Launching a profitable service or product relies almost entirely on exceeding the needs of customers. Delighting the customer — aka outside-in innovation — not only helps startups set themselves apart from money-hungry competitors but it builds trust. Nobody embodies this idea quite like Walt Disney — an innovator known for creating an unparalleled customer-care philosophy. It was he who set the gold standard for every business and went to great lengths to provide a magical experience for each and every patron.
“Do what you do so well that they will see it again and bring their friends.” — Walt Disney.
When Disneyland first opened, Disney conducted his first customer experiment. His crew handed out candy as guests entered the park and counted how many steps each person took before throwing their wrappers on the ground. Because so many littered before 30 feet, trash bins were placed strategically (within 30 feet) throughout the park. To this day, Disney owns the world’s most visited entertainment resort, continues to conduct customer experiments (for both children and adults) and remains known for its inspiring business model.
“I do not make films primarily for children. I make them for the child in all of us, whether we be six or 60.” — Walt Disney.
Inspired by The Walt Disney Company, Intuit also aims at establishing deep customer empathy by not just meeting, but exceeding, customers’ needs. One way to do that is by gaining customer feedback.
For example, an Intuit team, working on the TurboTax Finish and File project, wanted to make the TurboTax experience easier for users. To promote user confidence, they interviewed customers, spoke to agents who relayed customers’ struggles and came up with five insights. They then came up with two customer personas — which presented different customer problems — talked about customer feedback, narrowed all the concepts and moved toward product development. The process started and ended with the customer.
Bottom line — customer feedback is essential.
Entrepreneurs and innovators, both big and small, should seek as much customer feedback as possible for a variety of reasons. First, you learn what customers do and do not like. If you know what’s working and what isn’t you can tweak to better serve them. Secondly, you make customers feel important and involved. By asking customers to provide you with honest feedback, you end up communicating on a personal level and establishing loyalty. It shows that you value their opinion(s) and you care about what they think. Lastly, you can constantly improve. If you’re always in tune with your customers’ needs you always have a pulse on what’s working. It will lead to better business, better sales and a better customer experience.
Acquiring Customer Feedback:
1.) Create a prototype concept.
2.) Write non-leading questions you’d ask a customer.
3.) Assign an interviewer for each concept to be tested.
4.) Show your target customer your concept.
5.) Ask them to explain what they think is going on with the concept.
6.) Ask open-ended questions to get their reaction to the concept. Ex: “What do you like or dislike about the concept?” or “Would this concept work for you? Why or why not?”
7.) Take notes on what you hear — likes, dislikes, insights and surprises. Make sure to record as many direct quotes from the user as possible.
8.) After gaining customer feedback, analyze your observations.
Tips to Remember:
1.) Make sure interviewers are not advocating for the concept. If a customer feels like you want them to like your concept, it will bias their feedback.
2.) If the interviewer is not probing deep enough to uncover good insights, the facilitator or a team member should step in and ask more “why” questions.
3.) Make sure you define only one to two questions to answer with a prototype. If you try to answer too many, your feedback will get muddled.
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