Marketing personas are used throughout various SNHU Marketing and Business classes. The page below provides a brief overview of what a persona is, how to develop one, and an example.
What Is a Marketing Persona?
A persona is a detailed, somewhat fictional character representation of your most likely customer for a good or service. It captures demographics (who they are), goals (what they want), behaviors (what they do), and psychographics (how they think) to guide marketing decisions. Personas are created to humanize the marketing process. They allow companies to build content and develop strategies from data rather than assumptions.
Example Persona:
Personas are created to help marketers understand their customers. In this hypothetical situation, we have a women’s outdoor apparel company that is looking to grow its customer base. They offer affordable yet long-lasting hiking gear tailored to women's needs. This company will create a few personas to help them understand their potential customers' values, motivations, and challenges. Personas are then used to develop strategies to connect emotionally and physically with customers, with the hope of developing a loyal customer base.
Below, is our example persona, "Tee".
| Persona Category | Details |
|---|---|
| Demographics: | Name: Tee Age: 42 Location: Atlanta, GA Education: BA degree Income: $85,000/year Status: Single |
| Psychographics: | Tee values self‑sufficiency, mental and physical wellness, and sustainability. She is frustrated with the current quality of women’s outdoor gear and does not want to compromise. |
| Behaviors: | She is active on social media, researches products before purchasing, and is price-conscious. |
| Goals: | Tee is preparing for a multi‑day hiking trip and is collecting her gear gradually. She is looking for lightweight, affordable gear and prefers to buy from companies with strong reviews. |
Step One: Gather insights about your potential customer. Start with broad searches that can be narrowed down later. In this example, we started with "Outdoor consumer trends", "Female hiker spending", and "Hiking purchase trends". Review this information, along with trusted industry reports, and note emerging patterns.
Step Two: Narrow down the data that you've compiled thus far, and develop the outline of your persona. This is typically based on patterns in demographic data.
Step Three: Begin to look for psychographic, behavioral, and goal-related insights. These insights can come from deeper research into previously identified materials, and you should broaden your search to find additional information with your now-specified focus. Ensure you identify gaps in the existing research to look into at this stage.
Step Four: Synthesize this information and create a persona that feels real. Each component of a persona should be represented: their demographic, psychographic, behavioral, and goal information. Personas can and should be updated as new information comes in and/or purchasing behavior changes.
Below, you can explore the list of resources that we used to create Tee.
References:
Howard, I., Goldenberg, M (2020). Women Tru-Hiker Experiences on the Pacific Crest Trail: Gender Influences, Factors of Success, and Personal Outcomes. California Polytechnic State University. 12(1) p. 41-61. https://doi.org/10.18666/JOREL-2020-V12-I1-9959
Statista. (2025, March). Target Audience: Hikers in the United States, consumer insight report.Statista. Sports&Recreation. https://www.statista.com/study/118853/target-audience-hikers-in-the-united-states/#:~:text=This%20r….
Whittington, A., Aspelmeier, J, Raymond, J. (2024) Attitudes and Beliefs of Men’s and Women’s experiences thru-hiking the Appalachian Trail. Journal Of Outdoor Recreation. 16(4) p. 63-75. https://doi.org/10.18666/JOREL-2024-12440
Grand View Research. (2024) U.S. Camping and Hiking Gear Market 2024-2030. Grand View Research. https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry- analysis/us-camping-hiking-gear-market-report/toc
To develop a thorough and effective persona, you must have the following criteria: demographics, psychographics (values & motivations), behavior, and goals. Let's explore the rationale behind each:
Demographics: This answers the basics behind who is likely to purchase from you, the name, age, location, education, marital status, and income. Knowing your customer's stage of life lays the foundation for your persona. In persona or target audience research, this is your starting point.
Psychographics: In the psychographics section, you want to answer what your customers value and what motivates them to make purchases. In this section, you answer the why behind consumer spending.
Behaviors: Beyond the why, you need to know the how and when behind customer spending. Behavioral research helps you envision where customers will likely find you, so you can place yourself there. It also tells you what is important to your customer in a product or a company, so you can highlight these items in a campaign.
Goals: In the goals section, explain what your consumer is trying to accomplish by buying your product. Are they fulfilling a desire? Trying a new brand after another let them down? Or buying this item out of necessity?
This context shapes strategies such as creating social media posts, crafting targeted ad experiences, planning campaigns, and driving continuous product development. Through persona research, businesses can determine where consumers search, what they compare, and the objections they may have, so they can be addressed proactively. Furthermore, markets and platforms change, so personas should too. If you find additional information for your persona, update it so your assignments can reflect the most relevant data.
Additional Resources:
Unsure of where to look for persona information? Try starting with the Shapiro Library's list of recommended Marketing Databases linked here.
Need More Help?
Do you need to ask a question about developing a persona? Are you looking to chat with someone about your Marketing class? Come see us in the Marketing and Business Office Hours! Hit here to see the schedule for the Marketing and Business Office Hours, as well as our other Academic Support group session offerings.
You are done. Great job!