A good first step in developing new products or services for
your business is to ask your customers what they like about the old product or
service.
This seems so logical.
But many times we skip this step.
Instead of having the conversation with the customer we decide to play
both parts by having the conversation with ourselves.
This one person play is very dangerous. And can be very costly.
Because in truth we're not as in-tune with our customer as
we think we are. We’re really not sure
why they buy our handmade jewelry, our vegan cinnamon buns or our massage
services. Oftentimes we’re not even
certain who we're attracting. We think
we know but do we really?
Ask yourself a simple question. Are most of your clients or customers, men or
women?
Most business owners would answer this question quickly,
without hesitation.
But the speed of our reply doesn't mean we're right. Unless you're a gynecologist or the director
of a sperm bank your reply is probably as reliable as that of an
eyewitness.
I suggest if your business or consultancy is small enough
simply take a minute and actually segregate your clients by sex. Or if necessary, pull a report from your
database, or stand in your shop over the course of week and count men and women
stopping in.
Were you surprised by the outcome?
My advice is before you make any substantive change to your
offering do your best to find out who’s buying what and why. This is particularly important when you're
creating new product or service strategies that change your core
offerings.
And the best way to find out is the old fashioned way.
Ask
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