On Saturday, we got the kids out on the lake. My brother-in-law picked up a couple of Sea-Doos, which was very exciting for all of the kids.
On top of it being their first time being towed behind a Sea-Doo, it was also their first time attempting to wakeboard.
They made it look so simple.
Me, on the other hand? Not so much. A few hard falls and tumbles, and I felt like I was hit by a dump truck for the next two days. But within 3-4 tries, I was also up on my feet.
Here's what we can learn from this and why it's important to you.
This board was not built for pro wakeboarding. It looks like nothing else on the water. It looks family-friendly. It's designed not with crazy designs but with simple, big, bright bold colors. It has a tow rope and handle that looks and feels like nothing else you'll see in the wakeboarding section.
I'd bet, without question, the board was built by a couple of people who love to ski, surf, and board, but they realized they were not the customer.
It would have been very easy to make this look like every other board out there, but they didn't.
The lesson here is one we can't forget: You are not your customer.
When making decisions, changing policies, drafting sales & marketing messaging, it's always important to remember who will benefit from those decisions, or who will be impacted by policy changes, or if your message will resonate to your customer.
I've seen time and time again, where decisions are made or meetings and discussions are clouded by the personal experiences and preferences at those within the company – without asking, but what about our customers?
Even when the evidence clearly points to something else, some often struggle to let go of their personal opinions.
Just because you've done something one way doesn't mean your customers do.
Or just because you don't shop on a specific platform, doesn't mean your customers don't.
Or just because you think your way is the best, doesn't mean it is.
Do you know who your customer is?
Do you genuinely understand their biggest desire or challenge?
If you can figure that out, your only objective is to drive them to their solution or help them reach their desired goal.
Everything else is just muddying the waters.
Your Challenge For This Week:
Look back at your last five most significant sales/marketing-related decisions and ask yourself if those decisions were made with your customer's best interest in mind, or were the decisions skewed by your personal beliefs and interests?
As you make decisions moving forward, remind yourself of the key lesson here.
