Understand Their Experiences From Their Perspectives

Copyright 2015 Dennis S. Vogel All rights reserved.
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You Should Do Your Best To Understand Their Experiences From Their Perspectives

OK, I agree I should restate & clarify what I posted in January 2015. This clearer explanation is significantly longer, but I hope it's worthwhile. You can let me know if it isn't.

I'm not pushing a pessimistic agenda. I'm urging you to think about what seems like a great offer or situation to you. It may be less than special for others, even if they're in your market niche. Knowing niche members & their situations is vital for consistent marketing success.

Reasons for doing things are the bases of motivation.

To serve people, you should start with what they want &/or need. To attract people to consider your offers, you should focus on reasons. (Some people redundantly say/write "reasons why".)

People may want/need the same/similar things, but for different reasons.
Example: If you offer a luxury, you could focus on its exclusivity. Since some people want to look & feel unique, you may attract some sales.

Any offer like that would be rejected by other people, who are like citizens of Garrison Keillor�s Lake Wobegon. Many of them are committed to being not special. They �do not go in for show�.

I think there may be only one way to sell luxuries to them. "Do you want to blend with everybody else? Then you need to buy this because people all around you are buying these!"

Each of them could buy the same luxury at the same time to blend in & not be noticed.

It's somewhat like regular peer pressure, though regular peer pressure is often focused on being like other small group members who set themselves apart from all other groups. They want a combination of blending in & exclusivity.

What You Should Ask When You Want To Know Why
Unfortunately, people may feel insulted if you ask, "Why do you want that?" It could sound as if you're implying their intelligence is low & judgment (ability to discern) is faulty.

Some questions should be prefaced with a statement or you could avoid asking a question. Example: "I understand why some clients want that, but if I guess your reasons are the same, I'd probably be wrong. You can help me to help you by telling me what results you want."

You could follow that with, "How would those results help you?"
I'm advising you to do your best to understand customers' needs from their perspectives. Part of that advice is to avoid walking in your customers' shoes.

If You Walk In Their Shoes, They'll Get Cold Feet
It's a worn out cliche/analogy that has limited validity. Wearing somebody else's shoes is apt to be uncomfortable & not helpful for both of you. It implies understanding their shoes, but you still won't experience their feet in their shoes.

Literally & figuratively, shoes feel & perform differently on different feet. Even doing the same activities for the same time periods in the same places won't yield the same experiences. People have different tolerances because of genetics, physiology, injuries, diseases, psychology, etc.

Even identical twins, who experience the same kind of situations side-by-side, CANNOT have identical experiences.

Even if it'd be possible to have people share the same body at the same time, they'd experience the same things differently.

Instead of going on to push that point, let's figure we need to know the effect they've experienced & desired effect they want to experience. By working with them, we can determine the causes. From that, we can help modify their experiences so they'll get better effects.

Why Does It Always Happen To Me?
There are things consumers don't understand despite repetitive daily experiences. The same things may happen often, but people have limited time & energy to focus on each problem. Even if they don't fully understand causes & effects, they understand how stress feels for them.

Sometimes, people try to reduce stress without focusing on what causes stress. Solving problems is a lot easier after causes & effects are defined.

Though stress aggravates other troubles, stress starts as a symptom of a separate problem. After that, stress can cause more problems.

As people age, they learn more fully about how stress doesn't just stop, no matter what they buy.

Even A Free Repair Wouldn't Be A Stress-Free Repair
Repair implies there's a problem to be solved. Problems cause stress.
In a commercial on radio, an auto repair garage owner assures us, as long as we have good credit we can pay for a vehicle repair over 6 months with no interest. If a repair will cost more than $300, in effect, we'll get an interest-free (no finance charge) loan. The business owner calls it "stress-free repairs".

(Note: I haven't met this business owner & I'm not implying any ethical problems. I'm just urging you to be careful about your explicit & implicit promises.)

Something many people often hear is - "If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is."

There are still stories & warnings about "mechanics" who rip people off or do unsatisfactory work. Vehicles are becoming far more complex. People realize their lack of automotive knowledge makes them vulnerable.

Technology makes products & repairs more expensive. Because labor charges are high & parts are also expensive, many vehicle repairs can cost $1,200 or more. Paying $200 per month for 6 months forces people to make hard choices about which purchases to delay or cancel.

"Stress-free repairs" may seem minor, yet people listen & look for inconsistencies & promises that can't be fulfilled.

Does the garage owner really understand what consumers' daily experiences are? Every expense is aggravated by additional expenses, when people have monthly expenses like these - $100 for utilities plus $500 for mortgage/rent payments that doesn't include food, insurance, fuel, personal expenses, etc.

At this point, you may think 'only $100 + $500? Dennis, you need a reality check!'

That's an expression of incredulity after hearing/reading something that seems literally incredible. Incredulity leads to skepticism or even suspicion.

Many people are skeptical already. It's hard to persuade a skeptic to buy anything.

