Last year a friend and also kind-off the co-founder of my first company came along with what I thought was a ridiculous idea. Despite a career as CFO of leading international operating companies and having worked in that capacity in Europe, China, and the USA, he wants to quit and create a game app.
Despite his busy jobs, he had not forgotten programming and as a Sudoku fan, he wanted to put together a Sudoku App himself. Even though I have seen many ‘special ideas’ in my career and am usually open to everything, I did not see the point in this and immediately thought of a midlife crisis.
But you take friends seriously and so I started a quick scan of the market and the information he had already collected was correct. How could it be otherwise as a true CFO? The gaming market and certainly the Sudoku app market is booming! He would develop the app himself and I would work with him on the strategy, and the business model and take on the marketing. In other words, how do you get enough downloads? In official terms: The customer acquisition plan.
First a good product or first knowing how to get customers?
The heading is a bit misleading because I firmly believe that every startup should start with a clear purpose and a strategy that shows how to meet a certain need of a target group. But of course, we already had that ready when we could talk about the quality of the game app and the customer acquisition methodology.
The problem is that my friend insisted on developing the app himself and therefore had little (or no) time for meetings. I also had little time, because I did this project as a favor to my friend in between work. The result was little progress in the field of customer acquisition.
Even though I have little or no experience with game apps, I knew one thing for sure. If you have a fantastic app, but you haven't set up your acquisition plan, it's better not to launch anything, because you usually don't have to count on downloads.
Another problem was and usually is in practice that activating your customer acquisition plan takes time. Once your plan is ready, it may take weeks or months before it is implemented. This is not useful information if you know that when a (game) app is launched, the number of downloads in the first weeks is crucial for its further success.
Fortunately, my friend is not stubborn, so he decided to give his full attention to the app because in his opinion the quality of this Sudoku app had to exceed 100%. Logical and I am always in favor of it, but if you launch a top app without downloads, no one will notice that quality.
First, complete your new study and then find customers or vice versa
My friend's story is not an isolated one. Another friend of mine wants to become a holistic nutrition coach. She always taught English at home and because that market is declining due to the competition and because of her passion for healthy eating and living, she decided to follow a training course in this.
When I spoke to her about this, she had time to call, but she had not yet thought about difficult questions about her business model, her marketing, or in more detail how she is going to position themselves. First I have to complete my study and that was quite tough, she told me.
During the conversation, it became apparent that there was quite a hurry to earn her income from this, because financially it was all a bit exciting. But she assured me in her own words: “Once I get my diploma, everything will be fine.” Certainly, they will be in lines out the door, I thought to myself. 🙂
Of course, you want to be sure that you can give the right advice by completing your training, but that does not stop you from being sure that you can find customers. If you don't do anything or not enough about it in the meantime, it can take months before you get it on track and that is what many startup entrepreneurs forget.
A good product or perfect service is only worth something if people want to buy it en masse.
What is a customer acquisition plan?
Your customer acquisition plan is part of your marketing strategy and ensures that you get the right, enough and continuous customers who purchase your product. Sometimes this simply consists of advertising or going door to door and offering your product or service, but usually this is not sufficient or the budget does not allow for it.
Thinking that you post a few on your new Instagram, TikTok, or other social media channels and the requests start pouring in is also not really realistic.
The customer acquisition plan starts with a clear description of your target group and the needs of that target group. That's what you call a customer profile.
Based on this, you describe - also based on the available budget - which resources you will use to reach this target group and with which message you want to persuade them to make a purchase. This goes further than just a post because you want to write out which path the potential customer is dealing with and which messages you are going to tell there.
Example: You have a large customer base and you are going to email them. How often will you email them, what will they read in the email? If they click on the email, what do you offer them, and how? If they show interest, what do you tell them? If they want to order, download, or contact you, but don't do it yet, what do you do to persuade them?
This is a simplified example of how a 'funnel' as it is called works and is the elaboration of your customer acquisition plan. The point is that you write out all contact moments and scenarios so that you know what you have or can do.
What does a customer acquisition plan consist of?
