Many people see technology as the driving force behind innovation…but not us. Companies like Uber, Air BnB, eBay and Amazon have managed to shake up their industries not just by using technology and developing a platform but by focusing on what customers really want, and then built systems and infrastructure around that.
Customers wanted to feel safer by knowing who their drivers actually were, so Uber profiles and rates all its drivers. Customers wanted more localised and genuine experiences which Air BnB facilitates. Customers wanted faster packages, so Amazon have invested heavily to improve its supply chain.
In order to be disruptive, all of these brands have put the customer’s needs front and centre of everything they do and are actively listening and collecting information on how those needs might be changing.
We all strive to be the best at what we do, but its probably a mistake to attribute perfection with success. Most people would not consider a McDonalds burger to be the best they have ever had. (No offence guys!) The success of the brand lies in the processes and procedures which mean that a burger in Brunei will taste the same as a burger in Bradford. We understand their brand to represent fast food, at a cheaper price point. Everything the brand does is aimed at getting the best possible service/product but within this framework.
Continuing with our McDonalds example, we can see that they have clearly thought about what ‘a perfect world’ looks like for their customers and then contextualised this with what is important for their business model. A ‘perfect world’ for customers might be to have sofa style seating while they eat, but as McDonalds business model is low-price, high-volume they need to turnover people quickly.
There will always be a trade-off between what the customer wants and what the business wants, but by understanding the attributes that customers really care about, it becomes much easier to put together services/products and procedures. It all comes back to understanding your customers and the attributes that are important to them.
