Whether you're an employee looking to advance in your current field or a job seeker searching for your next opportunity, defining your career goals and target audience is crucial for success.
In this blog, we'll guide you through the process of defining your career goals and help you identify your ideal “customer profile/company” and “buyer persona/recruiter” for your job search.
By the end of this exercise, you'll have a clear understanding of the profession you want to pursue and the companies and individuals you want to target in your job search. So, let's get started and take the next step in achieving your career goals!
Time to define your career goal 👊
A career goal is a well-defined statement explaining the profession that an individual intends to pursue throughout his career.
Career goals can be long-term or short-term - the important thing is that they are time-bound. We like to separate career cycles into 3 - 5 years.
It is important for every employee or job seeker to define their career goals clearly, as it helps you to come up with effective action plans.
So, now that we know what a career goal is… let’s talk about what goals should look like. To learn how to develop short- and long-term career goals, remember that they should be SMART.
Examples:
- “Total world domination!” - Bad goal
- “Land my first job as an SDR by December 15th 2020 in a company in line with my values and a clear growth path” - Good goal
- “Work for 2-3 years in a company with a structured learning path and a strong mentor to learn how to work within a team and master sales basics to decide what I want to specialize on in the future” - Good goal
Your turn!
🎯 Objective: Define your SMART career goal
⚙️ Instructions:
- Taking into consideration your values, your top skills, and your brand attributes, now it’s time to define your professional goal.
- Don’t worry if it’s not clear or a little vague right now, write what you can.
Now that you have your goal, let’s check. Is it:
- Specific
- Measurable
- Action-oriented
- Realistic
- Time-bound
🏆 Congrats, you have your SMART career goal.
Now that you have a clear understanding of your career goals, it's time to take the next step in your job search process and define your Ideal Customer Profile (ICP) and Ideal Buyer Persona (IBP). These two concepts will help you identify the type of companies and people you should be targeting in your job search for the best chances of success.
Let's get started!
But what do ICP and IBP mean? 🤔
- Your ideal customer profile (ICP) is a description of the type of company people try to sell to. In this context, it refers to what kind of companies would you like to work for? Specific industries? Sizes? Cultural values? Geography?
- Your buyer persona (IBP) is a detailed analysis of the people within that company who buy from the seller. In this context, it refers to the people within those companies, who are the decision-makers and key stakeholders you will be dealing with? Heads of Sales? Heads of HR? Talent Acquisition Reps? Recruiters? CEO’s?
It’s now time to define your Ideal Customer Profile and Ideal Buyer Persona for your job search.
One of the biggest mistakes that you can make is trying to create a personal brand that appeals to everyone. Your branding and message should be tailored to your ICP and IBP and resonate with them.
Your turn!
🎯 Objective: Define your target audience
⚙️ Instructions:
- Write down a list of potential ICP’s and ICB’s for your job search.
- For the companies, focus on industries, geographies, company culture…
- For personas, usually, in your case it will likely be someone in the HR or Sales team, for example Recruiters, HR Managers, Sales Managers etc.
- Don’t worry if you’re not 100% who the ideal company and/or persona is yet, this is completely normal. Write what you can, and adjust as you progress through your job hunt.
Congrats now you have defined the target audience for your job hunt. This will enable you to tailor your application to the specific needs and requirements of the hiring company and know how to better connect with the recruiter, thereby increasing your chances of standing out as a strong candidate.
We hope that this blog has provided you with the necessary tools and guidance to help you define your career smart goal and ideal target audience.
Good luck on your career journey!🚀
This article belongs to the ultimate guide to securing your dream job in 2023! Join us as we embark on a journey of exploration and discovery, diving into the secrets of building and promoting a standout professional identity, mastering the art of crafting a winning CV, LinkedIn profile, and networking strategy, and learning the best strategies for finding opportunities, acing interviews, and making the right career choices. Check the complete series here out!
Don't miss our next chapter, where we'll guide you through the process of crafting a clear and impactful Personal Brand Statement, setting the tone for your professional identity.
