Some may be thinking that simply creating any product, setting up a website and starting selling will bring them lots of money and make their accountants smile from ear to ear.
Some may just be thinking that outsourcing customer support is a viable option. What is it that any business can do to actually succeed, when it comes to customers?
Value for the people
You only buy something, when you need it (mostly). Would you expect your customers buy they don’t need, then? Suppose, you have answered “I wouldn’t!”, so we could go on. If not, read the piece, nevertheless.
Thus, to truly succeed with the people, you need to create something useful. “Sure, everything that I think of has already been created”, you say. Half-true. The other half comes from innovation and from looking at old things under a new angle. Thousands of things appear every year, why can’t your product be among them or serve them to a different target audience?
Depending on the industry, people may value a number of things, be it comfort, speed or ability to fix something quick. But above all, there is a number of values people adhere to at all times, such as simplicity, efficiency, protection, etc.
When thinking of the people, who will use whatever useful you come up with, and the value you provide, you will be able to estimate, how successful your product will be. Success is in direct relation with how much value the people will get from the product, so it is absolutely important to provide value to your future customers.
The needs
This is where your future customer steps in. You need not only to know what the customer wants, but how much he wants it and why. Why is also astonishingly important, as you’ll be informing all your potential customers why your offer is useful and necessary.
As you have probably heard, people buy a product for the benefits it brings, not the features. That’s why you’ll need to pay special attention to analyzing the needs of your customers, what moves them and how you can tie them with your product. If anything, you can modify the product to suit the newly discovered needs.
The niche
Of course, it’ll be easier to sell your offer, if your product is unique in a market with sufficient demand. This is called a niche. Finding a niche, along with analyzing the people, is one of the important things to do, too. It not only helps you to stand out, but to provide value to the people in a new way, thus getting you more customers, than you’d get in an saturated market.
Customer support
Then again, when you sell online, one of the few ways real people contact you is your customer support service. That’s why it is important to make a good impression and provide good service to your customers, because they’ll remember your company by these contacts. Also, you can convert an unsatisfied customer to a loyal company advocate with quality service.
Personal approach
Another thing to remember is personal approach. Every person is unique and wants to be considered such. That’s why personal notes and overall customer personalization is important. By having emotional contact with your customers, you make your product a part of their life experience. Needless to say, they are likely to share about a pleasant experience with their family, friends, co-workers, etc.
Rounding up
If you really want to create something successful, start with the people. Analyze what they want and why they want it. Then give it to them.
This principle may be applied to any part of your online business, be it a product, your website or your promotion strategy. If you focus on your customers, you’ll be going the shortest way to their hearts, which along should bring glory to you and your business.
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Yuri Filimonov is a freelance website optimization and usability consultant, who writes about improving websites to gain more visitors,
customers and profit at his blog, http://www.ImproveTheWeb.com.
