June 2, 2008

Not All Customers Are Equal — Which Are Yours?

ME Liz Strauss wrote this at 10:30 am

Not All Customers Are Equal

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When we talk about clients or customers, we often mention them as if customer means “one who buys.” But not all customers are equal. Look at the depth and breadth of consumer offerings. Take in the business services and products. You’ll soon realize that customers come in more than one kind.

You can fly Southwest. British Airways, or take a private jet. You can buy M&Ms in all sorts of special packages and colors. You can turn almost anything into a refrigerator magnet now. But if you go to “In and Out” in California, you’ll only get a burger.

Traditional business models outline three:

  • Top of the Line Buyers
    Elegant, elite, one-of-a-kind, cutting edge. Stand in line, pay higher price, doesn’t mind a few complications or an occasional bug. These are the folks who stand in line for the first iPhone. Folks in this group go on vacations to places that other folks never see. Sell one for $$$$$/each
  • Service and Fit
    Value beats price. Relationships matter. Service is remembered. They look for their values as well as their size. Google is making this group larger as it makes it easier to find what we want in a world wide inventory. Sell more for $$$/each
  • Volume Shoppers
    Go for the discount. No frills. Don’t spend on what we don’t need. Lowest price. Generic is the same thing. They’ll give up service for speed and low price. Sell boxes and boxes for $/each.

When you decide on your product or service, think about which customer you serve. If you’ve already got an offer out there, should you be looking more closely at the customers you are reaching?

Not all customers are equal — which are yours?

–ME “Liz” Strauss
Work with Liz!!
Models and Masterminds starts the week of June 16.


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10 Comments to “Not All Customers Are Equal — Which Are Yours?”

  1. June 2nd, 2008 at 10:57 am
    Grant D Griffiths said

    And the next question, can you target all three different types of buyers with one blog. In my own experience in using a blog to market a professional service firm, I do think you can target the second two. I don’t think you can target the “top of the line buyer” on the same blog as the bottom two.

    Please correct me if I am wrong.

  2. June 2nd, 2008 at 11:03 am
    ME Liz Strauss said

    Hi Grant!
    That’s an interesting question. I’d like to think on it . . . Not whether you can, I think you’re right about that. But I don’t know whether I would want to.

  3. June 2nd, 2008 at 11:50 am
    Grant D Griffiths said

    I think this is where and when you have to decide who you want as your customers. Which one of the three. To be realistic, perhaps the second two would be the “easiest” to market too and even the most profitable. And if you get them as number 2’s and 3’s, would it be easier to build that relationship with and maybe someday, they might become your #1’s?

    With my law blog I was doing before I became a “recovering attorney”, I focused on the second two for the most part. I am not saying I did not get a few #1’s. There are just fewer of them. While I may not have landed the “whales”, the number of clients in the 2’s and 3’s allowed me to increase the office’s income without the “whales.”

    Darn it Liz, you have raised too many questions with your post.

  4. June 2nd, 2008 at 1:17 pm
    Mother Earth said

    I cater to the service and fit crowd,and when I can get to them, the top of the line crowd -

    in my work competition is fierce and education rules

    sometimes you have to be more in the right place at the right time

    it’s way more relationship oriented

    good questions dear

  5. June 2nd, 2008 at 3:03 pm
    Jamie said

    Very interesting. I immediately recognized my client in the Service and Fit category.

    I’m thinking about Grant’s question too. From my perspective, the service that is meaningful for 2s makes it seem unlikely that you would want to market to them and 3s at the same time.

  6. June 2nd, 2008 at 3:27 pm
    ME Liz Strauss said

    Hi Grant,
    It’s something most of us don’t think of, but we need to. Our products and services really appeal to one group or another . . . think Jet Blue, Apple iPhone.

    From the first group, you can build a strategy to move up or over, but your core customer base is a foundation, don’t you think?

  7. June 2nd, 2008 at 3:30 pm
    ME Liz Strauss said

    Hi Mother Earth!
    Congratulations on your bloggy birthday!!

    It’s great you know your customers and what it takes to reach them. That means that you see them as people not as buyers, doesn’t it?

  8. June 2nd, 2008 at 3:32 pm
    ME Liz Strauss said

    Hi Jamie,
    Do you think we usually make products for customers like ourselves? That would make sense, wouldn’t it?

    Maybe that’s why so many of us think there is only one kind of buyer. :)

  9. June 2nd, 2008 at 7:46 pm
    Mother Earth said

    i once met a woman who I really enjoyed, she seemed to like me too and she was interested in what I sold - as we started doing more things together she said to me if I didn’t buy from you would we still be friends, noone ever said that to me before - it made me feel like my goal was to befriend her so she would buy, and it wasn’t - it turned out she had a lot of confidence issues. I sometimes have to divide myself - this is your friend calling or this is me wearing my work hat. The fact is sometimes that’s what happens — good clients do become friends - double blessings

  10. June 2nd, 2008 at 7:50 pm
    ME Liz Strauss said

    Well said, Mother Earth.
    And just what some of us needed to hear tonight. :)

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