Step number one is especially crucial. Before Michele Miller and I wrote The Soccer Mom Myth, we actually created personas of who our readers are. We both have blogs, so we had a good idea of who was reading and commenting on them.

This was helpful in so many ways. We looked at the different types of questions different personas would be asking. We made sure we are answering those different questions.

We know we have a lot of women as readers, but we also have male readers as well. Knowing we have these male personas was great – it forced us to make sure we were fair and balanced in the book. We make a big point of saying that when it comes to failures in marketing to women, men are NOT to blame. Men and women have the same stereotypes.

While we are pro-women, we are also pro-men. Many shopping experiences designed for women actually create a better experience for both men and women.

Having these personas was also helpful as far as knowing WHAT to write. When you know who your audience is, and what they care about, I found it much easier to know what to write and how to write it.

So thanks again for a great article – wonderful advice I hope everyone will listen to.