If Your Buyer Persona Looks Like This, It’s Wrong

Persona Name: Imaging Services Inc.

Job: Medical Imaging

Industry: Healthcare

Challenges:

• Needs a new MRI machine to meet patient demand for scans
• Looking for a machine with the latest technology to offer a wider range of scans and improve image quality.
• Needs to stay within budget constraints while considering factors like installation costs, maintenance costs, and staff training.

Needs:

• A high-field MRI machine with a strong magnet for detailed images.
• Financing options to spread out the cost of the machine.
• Excellent customer service and technical support from the vendor.

Let’s assume that you’re a B2B startup in the healthcare sector selling imaging machines.

The above is a great example of a buyer persona right, right?

You’ve painted a clear avatar that includes their pain points, challenges, and needs.

Heck, you’ve even gone as far as considering technical support to offer!

Now, you know how to pitch your startup that sells MRI machines to them.

Well, you’re wrong!

If your buyer persona as a B2B startup looks like that, then you must read this article till the end.

If you’re making sales with that buyer persona, then hey! That’s great!

But there are so many more customers you could get just by adjusting that template a little bit.

Creating a Buyer Persona as a Startup is Different

When I worked with my startup client in the healthcare sector, I realized that the research that goes into making pitches for startups is way different.

I made the mistake of assuming what our potential customer problems were.

My mindset was:

“They have this issue, so our product will be perfect for them!”

And I was wrong!

The buyer persona I provided at the beginning was a typical example of what I had. And it’s what a lot of startups have too.

When you’re creating buyer personas, you’re creating a semi-fictional person who represents many people. And while that’s great, it doesn’t work the same way with start-ups.

Why?

You already have many competitors who are probably providing your potential customers with the same services. Why should they leave them for you?

As a startup, your buyer persona needs to be at least 95% accurate.

You need to know your potential customers like you wake up and go to work with them every single day.

It’s not impossible.

3 Steps to Create Better Buyer Personas as a Startup

These are the three things I did to create more accurate buyer personas that increased our leads and 5x sales at the end of that month

1. Talk to Customers

In my case, I thought I had done everything right until I decided to pick up the phone and talk to our existing and potential customers.

In another article, I’ll tell you how to do this without coming across as desperate.

I asked about their daily challenges, goals, and what they looked for in a solution.

You know what else I did?

I let them talk.

People tend to yap a lot, especially when they’re talking about themselves and their problems.

There’s research to back it up. Try it!

Once they got into their problems, they began to tell me how their machines were really old and slow and made noises that scared their patients.

I’d also learned about a new brand they almost patronized but it was really expensive.

2. Analyze All Communication Channels

Then, I analyzed data from our sales and customer success teams to identify hurdles in communication.

At what point did customers stop responding? Was it when we mentioned our price?

What did they respond to the most? Was it the fact that our product was noise-proof? Created with the latest technology? With 5x increased speed?

3. Create Multiple Buyer Personas

After combining everything, I created several detailed buyer personas that accurately reflected our target audience.

It wasn’t enough to have just 2 or 3 personas. I needed about 10.

Remember, marketing for startups differs completely from established businesses.

You need to be extremely detailed and accurate.

Now, let’s revamp our earlier buyer persona

A Proper Analysis of Imaging Services Inc.

While the provided buyer persona outlines some valid challenges and needs, it falls short for a B2B startup selling MRI machines. Here’s why:

❌ Imaging Services Inc. is too generic

Yes, it is a business-to-business product, but your sales pitch will go to an individual or a group of individuals. A real buyer persona would pinpoint a specific decision-maker within the organization, like the Director of Imaging Services. This will enable you to think like them and make a more convincing pitch.

❌ The needs are too broad

High-field MRI and financing are common desires. A strong persona would highlight deeper unique needs. Do they prioritize speed, portability, patient comfort, or specific functionalities? What does their budget look like?

❌ Go beyond the single persona

Healthcare facilities have diverse needs. Consider separate personas for a busy outpatient clinic vs. a high-volume research hospital.

❌ Focus on decision-making dynamics

Who besides the director has a say? Include the radiologists who will use the machine and technicians who maintain it.

A Better Example

• Persona: Dr. Sarah Green, Chief Radiologist at City General Hospital
• Challenges: City General sees a surge in complex neurological cases requiring advanced MRI capabilities. Their current machine is nearing the end of its lifespan and struggles with some scan types.
• Needs: Dr. Green prioritizes high-field MRI with advanced functionalities for neurological scans. Patient comfort is crucial, especially for claustrophobic patients. Since the budget is tight, finding financing options with low upfront costs is essential. The budget is around $2000

This persona reveals deeper needs:

• Specific functionalities for neurological scans
• Features to address patient claustrophobia
• Financial options tailored to budget constraints

Conclusion

Creating an effective buyer persona for a startup takes time and lots of effort, as you can see. But the results are worth it.

Please take some time to go over this post again and use the tips for whatever industry you work in. If you’d like, I can help you create a buyer persona to scale your B2B startup by generating leads and increasing sales, just like I did with my client company.

Just send me a text, and I’d be happy to help.