An Example Ideal Customer Profile (ICP)

What Does a Great ICP Actually Look Like?

An Ideal Customer Profile (ICP) defines the attributes of accounts that are most likely to deliver the highest level of value between the company and the customer. We’ve defined the challenges you’ll need to overcome in ‘Seven Reasons Building a Great ICP is Harder Than You Think’, but what does a good example look like?

Here’s an example we think works well. The profile leads with a summary of the essential elements of the profile, followed by a set of bullets. It runs to just 280 words and avoids terms like ‘technographics’ in favour of more straightforward and descriptive headings.

Example Ideal Customer Profile: Wealth Management

Our ideal customer is a mid-sized wealth management firm primed for modernization, with the resources to support its ambitions and a preference for long-term vendor partnerships that facilitate business change and technology adoption.

Firm Size & Scope: These firms manage $500M-$2B in assets with 50-500 employees and an in-house IT team of 10-30 people dedicated to operational support, innovation, and security. They face significant operating costs tied to compliance, operations, and service delivery.

Market Position: Operating in mature markets, these firms face growing competition from digital-native entrants and larger incumbents. They are regionally focused but often aspire to expand cross-border or offer offshore services to high-net-worth clients.

Modernization Drivers: 

  • Accelerating client acquisition and growth, with goals to double assets under management (AUM) within a set timeframe.
  • Reducing operational complexity in response to regulatory and compliance requirements.
  • Addressing margin compression driven by both operational costs and market competition.

  • Meeting demand for personalized digital experiences.

Technological Investment: These firms are investing in cloud-based wealth management platforms such as CRM systems, compliance automation tools, and self-service client portals. They are transitioning from legacy systems to integrated SaaS solutions that streamline compliance, trading, and client management workflows.

Key Integrations: There is a strong focus on data security and privacy. Firms seek to integrate client experience platforms with backend operational systems, prioritizing APIs that connect CRM, accounting, and compliance platforms.

Buying Teams: Decisions are made by cross-functional teams, including the CTO, COO, and heads of compliance, each focused on metrics such as operational efficiency, compliance, and client satisfaction.

Vendor Preferences: These firms prefer long-term partnerships with vendors who offer strategic consulting alongside products, helping navigate both business change and technology adoption.

Why it Works Well

The introductory summary makes it memorable. It avoids jargon and is easy enough to read and digest. In addition, it meets four essentials for an excellent ICP:

  • Defines High-Value Customers: Identifies the characteristics of organizations that are most likely to buy and that offer the highest value to the company.
  • Incorporates Buying Group Behaviour: Goes beyond firmographics to include insights into how buying groups behave, their decision-making processes, and key stakeholders
  • Guides Action and Decision-Making: Is informative enough to focus Sales, Marketing, and Product efforts on meeting the specific needs of the accounts described by the ICP.
  • Concise enough for Adoption: This is concise enough to be adopted by Sales, Marketing, and Product teams, providing not only focus but alignment.

What Else Should You Be Looking For in Your ICP?

Behind the scenes and not evident from the text, there are a few other considerations for a good ICP. The three most important, in our view, are: 

  • Data-Driven: The ICP is built and refined using the best available qualitative and quantitative data or is based on a hypothesis that can be tested and validated.
  • Adapts to Market and Company Growth: Is dynamic and evolves in response to changing market conditions and the company’s goals, ensuring relevance over time.
  • Evolves Through Testing and Iteration: Is continually refined based on cross-functional feedback, testing, and real-world application.

Conclusion

A well-crafted Ideal Customer Profile (ICP) is an essential tool for aligning Sales, Marketing, and Product efforts around customers that offer the highest strategic value. 

As this example demonstrates, an ICP should be concise, easy to digest, and avoid unnecessary jargon. It must define high-value accounts, provide some insight into group buying behaviour, and guide action. 

If it is dynamic and data-driven, it can also help the company navigate shifts in fast-changing markets, which is quite a payback.