If you've decided to take the plunge and start your own business, chances are you already have a product in mind. You may already have decided on a location. But, before you go out and buy business cards, there are some other things to think about. Probably one of the most important business characteristics you should determine before opening your doors'a characteristic that will drive many if not all of the other decisions'is deciding who your customers are.

When you are building a business, if you have a clear picture of who you are trying to reach, you will know how best to structure your advertising, website, even physical location.

For example, if you are building a business marketing business development e-books, your customers would most likely be people who are interested in a home-based business, small business owners, people looking for financing for a small business, or possibly those looking for web designers, or advertising copy and graphics just to name a few. With this customer base in mind, you then proceed to the next step in building a business, which is deciding where this group of customers might be.

People who are internet savvy and are looking for a home-based business would probably make a stop at one of the popular search engines and would undoubtedly find a multitude of hits if they typed in ?Home-based business?. So, your key to building a business by reaching this customer is finding a way to get your information before him first, or in an eye catching way. This person has doubtless been told they need a business plan to succeed. Does one of your e-books have a title such as ?How to Succeed without a Business Plan?? Without misrepresenting the contents, an e-book with a title such as this could be written to provide the customer with information on starting a business at home. Because you know the customer, you are building a business of your own.

When you are building a business, knowing your customer base helps to select and utilize advertising. If you know your embroidery thread business will be selling products to home handiwork hobbyists, your advertising should target handiwork aficionados, not web designers or musicians. Links on other websites that sell machine embroidery patterns, or craft forums, even needlework websites are all places that your customers will gravitate to.

When you are building a business and your customers are people who want to find financing for their own business, you should tailor your product for that market. When people need money, they typically go to a bank, credit union, and title loan or payday loan company. If you are building a business, you will find customers at these locations. Some of these companies will allow business cards to be displayed for local businesses?take advantage of this free advertising. You can place an advertisement in the supermarket advertising flyers, or in the newspaper to reach these customers. Sometimes people who are fledgling small business owners can be found at flea markets and antique malls where they will have a small inventory of products which they may sell on commission. They are prime customers for building a business of this type.