Meaning & use
prospective customers
Last updated
Meaning
nounplural
People or companies that you think may buy your products or services in the future.
Grammar: Always plural; used to talk about a group of potential buyers. The singular form 'prospective customer' refers to one person.
Patterns
- prospective customers for something
- attract prospective customers
- target prospective customers
The company sent free samples to prospective customers to encourage them to try the new software.
At the trade fair, we collected contact details from prospective customers who showed interest in our services.
Our marketing team is working on a campaign to reach prospective customers in Europe.
Word forms
| singular | prospective customer |
|---|
Common combinations
- attract prospective customers
- A good website design can attract prospective customers and turn them into buyers.
- target prospective customers
- The ad campaign is designed to target prospective customers aged 25 to 40.
- prospective customers for a product
- We identified prospective customers for our new electric car in urban areas.
- reach prospective customers
- Social media helps us reach prospective customers more cheaply than traditional advertising.
- a list of prospective customers
- The sales team was given a list of prospective customers to call.
Synonyms and how they differ
- potential customers
- Very similar in meaning, but 'potential customers' is slightly more common in everyday speech, while 'prospective customers' sounds a bit more formal and business-like.
- leads
- In sales, 'leads' refers to people who might become customers, often after showing some interest; it is more informal and technical than 'prospective customers'.
- prospects
- A shorter, more informal term used in sales; it can also mean 'possibilities', so 'prospective customers' is clearer in general writing.
Word family
- prospect noun
- A person or thing that might become a customer or client; also means a possibility for the future.
- prospective adjective
- Used before a noun to mean 'possible or likely in the future', as in 'prospective buyer'.
Commonly confused: prospective customers or perspective customers?
prospective customers vs perspective customers
This is a common mistake: 'perspective' means a way of thinking or a point of view, while 'prospective' means possible in the future. The correct phrase is 'prospective customers'.
Practice
The company organized a webinar to attract __________ who might be interested in their new software.
Choose one answer.
'Prospective customers' is the correct phrase meaning people who may buy in the future. 'Perspective customers' is a common spelling confusion; 'perspective' means a point of view. 'Prospect customers' is not standard English; the adjective is 'prospective'. 'Prospectively customers' is grammatically wrong because 'prospectively' is an adverb and cannot modify a noun.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “prospective customers”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.