The power of insights drives businesses forward. Most companies and people involved in marketinginnovation believe they use insights. They refer to being insight-driven and consumer-focused, but what really is an insight, and how do we know we've got a good one?
Well, that is the $50,000 question. It is obvious that not everyone uses insights properly, and some are clearly better at recognizing them than others.
Firstly, we have to define what a real insight is. An insight entails these three Ws:
And Wow! The marketing campaign is not based on my gut feeling. Â
An insight is a central value or belief that drives consumption and stimulates a purchase. An insight might be a short written statement, but it’s the lens helping the consumer see your business through. If we know what people are doing but not why they are doing it, we call it an observation. It's not an insight as we can't be sure of the motivation behind the action.
People also often mistake accepted consumer beliefs for insights. These are myths and prejudices mainly created by the industry which influence consumers' purchase and prevent them from getting what they really need. When looking for the insight, it's vital to focus your activities and narrow your research to specific targets and key gaps in your knowledge.
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Ok, time for a real example. Let’s say I love a good cup of coffee in the morning. Now, you are a coffee manufacturer, you will first find out that consumers (like me) drink coffee for its unique flavor and energizing quality. All these things are easily observable and offer little power to differentiate your brand. But once you have explored my world and dug into my beliefs, you’ll find that I drink coffee in the morning after my hectic commute and when I need to get rid of distractions. It gives me the ability to focus and the power to start my day right.
Now, THIS is an insight. It allows your coffee company to target the brand in the message more powerfully. By the way, many famous coffee brands make use of this insight, showing how coffee can jazz up your morning.
Or, let's say you’re promoting gym leggings. Instead of focusing on the material properties and colors, try digging out a more valuable insight. Like, for an average middle-aged woman, we’ll find out that the gym is the only place where she can blow off some steam without losing her edge in the middle of the working day.
Why Care About Customer Insight Anyway?
Customer insight is all about crunching data to tap into customers’ minds. It will help you make better decisions about how, when, and what to sell them.
Better decision making will generate more effective campaigns or strategies, thus increasing profitability. Among other benefits, customer insight will revamp your business approach and help your marketing company become:
’Working in the customer service industry made me love the people more….SAID NO ONE EVER!’ - True story. Getting along with customers has never been easy. However, valuable or actionable customer insights relieve your customer pain and boost customer satisfaction as well.
Get your consumer insights going
Customer insights are essential to creating content or product that will convert. However, this is a serious and time-consuming process that needs accurate planning and profound knowledge. Here’s how you can get going:
Define your data goals and objectives. Before diving into research, make sure you know how to obtain the statistics.
Pinpoint the resources. Answer the How and Who questions. How will you fetch your data, and who will analyze it? It’s not a one-person show, you’ll need experts.
Narrow down your collection method. This could be a focus group or a survey. Or, instead, you can target the existing consumers.
Last but not least: How will you leverage data to boost your brand? Once you obtain the data, start thinking about what processes, approaches, and ideas might be moved and whether you have Plan B.
Yeah, we get it. Being customer-centric, data-centric, mobile-centric, digital-centric and God-knows-what centric is a real challenge. But you will never succeed without juggling like a pro.
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The Bottom Line
Customer insight is a powerful marketing tool. It is all about understanding your target audience based on buying behaviors, beliefs, or needs. It goes beyond raw data. Instead, it is a multi-view of your customers generated from a strategic data analysis. Customer insight data will give your business confidence that the vision is aligned with the customers’ needs, which boosts sales and generates profit in the long run. Â
