The third Thursday of every quarter is national “Get To Know Your Customer Day.” It is celebrated every January, April, July, and October. No one knows the origin but we all need to put it into practice.
I called a few of my customers not too long ago, to put things into perspective for my business. I found out a lot about their needs. I was scared to death so I started with family. When I felt more confident I branched out to customers I did not know on a personal level. I had a total of 21 questions. Not every question applied but I asked an average of 10-15 on each phone call. I spent about 15-20 minutes with each customer and I learned a lot.
In my business, this helped me to understand what times of the day are best to talk to my customers but, most importantly it helped me to understand what was behind my highest sales and lowest sales times of the year. It helped me to understand what they were doing and the things that affected them. When I understood this I began to understand how to help them.
Here’s my script but you can make one of your own: (Hint when you ask these questions don’t sell anything. Just listen and write the answers down and you make some up of your own.)
“Hi (customer name), I’m working on making my products (or service) even better and I wonder if you can help me understand how customers think. You are one of my best customers and I know you will be honest with me so I can help others”
1. What does your day look like? The answer to this question will help you to understand tthe rends in sales. For instance one of my business friends looked into why her sales started peaking after 8:30am. This is because her customers typically start buying online after they dropped off their kids at daycare and school. You want to make sure what you are offering fits into peoples lives and schedules. They should not have to go out of the way for it or access it during hours that are inconvenient for them.
2. If you had an extra time in the day What would you do with it? Why? This question will tell you where your customer feels they are lacking; what their personal goal is and why they miss it. This may not have anything to do with your product but if you read my business trends article at the beginning of the year, you will know that solving customer problems or pain points, within your ability can endear them to you and your brand. The “Why” goes a little deeper and creates more conversation for you to understand them. Solving problems can be as easy as a referral to the right place or an empathetic ear.
3. What are your biggest frustrations related to ___________________ (your product or service)? This is my favorite question and also my most feared. This is where you learn all about your current services and the industry related products of others. This is also where they will discuss their “pain points” as related to the type of services you offer. This is not like a survey where you can hide behind a computer screen, they’ve got you in person so this wont be the time to get all sensitive. Listen, learn and make corrections.
I hope you can make a list of your own questions that will help you to understand your customers. Remember, you are in business to solve a problem. In order to do that you’ve got to understand the customer. Peter Drucker said: ““The aim of marketing is to know and understand the customer so well the product or service fits him and sells itself.”
I can’t wait to see your success,
Jenai