Customer Insight

Many believe that a good product can help make big bucks in no time. Well it does, but not always. Most organizations ignore the importance of co-creating the product with a thorough insight on what the customer wants , how she would like to consume it and how different she expects a new service / product to be . The bottomline is the customers aren't probably looking at a new product even if it is very compelling . They are just looking for someone who could fill the gaps of the current product and maybe that is sufficient to stimulate a purchase decision.

Lets say i have a Jabab 150 STID bike and i love the power of the bike and the overall biking experience . I may love Jabab , but back in my mind, i know it would be great if someone offers me a similar power and biking experience along with a great mileage. Now, dont think aloud that Mileage and Power cant get married and if you do so , thats when you ignore the opportunity of giving the customer what she wants. If you do, you end up making a Jabab 180 STID which may be phenomenal and would have takers , but then you just gave them what you could offer and not what they want . May be a feature rich new model of Jabab 150 ABCD , which delivers what the customer wants, would have fetched you triple the sales and a proportional PAT and bonus.

Should you be happy with what you earned out of the new model or do you think deep about the missed opportunity . Infact product innovation without purpose can lead to a disaster. Reason, you took the customer for a ride !

A good example of giving what the customer needs rather than producing what you can is the way Dhainik Bhaskar launched their dailies in Jaipur,Chandigarh and Ahmedabad. Their goal was to launch as number two in all the places they launched and it is truly amazing how they actually surpassed their own goals .They were wanting to be leaders in vernacular medium while the margins are apparently higher in English dailies. I like to throw some key insights on their launches at the above mentioned places .

The Jaipur Launch

Goal : Launch a Hindi daily as a number 2 in Jaipur with a day 1 circulation of 50,000.
Result : Launched as number 1 with a day 1 circulation of 1,72,347 copies .

They overpowered the erstwhile leader's brand , built over 30 years , in a flash . What was the reason ? Yes , Passion is an obvious reason but the customer insight they developed through their market research was phenomenally brilliant. They not just met 2,00,000 households but made sure they paid repeat visits with inferences and information on both the research and the new product which made the customer feel special and most importantly the customer felt privileged when she could see what she suggested being implemented.

Remember, newspaper is a habit that someone builds over time and very difficult to change . Launching as number 1 in such an industry is quite an achievement.

The Chandigarh Launch

Goal : Launch a Hindi daily in a city where English paper circulation was 6 times the Hindi counterparts
Result : Launched as a number one newspaper with a circulation of 69000 on day 1 outclassing the top English paper by a whopping 28 %

How did that happen ? There was a belief by various newspapers that the residents of Chandigarh prefer English over Hindi and they were right too ! So how did Dhainik launch as number 1 ? They just dug deep and found out why English was preferred over Hindi and made sure those cosmetic requirements were met ,rather surpassed by their Hindi edition.

Now , you see what Customer Insight can mean to your brand . They not just conquered the existing market , they also expanded the market. Now , that is what you expect out of innovators and market leaders.

The Ahmedabad launch

Goal : Launch a Gujrati daily and obviously as number 1
Result : A world record with 4,52,000 copies on day 1

The reason i think they did well was they realised that the people in Ahmedabad prefer Gujrati over Hindi . Dhainik could have easily rolled out what they had , rather they chose to give the customers what they needed. This is Customer Intelligence ( not from technology point of view ) at its very best .

Now, why are such things not easy to emulate ?

The biggest problem with most Indian companies is the lack of emphasis on research . Research is considered to be an overhead , dead weight and a waste of time. How can you call a product innovative, if it comes out of little or no research and customer insight. If success is defined by how you feel about your product, then its okay, but not so for companies whose goals are revenue, value or number driven .

Remember , your product as an offering is what the customer perceives and not what you tangibly offer. If you feel you've done well to create a truly innovative masterpiece but your customers were never engaged throughout the product development, i suggest you hire a smart fin fella and ask him how to book your opportunity cost as losses in your P&L . You'd realise you probably not just missed a chance to triple your bonuses , but also committed a corporate crime by not delivering a superior value to your shareholders/ stakeholders.

To conclude , know your Customer , find what she wants and try to deliver the same and trust me you're sure not to be ousted by a smart thinker ( atleast overnight) . Your customer respects the fact that he is engaged and tends to become more loyal. Remember,the customer asset is also a bubble , just that she is more real and doesnt give you another chance to blow her to a fancier new bubble , unlike the stock markets