Yes, But Who is it?

Your brand strategy is amazing. You put the customer at the centre, fulfilling all his needs and desires. You provide the ultimate experience, tailored to your audience. You have gone the extra mile and taken care of every little detail. At least, that’s what you think…

You know your product, so you know the kind of people using it, right?

Your average consumer probably is a man who watches sports and drives a car. He probably showers daily and occasionally eats a meal. If he’s under 30, he’s probably a student or a designer, if he’s over 40 he’s probably a dad and some kind of manager. And, even though you won’t admit it, he’s probably modelled on someone you know.

So you wonder: why doesn’t my website convert? Why doesn’t my product sell? And why aren’t my customers filling all their social media profiles with praises for my company? The answer is simple: you know your product, and you know the kind of person that’s PROBABLY using it.

And there’s the issue: you’re selling to ‘maybe people’.

You lack insight into who your real consumer is (or who ‘they’ are, since you probably sell to more than one age, gender and religion). If you don’t know that your man likes to get up at 6 in the morning to hit the gym before going to work or that your woman is trying to get her ten kids to school before 8:15, you will probably keep sending them 8 o’clock wake-up-and-smell-the-coffee emails, baffling you with exorbitant bounce rates. You’ll name your product something cool that he seems unable to remember. And you’ll never add that one feature to your brand new product that makes them feel like you really, truly understand their needs.

So how do you find out what your consumers want?

How do you figure out what they think about your product or services and what it is they absolutely can’t live without?

Easy: go ask Aline (“I think she’ll knoooooooow”). She’s our Head of Emakina/Insights. Your clients’ strange opinions or hidden needs – she has her own ways to find out about them. Gaps in the market or golden opportunities – she figures them out and serves these to you on a silver platter. All you have to do is ask. Ask yourself the ultimate question that cannot be answered by 42: “Yes, I need a customer, but who is (s)he?”

Aline Durand, Head of Emakina/Insights researches what real customers want