Instead of focusing so heavily on customer insights, Gladwell suggests the perils of them. For example, he discusses the example of the Aeron chair, which was an unexpected hit after terrible reviews from the public. Everyone said they didn’t like the way it looked; that it was wiry and unlikely to support them with its mesh fabric. Despite these reviews, the Aeron went on to be the most successful office chair in the history of office chairs. In fact, it has won itself a permanent spot in the New York Museum of Modern Art.
Trust no one unless you have eaten much salt with him”
- Cicero
This quote applies to the lesson that Gladwell teaches in the Aeron chair example. Although it is important to listen to what the consumer says, it is even more valuable to take their insights with a grain of salt. Gladwell makes a very valid and interesting point that it is very difficult to get to people’s heart and truly get to what they think. Often times, the consumer does not know what he wants or just cannot find the words to express what they seek. Other times, they just don’t tell the truth.
Knowing that consumers often don’t convey what truly goes through their minds, it is important as marketers when doing research that we are careful not to completely believe what they say. While I venture to say that their personal insights are truthful about 80% of the time, there is a pretty substantial probability that they aren’t being completely honest or just can’t describe what they are feeling.
Just from speculation, I suspect that consumers misrepresent their desires or wants in two instances. The first is when they are asked to convey their feelings about something sensitive. The other is when they are being asked about something they are unfamiliar with. For example, if someone were to ask me about a product for personal hygiene, there is a very high probability that I would lie about my preferences in fear of them finding out too much about my personal space. Or if someone asked me about golf clubs, I probably would unconsciously misrepresent my answer just because I am not an avid golfer. (In fact, I’m quite bad. I often swing without hitting the ball) However, if I was an experienced golfer, I probably would give a different answer because I knew so much about what I did and did not like.
With that being said, I think it’s important that market researchers or business people be very careful when conducting surveys to analyze customer preferences. To prevent misrepresentation of true consumer insights, strategically hide sensitive questions or make sure that you ask the right people about their consumer preferences.
A second lesson that can be learned from Gladwell’s book and talks is the importance of first impressions. The cliché quote that says that impressions are everything is true in some sense. In Blink, Gladwell talks about how the packaging of different brandies led to either success or failure. In the example, a brandy was losing market share to a competitor, although tasters had more positive associations with their product than their counterpart. After heavy pondering, the company determined their loss in sales was due to their packaging. After changing their bottle to match more like their competitor’s, they were able to regain market share. In a similar example during TEDtalks, Gladwell attributes Grey Poupon’s success to the high-class image exuded to consumers. Both examples show how impressions can change consumer behavior.
I can attest to the importance of impressions as a consumer. Gladwell seems to talk/write a lot about food, so I’m going to use a food example as well. Besides, it’s probably the easiest thing for a foodie like me to talk about. Because I am such a foodie, I like to try everything that is considered edible. As you can imagine, eating vast amounts of food can be a hazard to the waistline, so I always try to eat healthy whenever possible.
Eating healthy is hardly possible when you have a sweet tooth like mine. Cakes, pies, ice cream, anything that uses at least a cup of sugar to make or bake, sits high on my list of things I like to eat. So this is where the conflict arises: I love eating sweets, but I try to eat healthy at the same time. The way I allow myself to indulge in my favorite things is by selecting foods that appear to be healthy or healthier. So if I were given the option between a chocolate cake and a chocolate cake topped with berries, I would go for the berry-topped slice of heaven. Obviously, the fact that the cake is topped with berries makes it no less unhealthy, but I perceive it to be healthier than a slice without any fruit atop. In other words, it makes the right impression on me to trick myself to eat it.
So the lesson to be learned here is that as a marketer, it is extremely important to take into consideration what kind of impression your product makes on a consumer. Your product may be great and better than the competition, but if it is inappropriately presented, then you have lost a potential customer. But as mentioned earlier, understanding how you can make the right impression is the tricky part. So it seems like there’s a never-ending circle when it comes to customer insights. You try to find out how to make the right impression. So naturally, you ask the consumer. You make changes to meet their needs/desires, only to find out that their insights were unreliable. So now you need their insights again and you're back to where you started from.
This leads me to an overarching lesson that I think we as business people can draw from Malcolm Gladwell. I believe the overarching lesson stems from the need to trust yourself. I firmly believe that the spirit of entrepreneurship thrives on faith in your own idea. So take it and run with it. Konosuke Matsushita, founder of Panasonic, relates to this point when he said:
“No matter how deep a study you make. What you really have to rely on is your own intuition and when it comes down to it, you really don't know what's going tohappen until you do it.”
Customer surveys may tell you one thing, but sometimes your own insight is just as important as the consumer’s. Your thoughts and insights may better represent what the consumer wants than you think. After all, it’s easier to get to the root of your own heart than someone else’s.
Just imagine what would have happened if Herman Miller decided to cancel the launch of his chair. This world would be missing out on the greatest office chair known to mankind. So when the entrepreneur within you decides to release something that doesn’t get the highest ratings, don’t let it get you down. If you have enough reason to believe in its success, follow your instinct. You too are a consumer. Listen to your own insight every once in a while.
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