You have to FIND customers to develop them
Helpful MarketingTM for Lean Startupsby Kevin Dewalt
DC LeanStartup
FounderSoHelpful, 3 previous
Angel Investor Collabspot (JFDI), Power Supply (500 Startups), Vericant (???)
Mentor/Advisor 1,000s, mostly Lean Startup
Ruby Programmer
Former VC
kevindewalt.com@kevindewalt
Beijing, China
3rd Major Marketing Shift
Before 1995Mass Advertising
1995 - 2012Niche Marketing
TodayHelpful Marketing
You ignore 99% of your inbox
and 99.9999% of your ads
I hear …
“We can’t FIND customers to DO Customer Development”
“I have paying customers … and they STILL won’t talk to me”
“Nobody reads our blog … or opens our email”
Finding Customers + Winning Trust = EVERYTHING
Worse yet … what works in SV doesn’t work everywhere …
Your Lean Startup stories?
• Challenges finding customers?
• Getting users to return your emails?
Helpful Marketing
A strategy for winning customers by proving you help them solve problems.
Prove you are helpful and customers will …
• Find you
• Trust you
• Buy from you
• Tell everyone about you
And most importantly for Lean Startups …
TELL YOU THEIR PROBLEMS
Fail to win trust?
You product or service needs to be transformative
About … Help
This is what struggling business do …
Case Study # 1 – Customer.io
“The CEO who writes email copy”
Case Study # 2 – Klinify
“The CEO who will sort your email”
“Do you need help with your email?”
Help them through…
Blogging … Speaking … Newsletters … Face-to-Face … 1-on-1 over Skype or Hangout … Webinars … Hangouts on Air … Drip email … ebooks … courses … workshops … organizing meetups … hackathons … office hours
But … how do I … ?
… identify WHO is my customer?
… know WHAT problems they have?
… know HOW to solve them?
… WRITE something?
… get them to READ it?
… use this trust to SELL to them?
… create EVANGELISTS?
… get customers to CALL ME for help?
Let’s Do Helpful Marketing!
1. Create a Target Persona2. Identify a key problem/solution3. Write helpful content4. Get them to find it5. Develop your 1-on-1 help strategy6. Get customers to call you for help7. Take what you learn to develop products
& content that sells
Target Personas bring focus
A fictitious caricature of the most important person your business needs to influence.
(usually the paying customer)
My “Dave” Target Persona
Dave is a 35-year-old American who
lives in Wichita, Kansas. He has a
family, is college educated, and a full-
time job. Dave’s life dream is to
become an entrepreneur and sell
web and mobile products online. He
doesn’t live near a startup hub - and
thus he has a hard time getting
startup advice.
Let’s hear some of your targets!
Name & Demographics
Dave is a 35 yo American living in Wichita … college
educated
Behaviors
Follows regional tech scene … uses twitter for news … reads TechCrunch … read
Running Lean …
Dreams or Needs
Wants to become a web/mobile entrepreneur & make a living selling online
Challenges or Obstacles
Doesn’t have active startup community locally, no way
to get advice
Target Persona
Target Persona Tips
• Based on a REAL person
• Have 1 Target – or at most 2
• Don’t sweat details
How to use your target
• Use it to give FOCUS.
• Pick your Target’s PROBLEMS and help her by providing a SOLUTION.
This is how Gary wins trust …
Example Problem/Solution
Problem
Need to do Customer Development but don’t know where/when to find customers.
Solution
Engage people immediately when they sign up at your landing page
Let’s hear some problems/solutions for written content
My Target Persona’s name is .... XXXXX …
… he/she has a problem …. XXXXX
… I can help her by writing the solution …. XXXXX
Problem/Solution Tips
• Pick a REAL Problem!
• Solution just needs to be helpful.
(tangentially related to your product is ok)
Bad: “problem” that needs your product
Polly Lou lives in a trailer park - loves lobster but can’t afford it.
A Bad McBlog
“Lobster on a
budget!!!!”
Bad Idea
Writing about a “problem” …
… that needs your product as the “solution”
This isn’t helpful …
Hey Kevin …
… can we do Helpful Marketing on MY startup … ?
<shameless plug>
Help them through…
Blogging … Speaking … Newsletters … Face-to-Face … 1-on-1 over Skype or Hangout … Webinars … Hangouts on Air … Drip email … ebooks … courses … workshops … organizing meetups … hackathons … office hours
SoHelpful.me/BruceMcCarthy
</shameless plug>
try.sohelpful.me
Helpful Marketing Workshop DC
This Fall … only 25 spots
Updates & discounts:
1. workshop.sohelpful.me/dc.htm
2. To: [email protected]: Workshop
3. Just give me your card …
Helpful Marketing Workshop DC
Top Related