An Ideal Customer Profile (ICP) is a detailed description of the type of company that would benefit the most from your product or service — and bring the most value to your business in return. It’s not just about who could buy from you, but who should.
Unlike a buyer persona (which focuses on individual decision-makers), an ICP looks at the company level. It typically includes details like:
- Company size (revenue, employees)
- Industry or vertical
- Geography
- Tech stack
- Budget
- Growth stage
- Common pain points
Creating a strong ICP helps your sales, marketing, and product teams stay aligned. It ensures you’re targeting the right businesses, with the right message, at the right time.
Example:
If you sell a B2B analytics platform designed for mid-sized companies, your ICP might be:
“Tech-enabled companies with 50–200 employees, using Snowflake or BigQuery, based in North America or Europe, who struggle to unify customer data across teams.”
A well-defined ICP is your north star for go-to-market efforts — guiding who you target, how you speak to them, and what problems you solve.