A clear description of your customers helps you refine your product or service, making it stand out and appeal to them. Knowing your customers also allows you to focus your efforts and resources on the people most likely to buy from you.

Who are your customers? How do you identify them? What are their behaviors, attitudes, and preferences? Focusing on the right customers helps you market smarter and more efficiently.

To really understand your customers, you need to think like them. This helps you see why they would choose your product. For example, some people value convenience, like home delivery, while others want quality products because they can afford it and prefer it.

Let’s explore a real-life example of customer understanding with Amani Mohamed, a dairy business owner. What can we learn from her?

Amani Mohamed is a 35-year-old entrepreneur, married with two children. She runs a dairy business with her sister and works closely with local farmers to source quality raw materials. Amani is bilingual, speaking both English and Arabic, and is very dedicated to both her products and her suppliers.

Amani spends most of her days traveling 30 minutes to an hour from town to her manufacturing site. Her attention to detail ensures high-quality products. She also enjoys connecting with the farmers’ wives, offering advice and sharing her experiences. Amani sells her products in a small shop, and her loyal customer base loves her cheese, yogurt, and other local dairy favorites.

Amani dreams of growing her business and expanding Sudan’s agricultural sector. She’s working with her sister to secure a loan from Faisal Islamic Bank and exploring deals with other banks to purchase new machinery. However, as her business grows, her customers are requesting better facilities in her shop—a need Amani is eager to meet if she can access more resources.

Recently, Amani took part in a business training program where she learned essential skills like bookkeeping, accounting, and ways to improve her operations. She continues to build strong relationships in her community, often being in town on market days to meet customers and suppliers.

Now, let’s break down Amani’s profile to better understand her as a customer.

• Name: Amani Mohamed
• Female, 35 years old, married with 2 children
• Runs a dairy business with her sister
• Speaks both English and Arabic

• Entrepreneur in the dairy sector
• Completed basic education and business training
• Supports local farmers and follows her personal values

• Passionate about quality and helping her community
• Strong relationship with farmers, offering training and support
• Guided by her values and commitment to excellence

• Daily travels to oversee production and maintain high standards
• Runs a retail shop for selling her dairy products
• Actively engages with farmers, offering mentorship

• Provide top-quality dairy products to her customers
• Expand her business and grow the agricultural sector in Sudan
• Seeking financial support to improve her facilities and grow production

• Customers are asking for better facilities in her shop
• Limited access to resources is slowing down her business growth

• Produces a range of high-quality dairy products
• Recently trained in bookkeeping and business operations, improving her skills

Amani Mohamed’s profile gives us a clear understanding of her motivations, challenges, and potential. By understanding her needs, we can create solutions that help her grow her business, whether that’s through better shop facilities or access to financial services.

Additional Resources: Watch What are Customer Personas?