Can you hear what your customers really want?

Listening to the “Voice of the Customer” has almost become synonymous with smart business in recent years. So I think it’s interesting, and appropriate, to examine what it means to listen to the voice of the customer and to discuss whether it’s good, bad, or indifferent; who should listen; who shouldn’t; and the risks associated with “listening,” to what your customer has to say.

Before diving into this from a business perspective, though, how about a little discussion of politics just to introduce some irony. Think about the “voice of the customer” in politics. Isn’t the “customer” really the voter that elects politicians? Yet think about how much a politician is vilified for “following the polls,” or “caving to the pressure of the people.” Now, I agree caving to the pressure of special interests that don’t truly represent the “customer” is wrong, but why is it so wrong for a politician to say, “well, I don’t really like this bill, but the polls say my constituents support it three to one,” so I’m going to go ahead and vote for it. Is that immoral? Is it wrong? Why is it any different than an auto maker saying, “well, I don’t really like red cars, but my customers buy them at a rate of three times that of any other color, so I guess I’ll make red cars.” Now it’s true that we live in a democratic republic, not a pure democracy, so our elected officials are empowered, and expected, to vote their conscience and to do what they believe is right. But how can we call it wrong to do what a majority of our constituents think is right? And what is the likelihood that whatever it is the politician is voting on is bad or immoral, if a majority of the elected officials support it? Just some food for thought.

Now, let’s talk business.

The voice of the customer is not all it’s cracked up to be. In his recent book, The Culture Code, Clotaire Rapaille reveals the stark difference between what people say they want and what really turns them on. In one fascinating study, Rapaille demonstrates how Chrysler revived the Jeep in the 1990s, not by asking people what they want (to which they answer reliability, a good price, safety, etc.) but by studying their subconscious coding of the product. During the study, by asking people about their first memories of the Jeep and studying their subconscious perceptions, Rapaille discovered that the “Culture Code” for the Jeep in America is, “the horse.” Because for American, the Jeep symbolizes the Wild West, a the wind in the hair, bravado, etc. Yet in Europe the culture code for the Jeep was revealed to be the “liberator.” That is, the American soldier coming over the hill in a jeep to liberate a town. By using these images, the Jeep was slightly restyled, ad campaigns launched, and sales of the Jeep rejuvenated. Yet in VOC studies, not a single participant said, “I want to feel like I’m in the Wild West.”

Along similar (but different) lines, a lot of work has been done in recent years to discover what is often referred to as “the unarticulated needs of the customer.” In other words, if the customer can tell us, “I need this,” we’re probably a little late to the game. But if we can discover their unarticulated needs by studying their business and our ability to add value, we can stay one step ahead of our competitors.