What Does Your Customer Value?

Sheila wants to cook more homemade meals for her family but like many, is time constrained. Her hectic life is a constant merry-go-round. She has titles like full-time mom, wife, daughter, daughter-in-law, and sales manager. Her days are filled with to-do lists that have to-do lists. She shops at Loew’s Supermarket because it is near her home but she has recently become very attached to something they do that she values.

They have become her sous chef chopping vegetables just for her.

Imagine that a simple thing like chopping onions for your customers can help separate Lowes from most other supermarket chains in the region? The management team realized that a little convenience, at no added cost, can make the difference between Sheila coming into Lowes instead of all the other choices along her route home.

A focus group wouldn’t have given Lowes the particular solution of their Pick and Prep concept. But by listening to the daily burden that their customer’s face, it got them thinking about how to add a little helpfulness to a shopper’s journey. They focused on where they could differentiate themselves and uniquely provide a benefit not found at other local stores.

Five Questions to Ask Customers?

If you get a chance to talk in person with customers, ask them pointed questions about your industry or product segment but try and listen to learn more about their daily life. How does what you do intersect with their world?

For example:

What are the biggest struggles you are wrestling with each day in shopping for _________?
Has anyone recently helped you with a new product or service that made you go – WOW!
If you had a magic wand you could wave, what would you wish for when thinking about ___________.
Have you recently shared an enjoyable shopping experience with a friend? What was that experience?
Of all the important things you value, what matters most to you when you shop for ________?

Asking questions and getting first-hand input into the customer’s journey can help a marketing professional figure out ways to be helpful. You may hear about something wonderful that another business did that created some WOW. Maybe you can find a way to do that in your own style. What is the equivalent of chopping vegetables for free for your customers?

The future of marketing is about customer’s experiences. How are you helping them and providing added value that is truly remarkable? What are you building into your product, service or solution that gives them a reason to tell their friend about you?