This isn’t a post about how customers aren’t always right. No, this time is to make sure that the sales and development people in the world understand the motivations that customers bring to the table.
There is a difference between a customer’s desires before they buy a product or service and after they have completed the transaction. That difference comes down to “the experience.” Thinking about what they are getting brings about one set of optimistic goals and desires which allows them to think about things a certain way. Once they are getting the service though they now have the joys, sorrows, trials and successes of reality to face.
Successfully managing that transition so that customers feel like what they got is what they wanted can be challenging – particularly in the CRE world where they aren’t always sure what they need or what they are getting.
But simply asking people what they want in a customer survey only gets you part of the picture. Just as most customer dissatisfaction is not always pure dissatisfaction but can be caused by the misalignment of expectations.