18A - Create a Customer Avatar

In the past, I described my prototypical customer as anyone who moves homes a lot, whether that be for business, family, or schooling, all applied. However, for this exercise I want to start out with the customer that would be most common to me specifically, the customer I will be appealing to first, university and college students moving away for the first time. Many of these students are moving into dorms and apartments in need of some furniture, whether that be some furniture (like nightstands or some chairs,) or a full set of furnishings for their new home. Regardless of their situation, they will all need something that I think I can provide. All of these customers have in common that they are looking for furniture that is cheap and expendable, since they'll only be living on campus for about four years. Usually, students are pretty savvy and look up all the good secondhand furniture sellers online, places like Craig's list and eBay, paying extra close attention to any local sellers; other  students are constantly coming and going and will be getting rid of their old furniture too. This is the target I want to hit, I want the word to spread at this point. My prototypical customer will be most able to be influenced into buying my furniture line here, thinking that they are getting the best deal because other students suggest it. College students, like myself, are constantly looking for secrets and cheats around college life, so hearing about a furniture line that is as cheap as mine, but at the same time stylish and comfortable, it'll be like they've found a gold mine.

The avatar I've created is a person who was just admitted to the University of Florida. A girl from Atlanta who has worked hard to gain her spot in this school, but hasn't really thought out all the details between her high school classes. Once her summer rolls by, she's moved into a dorm room for the first time with nothing but a dresser and a bed. She's brought along the essentials for hygiene and clothes, but not much else. So she begins to look for everything else she needs, trying to save money where she can. She's social, so she goes to flea markets, around campus, and to different social gatherings in order to make friends and look for everything she needs with help. She finds it easy to manage her way around campus with her new friends because some of them are upperclassmen. She finds it easy to relate to them because of their shared social nature, as well as common interests in TV shows and faith.

Knowing myself, I would relate heavily to these prototypical customers; the average college freshman moving away from home. In an unfamiliar location with no one I know from home, the way I'd go about looking for help is through that of my older peers. Juniors and seniors usually know a lot more than I do, so I'd look to them for guidance, and if they suggested something, I'd look into it. I'm quite confident I'm not the only one who does this, meaning that my prototypical customer, who I've sort of made out of my image from a few years ago, is someone I can understand quite well. My avatar certainly isn't a coincidence, I just imagined the average University of Florida student, which I am as well. I think the main difference would be the way in which I look for my items and go about learning. I do so in the comfort of my own home, usually behind a computer or on the phone with friends, not usually going to social events unless needed.