A customer acquisition plan consists of at least the following components that you can work out in detail. You can learn all about a customer acquisition plan at our startup incubator program.
Target audience: A detailed description of your ideal customer(s), including demographics, interests, behavior, and needs.
Objectives and Customer Acquisition Budget: Clearly defined goals for the number of new customers you want or need to acquire within a certain period and what it should cost and yield per customer. Suppose a customer gives you a margin of 1,000 euros and you know that if you 'talk' to 100 potential customers you will generate at least 1 new customer, you can calculate that each potential customer can cost a maximum of 10 euros in order not to make a loss.
You can then decide that you want to make a profit immediately and then this amount 'must' be lower. You can also decide to invest and make a loss in the hope that customers will also attract other customers. That's a choice.
Marketing Channels and Funnel: A list of the different marketing channels and funnels you will use to reach and entice new customers, such as social media, webinars, search engine optimization (SEO), email marketing, and so on.
Just like in the scenario with my boyfriend and girlfriend, the bottleneck here is almost always with startups that have never or little to do with this.
All (social media) channels take time to gain an audience.
Before you have followers on Instagram or other social media, you will spend weeks or months posting intensively.
Getting invited to popular podcasts takes weeks of preparation.
It can take months before you are found via SEO.
Collaborating with (affiliate or advertising) partners or influencers takes time to realize and even more time before they publish anything. In addition, technical matters often have to be adjusted.
Let alone that you do not yet have all the promotional text or graphic content ready that you need for this!
Planning: A detailed timetable of the steps you will take to achieve your goals, including deadlines and responsibilities.
In this case too, in my opinion, the boyfriend and girlfriend gave the 'wrong' priority. One first wanted a perfect product and the other wanted to complete a study. But if you don't make time for planning, you may be too late to deploy the right, effective marketing that is needed at launch.
Measurements and evaluation: Criteria with which you will measure the success of your customer acquisition efforts, such as the number of new leads, conversion rates and Return on Investment (ROI).
When drawing up a customer acquisition plan, you usually work with many assumptions. There are so many uncertainties that only time will tell. But everything you do costs money or time. That is why it is crucial to find out in advance what you want and can measure so that you can make timely adjustments. This way you can continuously optimize your strategy for your customer recruitment activities based on the results and feedback you receive.
Why should a customer acquisition plan be completed before the product itself?
Let it be said that an inferior product or service is never sustainable. But putting all or even the most focus on the best product is usually hopeless if there is no well-thought-out customer acquisition plan on the table.
Not only drawing up, but actually implementing this plan takes weeks to months and once this plan is ready, there is usually still enough time to complete your product or training. In the case of the nutrition coaching practice, it is even more necessary to get started, because by creating and implementing the plan - even just launching a site - you can receive great feedback and support from friends, partners, and potential customers.
Also in the case of my friend who makes the Sudoku App, it is wise to focus on that. There is nothing more demotivating than putting all your time into a product and discovering during launch that there may be 100 missed opportunities leaving the number of downloads at a few hundred.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the difference between a customer acquisition plan and a marketing strategy?
A customer acquisition plan is a specific part of the marketing strategy aimed at attracting new customers. While the marketing strategy includes the overarching approach to promoting and branding a product or service, the customer acquisition plan focuses specifically on identifying, reaching, and convincing potential customers to make a purchase.
How do I determine my ideal target group for my customer acquisition plan?
By creating a detailed customer profile that includes demographics, interests, behaviors, and needs, you can determine your ideal audience. By analyzing and understanding this information, you can develop effective marketing strategies aimed at attracting this specific target group.
How do I set realistic goals for my customer acquisition plan?
To set realistic goals for your customer acquisition plan, it is important to formulate SMART goals: specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound. By setting clear goals that meet these criteria, you can effectively measure your progress and adjust where necessary.
How do I measure the success of my customer acquisition plan?
The success of your customer acquisition plan can be measured by several factors, including the number of new leads, conversion rates, Return on Investment (ROI), and overall customer base growth. By regularly monitoring and evaluating, you can assess the effectiveness of your plan and make any necessary adjustments to improve results.
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