TC: UPDATING CUSTOMER DESIRES

“Change is the only constant in our business lives.” This statement has become the “by-word” for most businesses in the last decade. Technology has changed the way we run our businesses. We have become focused on new software, new social media outlets, new apps and new hardware.

Every year we learn about new and more powerful computers. Voice recognition devices such as Echo by Amazon are changing the way consumers interact with their supplier.

For the most part, we are really focusing on ourselves. What is being neglected is the customer. These changes may affect the way we manage our business and even how we deliver our products and services.

Let’s consider the customer: how do they want delivery of their products or services? How do they want to communicate? Is e-mail or text the best way? Would they rather hear from us by phone? If we save money by eliminating the live person answering out business phone and switch to a voice recognition system, how will this affect our customers? How do we best connect with our customer base to offer new products or services?

How does our target market, those that we hope to convert to customers, feel about these same issues?

Your challenge this week is:

• First: identify 10 of your current or past customers. Create a list of questions from the above concerns and pay a personal visit (not by phone or an electronic means), and ask them their thoughts on these questions
• Second: take the same list of questions and identify 10 potential customers. Call and make an appointment and ask them to take 15 minutes to participate in a questionnaire specifically related to a product/service that they are currently using.
• Third: invite 10 people from each group, separately, to participate in an industry focus group. Secure a place to hold a focus group, preferably in the morning, and serve a continental breakfast. If possible, have someone from within your industry participate in forming the group. Perhaps an interesting presenter on a pertinent topic can help with attendance.

Your customers will appreciate the fact that you care, and you get to meet 10 new potential customers. Most important you will learn how to better serve your customers.