ICP (Ideal Customer Profile)

updated // 
7.31.2022
2 minutes
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What is an ICP? An ideal customer profile (ICP) is a thorough summary of an ideal customer used to aim marketing and lead generation tactics. An ICP refers to the type of business that would yield the greatest benefits from a company's product or service. Companies that fit into an ICP have the highest likelihood of purchasing and continuing to use a product, which makes them crucial to business growth.

Why is an ICP needed?

An ideal customer profile points sellers and marketers toward who to target and why by assisting when identifying key characteristics that buyers share. A quality ICP is always supported with correct information, such as:

- Company firmographics

- Technographic data

- Funding or IPO status

- Company size

- Annual recurring revenue

- Industry and location

When starting the sales prospecting and lead qualification process, knowing this information is crucial. It helps to make better decisions about the leads that are worth pursuing.

Why is an ICP important?

When a company understands its ideal customers' unique characteristics, it can focus marketing efforts on prospects most likely to convert, eliminating competing voices and maximizing budget.

How is an ICP created?

To begin, identify the best current customers and determine what they have in common. Understand current customers as much as possible to categorize them and understand which are the best. Next, gather and research common attributes from a mix of data sources. Defining the challenges and opportunities your ICPs face is the next step, followed by determining what will be done about them. Creating a document that details each ICP and contains all the information gathered about them is the final step.