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Take Apple, for example. When the first iPhone came out, touchscreen phones did not exist at the time. If Apple had asked its customers what they wanted, the answer would likely have been “larger keypads,” not a phone without a keypad altogether. However, Apple looked beyond consumer sentiment to anticipate what the market would eventually want, even before customers knew it.<\/p>\n
The disruption contradiction<\/h2>\n
The core principles that uphold successful businesses often make it difficult for them to challenge and lead disruptive practices, \u00a0or even inhibit innovation.<\/p>\n
To explain it better: Businesses today are focused on listening to their customers, closely analyzing competitor trends, and making their products faster\/more affordable to increase profit margins.\u00a0Seems pretty logical, right?<\/p>\n
While these practices are important, they are only a part of what makes a business successful. Their effectiveness is enhanced when complemented with a clear understanding of what customers want, not necessarily what they say<\/em> they want. This leads us to the next point.<\/p>\n Keep the customer at the heart of everything you plan, but don\u2019t focus solely on what they are saying.\u00a0It\u2019s common practice to directly approach your customers and ask them what they need, but what is less common is to go beyond their words to understand what they really<\/em> mean.<\/p>\n How often have you given customers exactly what they want, yet ended up with more negative feedback or a dissatisfied look? That’s\u00a0a common problem faced by every company.<\/p>\n Listening to the customer is great, but you need to break down what they’re telling you. The reason for that has to do with the way we process information. While emotions play a large role in how we perceive things, that\u2019s never how we strive to explain our views.<\/p>\n Customers know exactly what they want, but when questioned, they look for a logical, rational explanation.\u00a0Just ask a customer which features she wants to add to the platform. The answer will be something another business probably has, or something they\u2019ve seen elsewhere.<\/p>\n Why? Because it makes the process more efficient.\u00a0However, a business needs to focus on the end-goal: efficiency and simplicity. While that one feature is what your competitor is promoting, perhaps there is a better way to go about it.\u00a0The only way you can innovate is by differentiating between the “why” and the “want.”<\/p>\n Innovation is critical when you\u2019re looking to be a market leader, and just as we explained above, it isn\u2019t up to your customers to give you novel ideas.<\/p>\n When you look to your customers for suggestions, they will likely just tell you what they\u2019ve already seen. To become a business leader, it\u2019s essential to not do what everyone else is doing.\u00a0When you focus on what your customers want, you will be sent down the path of simply “catching up.”<\/p>\n Blackberry, which had become one of the leading smartphone brands in the market, did just that. They heard “larger keypads” and delivered. But Apple took a different route, and elected to look beyond what the consumer was saying in the moment. This helped Apple to create the iconic iPhone, which exceeded consumers’ expectations.<\/p>\nDecoding the why<\/em> behind the want<\/h2>\n
Lead, don\u2019t follow<\/h2>\n
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