In my exploration of starting a new biz, I have talked to some companies that specialize in helping younger companies obtain clients and get off the ground. One of these groups is Collaboration, LLC who specializes in the growth of start-up organizations.
I have engaged in some preliminary discussions with Collaboration and while we have not entered into any kind of consulting services agreement, we have had some dialogue about my target market and what kind of client I'm looking for. I've always heard the term demographics when talking about particular groups of people especially when it comes to marketing; however, I was not at all familiar with the term psychographics and after hearing it, I felt a little bit afraid of stepping in the shower.
Basically psychographics are any attributes relating to personality, values, attitudes, interests, or lifestyle of a particular group of people. Unlikes demographics which are characteristics of age, gender, and income level, psychographics pertain to the personality of a particular person or group. But how does this help a start-up?
When an individual or organization is trying to determine from whom they will purchase a product or service several variables come into play. Of course cost, timeliness, and quality are all factors, but could it be true that people want to buy from others that share the same core values and interests as themselves?
I believe so. Why this is, I'm not exactly sure, but I think there is a growing sentiment among consumers that drives them to do business with other like minded organizations, and Collaboration, LLC feels the same way. If your organization prides themselves in their ethical business practice and commitment to social responsibility, it would be somewhat inconsistent to buy products or services from an organization in sharp contrast to your core values.
This is what psychographics is all about and they can include activities, interests, opinions, attitudes, and values. Analyzing the psychographics of organizations or consumers can prove very beneficial when doing market research because your marketing time can return a much higher investment because like minded folks could be more likely to do business together. Have you ever heard the saying, "Those of the same feather flock together?"
Well, even if you're not too familiar with cliches from the 1950's you've probably done business with people mainly because you like them.
I know I have.
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Great article John! Thanks for citing us at Collaboration! You are definetely on track- and we have seen from our clients that the business owners who spend the time to develop a clear understanding of exactely who it is they're going after- are very effective at closing business. And they do it faster than anyone else. You're off to a good start- keep it up!
ReplyDeleteIn regards to construction, it should all be about what people want to do with their life. Starting a business is a lot like looking for something that is congruent with your lifestyle and what it is you want from life. Most of all its about wants, needs and search for pleasure. If you can setup a company or an organiztion that capitalizes on these things then you are well on way to success.
ReplyDeleteToyota has a great analogy for this disucssion. It asks everyone, "what are you going to use the car for?" -- then they proceed to build cars that people want to use.
ReplyDeleteInteresting concept, it does not matter what the age of the driver is.
Good Article John – Psychographics “so to speak” have been and continue to be measured by employers, universities and even some of the more prominent recruiting and out placement firms. Some of the better known psychological evaluation brands are. Myers – Briggs, DISC, not to mention others that delve further into an individual’s personality. These evaluations are usually administered by corporate organizational psychologists; who I have been on both sides of. The more intrusive evaluations are amazingly accurate and help employers place people in jobs that fit their personality and avoid hiring people whose values are either not in line with their institution, or may have more sinister personality flaws. Most of the tests administered by organizational psychologists also measure IQ and more importantly EQ “emotional quotient”. People with a high EQ make the best managers due the ability understand each individual’s personality and manage them appropriately; these high EQ mangers are very effective at getting people to work together very productively. There is a book titled “Primal Leadership” authored by two Harvard B-School professors and published by Harvard Press, there term for EQ is “emotional intelligence”. A Very Psychographical Recommended Read !!
ReplyDeleteBe Well.
Doug