You’re not your product’s customer. Quite likely, you’re not the target market for what you’re selling. Just because you cannot afford the 40,000 shs per tot brandy does not mean you cannot sell it. Conversely, “I cannot develop houses for sale on a twelfth of an acre (or mabati structures). I cannot live in such a tiny house myself and cannot be associated with mabati structures.” Yet, in your market segment, these units that are in demand. You are not your customer. Dismissing products or markets because they do not align with your personal preferences can be detrimental to your sales success. Here are 4 examples how.
You are not your customer. The case of the hapless insurance agent
“When you are selling, start by asking prospects for annual premium (price) and, if need be, negotiate to semi-annual, quarterly and finally, monthly. Many customers can pay annually if asked to. Administratively, this is easier for them and it is for you too. The alternative is to confirm, month on month that they have paid. For example, instead of telling them the premium is 1,000shs a month, tell them it’s 12,000shs.” So, a sales manager in an insurance firm revealed.
He continued: “Now, there was this agent that would enthusiastically agree to the logic. But for some reason he never implemented it. Two months later I found out why. In his words: ‘If I’m struggling to pay my rent of 1,000 shs no one an afford 12,000 for insurance.’” I think this is where a Kenyan will say, “Usiseme hakuna pesa, sema wewe hauna.” (Direct translation: Don’t say there’s no money, say you don’t). You are not your customer.
Misplaced marketing: The hoity-toity spice brand manager’s mistake
“My brand cannot appear on this TV/radio station (or that YouTube or TikTok channel). They are beneath me. I don’t listen to the gossip that goes on there. I do this serious podcasts. This is where I want us to advertise my brand. I cannot be associated with that other class.” That stance had been taken by a brand manager of a popular spice in Kenya.
Cognizant that bottom-of-the-pyramid was where the masses for their product was, the multinational she worked for had come up with a 10g pack of the spice. This had been informed by the principle that emphasizes the need to collect data. Which they had, from extensive research, that revealed that millions in this market bought toothpaste in 5shs blobs squeezed out from a tube they could not afford to buy outright. The blob was enough for a day. The 10g was too. Now do you suppose this market can be found watching or listening to what the brand manager does? If you do, like her, you will waste your marketing budgets, frustrate the sales efforts, and if you insist on that trajectory, lose your job too. Like she did.
The 5-star hotel and the intimidated waiters
“Our waiters limit themselves to offering water or soda to guests at our 5-star hotel. No matter how much we encouraged them or insisted, they would not offer any of our high-end wines or brandies. Replacing them didn’t change much. Until we realized the problem.
It turns out that the places they patronised offered only water, tea and soda. This was the extent of their exposure. It is this frame of mind that they approached the job with. And it shaped their reality.”
This was shared by the General Manager of a popular hotel in Kenya. He went on to explain: “One waiter even admitted that he felt intimidated. How can I ask a guest if they would like a brandy when the price of a tot is my three month’s salary?” And that is when the revision of their orientation program was reviewed to bridge this yawning gap, that you are not your customer.
The holiday homes salesperson who sold her limited thinking instead
“I was shocked when I heard it. I just could not believe it. We sell holiday homes” a business owner shared. “They all face the Indian Ocean and range in price from 75 million apiece. to the penthouse which is 105 million. The design, furnishings and finishing are all imported. Obviously, my market is niche and ‘self-actualizing’. Now, I had this salesperson who turned away prospects because according to her, and I quote, ‘Buying a holiday home is a waste of money. Two-bedroom apartments cost a fraction of the cost.’
With this thinking she had gone ahead and done an Excel sheet with projections of rental income, showing why 65 million would be better invested constructing a block of apartments in Syokimau. This is what she would “advise” prospects when they enquired about the holiday homes.” This was a classic case of failing to understand the target customer.
Read: Selling luxury items without feeling intimidated
Quit thinking like yourself— you are not your customer
So. Detach yourself from your product and attach yourself to your target market’s thinking. Incidentally, thinking digitally, this is also the main goal of generative AI. It is also the reason it is encouraged to create a chatbot for your website that can answer queries in real time. In sales, just like in AI, the goal is to provide customized responses based on data rather than personal bias.
It’s not about you. You are not your customer. If you don’t realize this, it’s likely hurting your sales. Now that you know, stop thinking for your customer—because he is definitely not thinking like you.
Read: Think like a customer to propel your sales
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