Define your ideal customer profile and personas
An ICP (firmographics, triggers, disqualifiers) and 2–3 buyer personas with jobs, pains and objections.
This is a practical, copy-paste process for targeting is too broad.. Use it when you want a clear structure, then add your own details and the linked evidence.
Published by Deepstory Research. Reviewed Sep 2026.
How to use this method
- 1. Copy or downloadCopy the prompt below, or download the method file and attach it to your chat.
- 2. Paste into any AIChatGPT, Claude, Gemini or Copilot. Replace each [PLACEHOLDER] with your details, or let the AI ask you.
- 3. Add evidenceAttach the evidence files listed on this page so the AI works from sourced numbers, not guesses.
The prompt
Paste it as-is. The AI will ask for anything still in [BRACKETS].
# Define your ideal customer profile and personas Method by Deepstory Research: deepstoryresearch.com/method/ideal-customer-profile-personas You are a B2B demand-generation strategist. Follow the method below step by step. Goal: An ICP (firmographics, triggers, disqualifiers) and 2–3 buyer personas with jobs, pains and objections. ## My inputs - Product: [PRODUCT] (example: cybersecurity training platform) - Best current customers: [BEST_CURRENT_CUSTOMERS] (example: 3 examples with why they bought) - Deal size: [DEAL_SIZE] (example: $8k/year) Before you start: if any input above is still in [BRACKETS] or missing, ask me for it in one short numbered list and wait. Do not guess. If I attached files (data, briefs, Deepstory evidence files), treat them as the primary source. ## Steps to follow 1. Find patterns in the best customers. 2. Write the ICP: industry, size, geography, tech, triggers, disqualifiers. 3. Define buying committee roles. 4. Write 2–3 personas: goals, pains, jobs-to-be-done, objections, where they learn. 5. Give one message and one channel per persona. ## Deliver the output in this structure - ICP definition - Buying committee - Persona cards - Messages and channels per persona ## Quality rules - Base personas on evidence I provide; mark anything assumed. - Include disqualifiers, who not to sell to. - Label every number as FACT (with source and date), ESTIMATE (show the calculation) or ASSUMPTION. - If a Deepstory evidence file is attached, use its figures as the reference values and cite its source references; tag claims that are not from it as [UNVERIFIED]. - End with: the 3 assumptions that matter most, what would change the answer, and the single best next step.
What you need to give the AI
| Input | Placeholder | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Product | [PRODUCT] | cybersecurity training platform |
| Best current customers | [BEST_CURRENT_CUSTOMERS] | 3 examples with why they bought |
| Deal size | [DEAL_SIZE] | $8k/year |
Use it when
- Targeting is too broad.
- Before building ads, outreach or content.
What you get
- ICP definition
- Buying committee
- Persona cards
- Messages and channels per persona
The procedure, step by step
Read this before you run it, so you can check the AI actually followed the method.
Find patterns in the best customers.
Write the ICP: industry, size, geography, tech, triggers, disqualifiers.
Define buying committee roles.
Write 2–3 personas: goals, pains, jobs-to-be-done, objections, where they learn.
Give one message and one channel per persona.
Quality checks built into the prompt
- • Base personas on evidence I provide; mark anything assumed.
- • Include disqualifiers, who not to sell to.
- • Every number labelled FACT, ESTIMATE or ASSUMPTION; claims outside attached evidence tagged [UNVERIFIED].
Evidence to use with this method
Methods tell the AI how to think. Evidence gives it sourced numbers to think with. Download a context file and attach it with the prompt.
E-Commerce Share of US Retail
Online sales as a share of total US retail, and the growth gap that keeps pushing that share up.
UPI vs Visa & Mastercard: India’s Payments Rewiring
Ten years of UPI measured against the US card networks, against cash, and against the merchant-discount-rate question reopened by the Taxation and Other Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2026.
Six-Economy Macro Baseline
A common-country, common-period baseline for real growth, inflation, modeled unemployment and trade exposure across the United States, China, India, Germany, the United Kingdom and Japan.
Run next
Methods that chain well after this one.
Deepstory methods are process guidance for AI tools. Review AI output before relying on it; legal, tax, medical and investment decisions need a qualified professional.