Customers comprise the heart of a company’s business model. Without (profitable) customers, a company can not survive for long. Who are your candidate company’s customers? How is it targeting these customers? Why does this matter? Find out below 👇🏼
<aside> <img src="https://img.icons8.com/ios/250/000000/waypoint-map.png" alt="https://img.icons8.com/ios/250/000000/waypoint-map.png" width="40px" /> Table of Contents
</aside>
📽️ TL;DR
Watch this 5’ video for a full debrief on what a customer base is, why it matters, and what to include in this section of the profile →
Definition: A customer base is the group of clients to whom a business markets and sells its goods or services. It is often a targeted demographic or group of people with similar interests, which make their interest in a product or service more likely.
https://www.loom.com/share/bb509e64a8354bb98d5e4daf2603caa9
Click here to read through examples of insightful and comprehensive customer base sections.
Definition: A sales model refers to a business' overall approach to selling. There is no one right sales model; each organization's approach will vary depending on its product, industry, and revenue model.
It is important to select the appropriate business model for your candidate company. Panelists will anchor to it to frame their analysis of the business. B2C companies differ widely from B2B ones, which differ widely from B2B2C ones, and so on. Hence, the model you pick will influence how a Panelist views and analyzes the company. Read through the definitions in the table below and learn how to pick the best-suited model for your candidate.
| Sales model | Definition | Examples (those in purple are EEs) |
|---|---|---|
| B2C (business-to-consumer) | B2C refers to the process of selling products and services directly between a business and consumers who are the end-users of its products or services. Most companies that sell directly to consumers can be referred to as B2C companies. | Starbucks, Netflix, Spotify, Gym+Coffee |
| B2B (business-to-business) | B2B refers to business that is conducted between companies, rather than between a company and individual consumer. B2B transactions tend to happen in the supply chain, where one company will purchase raw materials from another to be used in the manufacturing process. Other typical B2B companies include software companies or financial companies that sell their solutions to other companies. | Salesforce, Factorial, Inteluck |
| C2C (consumer-to-consumer) | C2C is a business model that enables customers to trade with each other, frequently in an online environment. Two implementations of C2C markets are auctions and classified advertisements. | Etsy, Airbnb |
| [C2B](https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/consumer-to-business#:~:text=The consumer-to-business (,or gain a competitive advantage.) (consumer-to-business) | C2B is a sales model where an end user or consumer makes a product or service that an organization uses to complete a business process or gain competitive advantage. In the traditional B2C model, businesses sell products or services directly to consumers. With C2B, consumers offer products or services to businesses in exchange for payment or other benefits. | Upwork, Google AdSense |
| B2G (business-to-government) | B2G is the provision of goods and services to government agencies at the federal, state, and local levels. Most contracts are granted in response to a request for proposal (RFP) from an agency. Businesses bid for contracts by submitting responses to RFPs. | Boeing, OpenGov |
| B2B2C (business-to-business-to-consumer) | A B2B2C model is a business model that combines the B2B and B2C models. In B2B2C models, two businesses deliver products or services to customers together through an integrated supply chain. The first business in the supply chain offers the second business access to a service that can increase its revenue, provide access to more customers or increase efficiency, while the second business sells products or services directly to customers using the second business's service. | Amazon, Odilo, Solfácil |
This sub-section enables a candidate company to showcase its most renowned and important customers and allows Panelists to understand what the caliber of a company’s customers is like. High-profile customers will provide Panelists with an added degree of confidence.
