Give ‘Em What They Want, When They Want It
Now that you’ve formed a better idea of who your ideal customers are, you need to identify how you can meet their desires. So let’s look at a few examples of businesses that have profited by aptly answering to their customers wants.
Joe’s Real BBQ: Known from Coast to Coast
One of my favorite restaurants is Joe’s Real BBQ, owned by Joe Johnston and Tad Peelen in Gilbert, Arizona. Joe’s Real BBQ has been a Phoenix area favorite since 1998.*
Customers come back again and again, bringing their families and out of town guests to eat the melt-in-your mouth barbecue pork, ham and ribs. Joe’s Real BBQ has won “Best Barbecue” from the Arizona Republic and Phoenix New Times for several years, and has been featured in numerous publications such as Sunset Magazine. It was also nominated for the “Best Brisket” on the nationally syndicated Live with Regis and Kelly television show. Their sister restaurant, Joe’s Farm Grill has been featured on the Food Networks’s Diner’s Drive-Ins and Dive’s with Guy Fieri.
So What Makes Joe‘s Real BBQ Restaurant Stand Out from the Crowd?
Joe Johnston and Tad Peelen understand what their customers want and they deliver.
Joe attributes the restaurant’s success to four things. According to Joe:
“We are wired to:
(1) be the best,
(2) never compromise on quality, even if it is difficult,
(3) to go deep in the process (know as much and control as much as possible) and
(4) enjoy people and relationships.“ (The Roaster Project)
The owners of Joe’s Real BBQ actively engage with their customers in person and via social media every day. They gather valuable feedback to find out what their customers want. Then they do something amazing: they give it to them.
Want Versus Need
According to Dictionary.com, want is defined as the following:
1. to feel a need or a desire for; wish for: to want one‘s dinner; always wanting something new.
2. to wish, need, crave, demand, or desire.
“Needs” are defined as being requirements, necessary duties or obligations. I need food; I need transportation; I need to pay my cell phone bill.
“Wants” are driven by our emotions, and sometimes those emotions are very strong. Needs may or may not be emotion-driven.
What’s the Difference Between My Seven-Year-Old Granddaughter Crying for a Toy in Walmart and Your Customers? Absolutely Nothing!
In Walmart one day with her mother, my granddaughter, Sarah, who was at the time seven years old, saw a toy that she wanted. When her mother wouldn’t buy it for her, Sarah suddenly erupted into a crying spell; her heart was broken. Her mother offered to make a deal with Sarah to allow her to earn the toy, and Sarah’s want for the toy was so strong, that she accepted.
The point is that, like Sarah, as a customer not only do I want what I want, I want it when I want it-which is usually now. I don’t mean any offense here, but as adults we’re no different than children. The difference is that as adults we have more access to get what we want when we want it!
Many experts say that you should give your customers what they need. But forget about that. If her mom had offered Sarah toothpaste she would not have wanted it, even though she has a need for it daily. The same is true with our customers. What kid (or adult) wants what he or she needs? Not me! I don’t want what I need, I want what I want! Yes, as a customer, I’m very much like a child.
Sometimes my wants correlate with my needs, sometimes they don’t. But timing is everything. And for me the time is always right now!
So the question to ask yourself is “What is it that my customers want?” Then figure out how you can give it to them.
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Note: This is an excerpt from my new book “How to Build Buzz for Your Biz, Tap into the Power of Social Media, Publicity, and Relationship Marketing to Grow Your Business.” For more information go to: How to Build Buzz for Your Biz
Wendy Kenney is a nationally known Buzz Building Expert and the Founder and CEO of 23 Kazoos, a marketing firm specializing in inexpensive and creative small business marketing strategies. She has honed her marketing skills through over 26 years of entrepreneurship and business management.
Wendy just released her new book called “How to Build Buzz for Your Biz- Tap into the Power of Social Media, Publicity and Relationship Marketing to Grow Your Business” based on her knowledge of what works and what does not work in small business marketing. This book features practical and low cost marketing strategies, such as “How to Grow Your Business Using Social Media,” as well as valuable links, resources, and tips.
Wendy frequently speaks to organizations about marketing for small business. To get more information or to schedule Wendy to speak go to: Business Marketing Speaker
Claim your free download (no email necessary) on Wendy’s website: 23 Kazoos
Wendy lives in Phoenix, Arizona, with her husband Mike, and three teenage sons. Her personal goal is to visit all of the Major League Ballparks in the US before she turns 49. So far she has been to 12.
* Disclosure: Joe’s Real BBQ is a client of 23 Kazoos.
