Buyer Personas: How to Gain Insight into your Customer's Expectations, Align your Marketing Strategies, and Win More Business

Acknowledgments

First, I want to thank the thousands of marketers who attended my product marketing workshops between 2001 and 2010. If you were among that audience, your plea for practical guidance about buyer personas was the inspiration for the training and research company that I founded in 2010 and ultimately, the reason that I wrote this book. I have faithfully attempted to answer your questions and trust that you will let me know if I have missed anything.

I am also deeply indebted to David Meerman Scott, whose best-selling books and frequent conference appearances are among the reasons that marketers around the world are clamoring for buyer personas. You were right, David; I needed to get these words out of my head and onto paper. I only wish it had been as easy as you described.

Many thanks to my clients, friends, and colleagues for sharing your stories about working with buyer personas. I had hoped to include everything you said and apologize to those whose tales are not included here. Sadly, there was space for only some of your hard-won wisdom.

This brings me to Lana Bradford. You were an incredible coach throughout this effort, and especially in those final weeks, as my ability to construct legible sentences was obscured by a rapidly approaching deadline. I could not have written this book without your skillful coaxing, extensive research, and clarifying edits.

Thank you to Shannon Vargo and Elizabeth Gildea at John Wiley & Sons for believing in this book and entrusting ...