NOTE: I know in some areas, the costs of living are a lot higher. In some areas, $500 per month wouldn't be enough to share a tiny closet with 6 other people.

Is that more realistic? Are we back on good terms again?
Do you feel the love in the air?
NO way, not with 7 people stuffed into a closet!

Be In Their Comfort Zones
Here's another big reason to show you're willing to understand their situations as well as you can. With whom do you feel more comfortable - 1) somebody who shows concern by trying to understand or 2) anybody who doesn't want to understand (but might fake it)?

It's axiomatic, but as obvious as it is, I want to establish the point.
I'm not implying or claiming any business owner is faking it. I want you to avoid the PERCEPTION of faking anything.

When a person is faking concern & understanding, I wonder what else is s/he faking?

Your advertising is your sales force, representing you & your business. If your representative makes an unrealistic promise, that may raise a little doubt. After that, any misunderstanding could lead to more doubt, then distrust.

Trying to overcome even a bit of distrust is like starting in a hole. Yet, advertisers start in a ditch of distrust.

Consumers know advertisers want to sell things so they can get money. In effect, it seems some advertisers try to pull consumers into the ditch & try to charge them money to get out.

Common advice is: If you find yourself in a hole, don't dig any deeper.

My marketing corollary is: Hey Advertisers! You're already at a disadvantage because you're trying to sell something. Don't make that disadvantage any worse.

Be realistic about your situation & make reality better for yourselves & consumers.

However good you are, if you act in any way like a rat, people may think you're a rat. When you act like a true friend, people may cautiously think you're a friend.

Each day around the world, there are more things being made for consumers. All consumers combined don't have enough money or space to buy everything produced. When they have money available, they'll probably buy something from somebody, especially from a friend.

You should be more than just friendly. You should establish strong business relationships.

You should always do your best to gain sales, not lose sales.

To help me emphasize the importance of this lesson, I've included quotes from Zig Ziglar.

"People don't care how much you know until they know how much you care...about them!"- Zig Ziglar
"If people like you, they'll listen to you, but if they trust you, they'll do business with you." Zig Ziglar
"Profitability comes from loyalty, productivity & having a character base from which to work." Zig Ziglar

Somebody, who seems to be sincere, is a person using some effort to understand. Mental effort is more work than insincere people want to do.

Lifting Financial Burdens
A fraternal insurance company offers a variety of products/services to fulfill its promises of helping members by "lifting financial burdens". Like some other fraternal insurance companies, it offers various policies & programs, plus sponsors benefits, volunteering projects & fund-raisers.

Each of those is good for lifting financial burdens, but none of them remove big financial burdens. That firm won't promise members will ever be stress-free in any situation. Its promises are just to realistically reduce stress.

"Lifting financial burdens" is realistic because burdens will still exist & people, who are burdened, will still end up doing some lifting.

Living Wage? Is That An Oxymoron?
Even the rising tide of an improving economy won't lift all boats. The 'Great Recession' is officially over, though unofficially there are still recessionary conditions in some areas.

There are always debates about living wages/minimum wages. Usual, expected expenses are too much for some people.

It'll always be important to help people lift their burdens without promising too much.

I won't advise marketers to pour on any pity like - "Oh, we understand how bad things are for you! We're doing all we can to help you."

I advise you to express reality with a statement like "We want to do what we can to help you reduce your stress, so we offer you..."

Thank you for using this blog. Please help others by recommending this blog to them.

Please let me how I can realistically reduce your business marketing stress.

Thank you for using my blog. Please let me know if I should clarify anything.

Copyright 2015 Dennis S. Vogel All rights reserved.
When you compete against big businesses with big budgets you need powerful marketing strategies & tactics. You'll find them here-
https://thriving-small-businesses.blogspot.com/
http://www.voy.com/31049/


Subject: Peace, Love & Understanding - We All Need Them

Despite a lot of knowledge & trade skill, you can't help customers until they clear out errors in what they believe. What they believe seems real, but they may be denying reality.

Business owners also need to clear out errors in what they believe, so they can deal productively with reality.

The doctor in the story (below) seemed to care, but he didn't diagnose what was real, he only 'diagnosed' what he believed.

This is the point of what I've written here: As a business owner, you have a responsibility to help your market niche members.

If you heard things like I wrote in this story, you may naturally dismiss the story teller. But until you know (hear/read) enough details, you wouldn't know if this person is or isn't a niche member.

Problems, diseases, injuries, etc. are causes; symptoms are effects.

Whether the troubled person is an employee, family member or customer, you probably won't find & resolve every detail. It's important to look & listen for details you can influence & determine what to offer.

You may solve part of a multi-level problem & help ease part of the load.

Another Day In Paradox

I usually advocate treating problems - not just symptoms. Some symptoms aggravate other causes; so reducing some symptoms can help people solve fundamental problems.

If we try to solve a problem just on the surface, a situation could become more destabilized & be worse. While a cause still exists, it keeps making effects despite diligent efforts to eliminate effects.

