Most ecommerce founders hit a growth wall because they’re spending time and money targeting the wrong people. The truth is, no matter how great your product is, if you’re speaking to the wrong audience, your results will be inconsistent.
That’s where Perfect Customer Avatars come in.
This post will show you how to create one, how it helps you build marketing that converts, and how it connects directly with finding profitable customer acquisition channels using frameworks like Bullseye Marketing. It’s a core part of the growth system used at Gro, and a non-negotiable for any founder aiming to scale.
What Is a Perfect Customer Avatar?
A Perfect Customer Avatar is a clear, detailed profile of your ideal customer. It outlines exactly who you’re trying to reach with your marketing and product.
This includes:
- Who they are
- What their daily life looks like
- What problems they face
- Where they spend time
- What they dream of fixing
Most founders make the mistake of saying, “We sell to everyone.” But as Joel Atkinson, founder of Gro, puts it: “If you’re selling to everyone, you’re selling to no one.”
In early-stage ecommerce, where time and budget are limited, your marketing needs to be hyper-specific. A Perfect Customer Avatar ensures you are only spending time and money reaching the people most likely to buy.
Why Most Marketing Misses the Mark
In the early stages of growing a business, marketing often feels like throwing spaghetti at a wall. You try Facebook Ads, then a bit of TikTok, maybe a giveaway, then switch to email — and nothing sticks. That’s usually because the message isn’t tailored to the right person.
A common scenario from the Gro programme:
- You’ve built a great-looking product
- You’ve launched a decent-looking website
- But you don’t know who exactly it’s for
As Joel teaches in Gro’s training, this isn’t about guessing. Founders must actively build a clear picture of who they want to serve and why. When you get this right, the entire customer journey — from ad to checkout — becomes far more effective.
The 5 Building Blocks of a Perfect Customer Avatar
At Gro, founders are coached to create avatars using the following five sections:
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Key Attributes
You start by defining demographics and business criteria. This could include:
- Job title or role
- Type of business
- Annual income
- Location and stage of life
If you’re targeting gym-goers, are they casual members or dedicated lifters? If it’s retailers, are they independents or chains?
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Desires and Aspirations
What does your customer actually want?
This includes:
- Growing their income
- Saving time
- Solving a personal frustration
- Feeling more confident
- Standing out in their niche
Your product must speak directly to these desires.
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Pain Points and Challenges
Next, uncover what’s frustrating them. At Gro, this is where the real clarity often comes.
If you know what’s blocking your customer from getting what they want, you can position your product as the fix.
This might include:
- Wasting money on low-quality alternatives
- Feeling overwhelmed by choice
- Confused about where to start
- Struggling with consistency
-
Day-to-Day Life
This is where you picture their world in detail. Ask questions like:
- Where are they at 8am?
- What platforms do they check first?
- Are they commuting, in meetings or at home?
- What podcasts or YouTube content do they follow?
The more specific this becomes, the easier it is to build content, ads and offers that fit directly into their lifestyle.
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Digital and Physical Habits
Where do they spend their time?
- Instagram, Reddit, TikTok or YouTube?
- Reading blogs or watching how-to videos?
- Shopping in-store or browsing late at night online?
You’ll use this insight to help prioritise which marketing channels to test through the Bullseye Framework.
How This Helps You Choose the Right Marketing Channel
Once you have your Perfect Customer Avatar, marketing becomes easier. Instead of guessing what will work, you can look directly at your avatar and make decisions based on their world.
For example:
- If they’re active in niche Facebook groups, try community-led outreach
- If they’re searching Google for in-depth advice, focus on blog content and SEO
- If they watch YouTube reviews or use TikTok, lean into video content
- If they respond well to visual design and branding, focus on Instagram or UGC
Your avatar provides the direction. From there, the Bullseye Marketing Framework helps you test channels quickly, avoid waste and focus on what actually works.
This is exactly what the Gro team teaches. Founders come into the programme feeling stuck. They leave with a map of who they’re serving, how they buy, and where they hang out — and that changes everything.
Avoiding the Common Trap
One of the biggest mistakes we see founders make is building out content, ads and websites before building their customer avatar.
The result?
- Ads that don’t convert
- Content no one reads
- Messaging that doesn’t land
Joel said it best during one of Gro’s training sessions: even if people outside your target avatar buy from you, you never market to them. Focus only on those most likely to buy. Everything else is a distraction.
A Real-World Example From the Gro System
One founder in the Gro system was building a product for science-based lifters. Their early messaging was broad, focusing on general fitness.
Through the avatar process, they discovered:
- Their audience valued data over trends
- They followed specific evidence-based fitness creators
- They actively disliked fitness hype culture
- They wanted performance without fluff
This insight shifted everything. They refined their landing pages, cut back on influencer gimmicks, and focused on trust-building content. Sales went up, returns dropped, and their audience finally felt like someone “got” them.
Your Next Step
If you’re serious about growing your ecommerce business, start by building your Perfect Customer Avatar. It might feel like a marketing exercise, but it’s actually a growth tool.
Here’s how to do it:
- Choose your ideal buyer — not just who buys, but who you want to serve long term
- Write down their daily behaviours, needs, frustrations and buying habits
- Look at where they already spend time online
- Use this to guide which marketing channels to test next
- Refine the avatar regularly as you learn more
Done right, this exercise saves you months of trial and error. It gives you messaging that cuts through noise, and a roadmap for sustainable growth.
