush your revenue goals!