Customers usually tell you what they want.
However, you will not satisfy them until you also meet their underlying needs.
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There is a subtle but important difference between needs and wants.
Wants are the expectations your customers have explicitly stated.
Needs are requirements underlying those expectations that often remain unarticulated.
And meeting those underlying needs is critical - because your customer will never be satisfied, no matter how comprehensively you meet their wants, if their needs remain unsatisfied.
For instance, your manager says "I want to see more analysis here".
And you promptly oblige by incorporating additional data and a fancy graph.
Yes, you are providing what your manager wants: "more analysis"
Yet, your manager is unsatisfied, because what he really needs, and has not explicitly said, is: "Give me a good reason for the drop in sales -a reason that will satisfy my boss when I speak with her later this evening"
Until that need is clearly articulated and satisfied, your customer will never feel fully served.
Don't just give your customers what they want.
Make sure you satisfy their underlying needs as well.
