The Santa Barbara Web Design and Marketing Blog

In the bustling world of entrepreneurship, marketing, and client acquisition, one question boils every strategy, every campaign, and every conversion funnel down to its core essence: Who has your customer before you do? This deceptively simple question unlocks profound insights into buyer psychology, partnership strategy, and market positioning. For anyone serious about scaling their business—especially in the era of digital overload and fleeting attention spans—it’s a question that demands thoughtful exploration.

Let’s dive deep into what it truly means to identify “who has your customer before you,” why it matters more than ever, and how integrating this perspective can transform the way you acquire new buyers, build brand awareness, and forge powerful alliances.

The Customer’s Journey: Understanding Touchpoints Before Awareness

Every business, regardless of industry, is in the business of solving problems or fulfilling desires. Customers, for their part, are on a journey—a journey that begins long before they’re aware of your brand, your offering, or sometimes even their own specific need.

- The Pre-Awareness Stage: Before a customer is Googling your business, liking your posts, or giving you their email, they are moving through other channels, relying on trusted sources, engaging with communities, or using tools that serve an adjacent or upstream need.

- Touchpoints and Triggers: Maybe they’re learning how to manage their finances before realizing they need a specific investment product. Maybe they’re searching for inclusive workout routines before considering your wellness retreat. Or perhaps they’re using a project management platform before needing your consulting service.

- The Largest Pool Is Upstream: The further upstream you can intercept—before the customer defines a solution, before they frame the category, and before competitors appear on their radar—the bigger your potential pool of customers.

Why “Who Has Your Customer?” Is the Million-Dollar Question

This perspective is more than an exercise in curiosity—it’s powerful leverage for your marketing and sales strategies. Here’s why:

1. Avoiding the Commodity Trap

When customers reach you after they’ve surveyed every option, your product or service becomes just one among many—a commodity to be compared on price, feature list, or snap judgments. Competing at this phase is hard and often unprofitable.

But if you’re there before they start comparison shopping, you own the narrative. You guide their thinking, frame the value, and demonstrate expertise at the exact moment their trust is forming.

2. Finding the Place of Maximum Value

Your product solves a problem, but that problem exists in an ecosystem. The organizations, platforms, influencers, or events that touch your customer before you do are often places of high trust and high attention. By accessing those spaces, you inherit some of that trust and become a natural next step, not just another option.

3. Unlocking Integrated Marketing Partnerships

Instead of playing solo, you play as a team. When you identify businesses that already have established relationships with your ideal customer, you have the opportunity to propose partnerships, cross-promotions, or bundled solutions:

- Joint webinars or educational content

- Bundled service offerings

- Exclusive early-bird offers for their community

- Referral deals or affiliate partnerships

The net effect is a marketing strategy that’s not only more cost-effective, but also richer in trust, reach, and relevance.

How to Identify Who Has Your Customer

Ready to put this concept into action? Here’s a systematic approach to uncovering these valuable touchpoints in your market.

1. Map Your Customer Journey in Detail

Start by outlining the full buying journey your customer goes through for your specific product or service:

- What problem do they start with?

- What itch are they trying to scratch?

- What questions or triggers arise in their day-to-day that eventually bring them to your door?

The key is to go as far “upstream” as possible—don’t start with “they Google for a web designer,” start with “they want to grow revenue,” “they’re frustrated with DIY solutions,” or “they just hired their first employee and need to get organized.”

2. List Adjacent or Preceding Needs

What do people need before they need you? For example:

- Someone buying business insurance just incorporated their business, so the incorporation service “has” that customer first.

- Someone booking a wedding photographer already found a venue.

- Someone looking for social media marketing might have just outsourced web design.

Get granular—every category has its own map of preceding and adjacent needs.

3. Identify the Gatekeepers and Guides

Who are the people, brands, or platforms your customer trusts at those early stages?

- Influencers or industry leaders they follow

- Facebook or LinkedIn groups they participate in

- Podcasts or newsletters they subscribe to

- SaaS platforms, apps, or marketplaces they use

- Local organizations, events, or educational programs

4. Research Existing Partnerships

Who’s already selling to your customer base, but offering something different? Analyze their customer list and partnership structures—how do they reach these people, and what value do they provide? What’s missing?

5. Validate with Real Conversations

Don’t just guess. Interview current customers: “Before you found me, what did you do? Where did you learn about options? What tools were you using?” Their stories will surface hidden influencers, services, and resources you can target.

Example Scenarios: Uncovering “Who Has Your Customer?”

Let’s look at some scenarios to illustrate the concept:

Scenario 1: Digital Marketing Consultant

Typical customer journey: Business owner realizes their website isn’t converting, starts looking for help.

Who “has” this customer before you?