It could be like treating symptoms & ignoring diseases.

Example- Marital problems affect people's lives at home before & after working hours, but effects of stress persist at all hours. Socializing may change - especially if co-workers, friends & relatives take sides in conflicts. People may wonder whom they should & shouldn't trust.

The conflict could spread to your staff. You may have some influence over your staff, but not somebody's marital problems.

As much as possible, we should do our best to find & eliminate root/fundamental causes, so we can solve problems instead of only relieving symptoms.

How Do We Do That?

Certain symptoms are more central to a problem than others. There are more details beyond our perceptions, so we need methods to get details. Though we need to know the causes so we can eliminate those, often we have to start evaluating what made effects happen.

Diagnostic Method (in retailing/customer service):
1. Observe & interview to get information
2. Categorize symptoms
3. Determine which symptoms can be caused by one or multiple problems.
4. Determine which symptoms & problems aren't related to what you can offer.
The story emphasizes steps 1 & 2.

Hypothetically in this story, you're a dietary supplement retailer. As I relay this story to you, you can start determining how you can help.

I've inserted comments for you to consider when you determine how you can help this customer. The comments are in [brackets]. These are the kind of things retailers may think of while they hear about customers' problems.

You can extrapolate this to your situation when you use steps 3 & 4.

I've written a bit of a person's history to emphasize how each person has a load of stress that isn't publicly apparent.

Each aspect of a person's life has direct or indirect effects on other aspects. Knowing a little about a person's situation, it's easy to think, "I understand how problematic it is, but how could it be as bad as you claim?"

It's important to avoid judging people based only on what others claim to be true. Among the several important points of this story is this: Positive results were possible only after reality was changed.

Was Bob's life really as bad as I've described below? Definitely not, it was literally worse (seriously)! But what could any retailer do about Bob's whole situation?

Peace, Love & Understanding - But Not For Bob

Bob often worked night shifts (sometimes 2 jobs), especially while working for Wal~Mart. He was usually tired & just wanted to sleep.

[Some night shift workers benefit from supplements to help them relax & sleep.]

His 'home' was the only place he could afford to go.

[It wouldn't help to advise Bob to go to a motel.]

Though he was somewhat in denial about his situation, he could recognize a "family" war zone.

[Dietary supplements won't change other people, but could help Bob be less stressed & more focused. It's crucial for him to try supplements to determine which will work best for him. He needs to start now to prevent deeper, long-term problems.]

Some people cared, but couldn't help him. Anybody, who could've helped him, believed lies about him.

[He's been hurt, so a failed attempt at a solution may discourage him more.]

When Bob asked about additional things he found at home, he was told, "Oh, we had that for a while". When he was told they didn't have enough money to pay some bills, he asked again about the extra things he'd been noticing.

Sue (his "wife") was spending money, instead of paying bills; yet she accused him of being a workaholic & of not doing enough to support her & the children.

[He doesn't have much money, but he could invest some of his pay in his health. Sue would probably just waste that much money anyway.]

When he persisted with questions, she accused him of other things. Often she spread her lies to others including doctors & legal authorities, who investigated him. His participation was required & the hearings were done while he should've been sleeping.

[Even when Bob isn't being hassled, he's probably stressed. Stress is making him more vulnerable. Yet if a supplement helps him sleep, he could be vulnerable if he's too sedated.]

He felt stress building up, but he figured he survived more severe stress than that. That severe stress was endured in short periods, not prolonged like now in Bob's civilian life.

Stress depleted his energy; so mental focus & awareness were harder. He didn't realize he was drowning in stress because he wasn't dealing with reality.

[Dietary supplements & medical care could be beneficial by helping him focus on reality. He might find a solution if he's willing to do what's necessary.]

His health deteriorated to the point, he could barely work one job, he had to quit part-time work. Eventually, he could only work part-time until the whole stress load was too overwhelming. Then he couldn't even focus on a part-time job.

[He may've waited too long to prevent a major depressive episode.]

The other employees weren't patient; they didn't like his reduced output or a doctor's orders to reduce his workload & schedule. Medications & less work didn't help Bob.

Despite what Bob said, everything the doctor tried was based on Sue's lies.

Eventually, Bob tried using over-the-counter dietary supplements. The supplements had some positive effects, weren't strong enough to help enough.

[By this point, he definitely waited too long.]

Sue stopped telling Bob about unpaid bills. Sue didn't spend all the money foolishly. She saved some for herself, but Bob didn't know it & he didn't have access to it.

After too many years, Bob took personal responsibility for what he could do & eventually started recovering.

[Now supplements can help him recover more completely.]


Thank you for using my blog. Please let me know if I should clarify anything.

Copyright 2015 Dennis S. Vogel All rights reserved.
When you compete against big businesses with big budgets you need powerful marketing strategies & tactics. You'll find them here-
https://thriving-small-businesses.blogspot.com/
http://www.voy.com/31049/