OK, I guess you should listen to them, but don’t just do as they say! Too often customers know what they want, but not what they need.

If you worked in a hardware store and a customer came looking for a good old-fashioned night-light, you could hand him exactly what he asked for and he would leave happy.

However, if you asked some questions and showed him some options, he might leave with a light-sensitive, motion-activated nightlight that only burns electricity when it is needed. He wouldn’t be happy, he’d be thrilled!

The discrepancy between wants and needs does not just apply to simple examples like night-lights. I’ve had clients ask me to lead them through strategic planning. After a little discussion, it becomes apparent that strategic planning is not what they need. Their problem lies in implementing their strategy. After all, implementation is always the hardest part of getting results. Had I done as asked in these cases, they would have been happy enough, but giving them what they needed instead left them thrilled and eager for more Uncommon Clarity in the future.

When I was a software engineer years ago, I saw the same problem all the time. Customers thought they knew what they needed, but they didn’t know enough about the technology, the possibilities, the interfaces, or the limitations to make smart decisions. It was essential to dig in and find out what problem they were trying to solve and what outcome they hoped to achieve. In these cases, catering to their wants would have been disastrous more often than not.

Take the time to get beyond wants and investigate needs. Your reward will be a customer who truly appreciates the value you provide, a customer who trusts that you have their best interests at heart, and a customer who will come back again and again.