Know customers > no customers

“The purpose of business is to create and keep a customer.” – Peter Drucker

Peter Drucker’s brutally simple observation about business is 100% correct. What it doesn’t tell us though, is how businesses are expected to create and keep a customer.

Fortunately, the answer is just as simple: talk to them.

Customer research provides the information that helps unlock new and potentially game-changing insights for businesses and their customers. It helps new businesses find an audience, established businesses innovate and overtake their competitors, and leading companies evolve and retain their position at the top of the tree.

Overlooking customer research is like trying to score a goal with your eyes closed. The more you invest in research, the more open your eyes become, the less defenders are in your way and the closer you get to the goal – until you can’t miss.

For example, Lego conducted a four year study involving 3500 girls and their mothers to understand why they made up only 9% of Lego’s audience. Their new line, ‘Friends’, designed to appeal to girls was a breakthrough success with this audience, increasing profits for the major toy brand by 24% during launch year.

You might think you already know your customer – and to an extent you do. But do you know them well enough to truly innovate and exceed their expectations? That’s where great brands do it better.

It’s time to stop thinking of customer research as an additional cost and more as an essential investment. After all, it’s the only real way to create and keep a customer.

Talk to us about getting to know your customer better.