- Website designers/developers who hear the first complaints

- Bookkeepers/accountants noticing declining revenue

- Local business networking groups or mastermind hosts

- Software tools (Wix, Shopify, Squarespace) offering built-in marketing add-ons

- Online course instructors teaching entrepreneurship

Strategic moves:

- Co-create a webinar with a web designer on “How to Turn Web Traffic Into Sales”

- Offer a free conversion audit as an upsell for accountants’ clients

- Bundle your first consult as a bonus for students in a popular online entrepreneurship course

Scenario 2: Fitness App Developer

Typical customer journey: Individual is frustrated with their current health routine and starts searching for a fitness app.

Who “has” this customer before you?

- Health bloggers writing about wellness habits

- Wearable device manufacturers (Fitbit, Apple Watch)

- Local gyms or trainers recommending online components

- Nutritionists sharing client resources

- Fitness apparel brands

Strategic moves:

- Collaborate with gyms to provide app subscriptions as a member perk

- Guest post on health blogs with topics like “Tracking Progress Beyond the Scale”

- Develop a special version for fitness apparel customers (QR code in the delivered package)

Scenario 3: Legal Service Provider

Typical customer journey: Small entrepreneur needs to form an LLC or manage contracts.

Who “has” this customer before you?

- Tax preparers and accountants doing annual filings

- Small business software like QuickBooks

- Business coaches

- Co-working spaces or business incubators

Strategic moves:

- Host joint workshops with accountants—“Legal Pitfalls to Avoid at Tax Time”

- Become the recommended resource for local incubators or co-working communities

Crafting Your Approach: Bundles, Integrations & Partnerships

Once you’ve mapped the “who,” here’s how you can reach customers where they’re widest in number and most open to influence:

A. Bundle Your Services

Create packages with upstream providers. If you deliver web marketing, bundle it with business incorporation services at a discount. If you sell CRM software, partner with events software to pitch a complete event success kit to their audience.

B. Cross-Promote Educational Content

Share your expertise in the communities your customer frequents before they find you. Free guides, resource libraries, or mini-courses offer value while showcasing your thought leadership.

C. Co-Host Events

Run webinars, workshops, or local meetups alongside partners. This shared stage lets you access their loyal audience and build relationships faster.

D. Offer Commission or Referral Deals

Make it irresistible for upstream providers to introduce you to their customer base. Pay commissions, provide exclusive perks, or offer reciprocal referrals.

E. Embed Your Offers Directly

If feasible, integrate your offers within existing platforms or products. Think “powered by” partnerships, add-on modules, or featured resource listings.

The Psychological Advantage: Capturing Hearts and Minds First

There’s an extra advantage that goes beyond mere numbers—psychology. The first business to properly diagnose and articulate the customer’s real problem (often before the customer themselves can) instantly gains authority and trust.

You become the advisor, not the vendor. The guide, not the hawker.

People rarely switch horses midstream. When you’re present at the moment of need-realization—or, better, need anticipation—and you’re introduced by a trusted source, you’re not just the first choice. You’re the default choice.

Overcoming Objections to the Partnership Model

Some business owners resist this approach, thinking, “But those aren’t my products. Why help someone else sell?” Or, “I don’t want to share the stage.” But that’s an old mindset.

- You’re not helping the competition; you’re creating a bigger pie for everyone.

- You reduce risk by entering pre-qualified customer pools, not anonymous cold traffic.

- Customers benefit from cohesive, one-stop solutions and expert recommendations.

When you’re generous and strategic about partnerships, you move faster and with less ad spend.

Technology Makes It Easier Than Ever

With platforms for cross-promotion, affiliate management, and seamless integrations, it’s never been simpler to build and manage these relationships. From co-branded webinars to discount codes to shared online learning portals, the tools for joint campaigns are accessible and cost-effective.

Putting “Who Has Your Customer?” Into Practice Today

Let’s turn this concept into immediate action steps for your business:

1. Survey your customers: Ask detailed questions about their journey before meeting you, and what help they sought.

2. Make a list of five upstream businesses or influencers: Reach out and suggest a mutually beneficial collaboration.

3. Create a joint asset: Could be a webinar, guide, checklist, or mini-course—something genuinely useful to both audiences.

4. Pilot a small bundle or exclusive offer: Test demand with a low-risk, easy-to-execute partnership.

5. Measure results: Track signups, conversions, and feedback. Optimize the offer, and scale up what works.

6. Continually review the map: As trends and needs shift, so do the places where your customers start their journey.

Conclusion: The Shortest Path Is Often Through Someone Else

Modern marketing isn’t about shouting loudest on every available platform. It’s about precision—showing up at the right moment in your customer’s journey, preferably before they’re even sure what they need.

When you continually ask yourself, “Who has my customer before I do?” you unlock:

- Lower customer acquisition costs

- Higher trust and conversion rates

- A fresh pipeline of pre-qualified leads

- Enduring alliances with complementary businesses

The largest, least competitive pools of your ideal prospects are not found downstream, when their guard is up and choices are infinite. They’re upstream, when their journey is just beginning and your expertise is most valued.

So, who has your customer—right now, today? And what are you doing to meet them there?

Your next breakthrough in marketing might be just one partnership away.