Posted on Nov 22, 2013

Do you know what your customers are really thinking?

You know all the reasons why someone should consider buying from you. But do you really understand why your customers decide to buy from you?

What are they thinking as they consider their options to buy from you versus your competitors?
When they show concern about price, is that the real issue?
How much thought do they put into their purchase decision? (Hint: It’s likely a lot less than you think)

It’s amazing how many companies – big and small – do little-to-no research or gather customer insight. Here are a few of the reasons I’ve heard over the years:

We can’t afford it. (This from a multi-billion dollar company that was spending less than .005% of their annual revenue on research.)
We don’t have time to waste on doing research. (But there’s always time to fix it later.)
It’s too hard. We don’t even know how to identify our end-customers.
What are they (customers) going to tell us that we don’t already know?
What will it cost for you to contact them? (This person was afraid to talk to customers.)

Yet, without a clear understanding of what customers are thinking and feeling, how do you know what to add or change to add better value?

Now, if research is not your thing, then invest in the value of insight.

As a differentiating value, Insight means clear or deep perception of a situation; a feeling of understanding. In business, it’s about understanding existing and prospective customer perceptions about your business and/or brand.

This can be done quite simply through one-on-one interviews. It’s about sitting down for an hour with your customer and having a deep conversation. And remember, it’s all about them, not you!

The key to learning what customers are really thinking is by asking better questions.

You can read more about asking better questions at Leadership Couples.