I recently had my fifth annual April Fool’s Day party, known hereabouts as The St. Stupid’s Day Tea Party. (There’s no tea – April Fool’s!) It was inspired by a group that stages a parade through San Francisco’s financial district every April 1.
I always invite a variety of friends, and the only rule is that everyone has to wear something silly to be admitted.
I also try to come up with a variety of creative and tasty foods. Past entries have included Deviled Eggs, a Rhubarb Fool, and Iron Salad Sandwiches (instead of salad with grated carrots and raisins I made tea sandwiches of mashed carrots on cinnamon raisin bread).
I have also been trying for several years to come up with a recipe that incorporates Pop Rocks.
Yes, Pop Rocks.
Ever since seeing an episode of Anthony Bourdain’s “No Reservations” where someone incorporated Pop Rocks into a cheesecake crust, I have been intrigued obsessed with the idea of using Pop Rocks. It would be the perfect April Fool’s trick to have someone take a bite of an otherwise normal looking dish and have it go Pop! Pop! Pop! in her mouth.
The problem, unfortunately, is finding the right vehicle for the Pop Rocks, one that does not cause them to pop prematurely. I’ve tried a variety of things, including sweet & sour spiced nuts (the Pop Rocks melted on the roasted nuts) and brownie bites rolled in Pop Rocks (the Pop Rocks absorbed too much moisture from the brownies).
It is a puzzle for my curious mind: How can I adhere the Pop Rocks to something without using something inedible like hair spray?
Why this obsession? Well, I’m now curious about how to do it. I think I can come up with something great, and I think my friends will enjoy it. How do I know? Well, I know my friends pretty well. I know what they like. I know their senses of humor. And if they’re willing to come to an April Fool’s Day party, it’s a pretty safe bet they will appreciate the joke and the inventiveness that went into it.
It’s really tempting to take the same approach with my customers
It’s really tempting to take the same approach with my customers. I’m passionate and curious about an issue. I’m uniquely qualified to figure it out. If I build it, they will come. Besides, I think my customers need certain services. I think they need certain products and solutions to their problems. I’m pretty sure they’ll appreciate the solutions I come up with. After all, I know them. And my special thing that I do is so fabulous, how can they resist?
I think I know, but…
How do I know, really? When I am preparing something for my customers, I have to do more than indulge my personal curiosity, talents and calling. (Not instead of, but in addition to.) It will be more useful if I practice some curiosity about my customers.
What do they want? What do they need? Not just what do I think they need (and feel like providing) but what do they think they need?
There are a lot of ways to find out. I can observe what they are doing and listen to what they are talking about in forums and Twitter. Better yet, I can be pro-active and ask and listen to what they tell me, whether this is via conversations, focus groups or surveys.
Anonymous observation is useful, but engaging is better.
It allows me to be specific, to drill-down and to follow-up. Best of all, it builds relationships.
Regardless of the method, the heart of the matter is Curiosity. Fostering curiosity instead of relying on my assumptions and what I think I know. I might just be right, but I might not.
Being curious about my customers and confirming what they want or need is not (or at least needn’t be) following the pack. It can be a high form of servant leadership. It can also help me to:
- Provide what my customers need,
- Identify whether I’ve targeted the right people, and
- Market my products and services using language that speaks to their needs.
It also ups my credibility because providing what they have told me they want or need tells them that I cared enough to listen. Now that’s loving my customers.
Are you curious?
So, I have three questions for you:
Are you curious?
How are you acting on your curiosity about your customers?
What can I do to help you foster and act on that curiosity?
Oh, and one more question: Any ideas about the Pop Rock thing?
Tell me in the comments below!
