Forget Listening To Your Gut. Listen To Your Customers Instead


I am an idiot on more occassions than I like to admit.  And a surprising number of those occassions occur in fields where I am supposed to be "an expert."

Let me give one quick example to help prove why data from your customers is always better than your best intuition a fact that I (like you?) constantly need to be reminded of.

As I type this, my mouse rests on a pad of thick paper--about 11 inches long by 6 inches wide--that has an even thicker piece of cardboard on the bottom of the pad.  When I first saw this product, I thought it was one of  the most wonderful inventions on earth.  It solved a huge problem that I had, one I am sure afflicted millions.

Occassionally when I write, I get a random thought about someting else.  It could be that I remember I need to pick up milk later or it could be a solution to something I have been struggling with.  Invariably, I never had a piece of paper nearby and so I would have to remember the thought--not always easy--or type it into a new file in the computer (and then I would never remember what I called the file.) And yes, there are smart phone apps for this sort of thing, but I rarely keep my smartphone on my desk.

The attraction of the mouse pad made of paper was I would always have a place to capture my thoughts. I'd write it down on the pad, and when I walked away from the computer I would rip off the top sheet and take it with me.


Well, no as it turns out.  The problem with the pad is you have to move the mouse away to write down your note and then move the mouse back into position--it's more awkward than it sounds--and then once the note is there it ends up distracting you every time you glance over at the mouse. Worse, the paper never tears off the pad evenly--so, sometimes it rips what you have written in half--and the odd size of the paper makes it difficult to carry and store.

There is a reason I found the pads at a close out store.

Here's my point.  If I had been in charge of the company where they came up with the idea for the pads, I would have approved it in a second.  Why? As a so-called marketing expert I KNEW what customers would want this thing. (After all, I did.)

Would I have done some testing. Probably. But only to cover my bases.

So, odds are I would have created prototypes and SHOWN them to potential buyers.  Would I have them take them home and use them?  Probably not. What would be the point. I KNEW they would like it. And how did I know? Well, I was the expert.

The point here is pretty simple. We all have the tendency to over-rate our understanding of the market.

If you want to know what the market truly wants, ask.  And then listen carefully to the answers.



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