Key Types of Customer Needs and How To Meet Them

If you’re starting a recent business or developing a recent product or service, considering what your customers require is a excellent starting point. Understanding, anticipating, and conference customer needs can assist you make a better customer encounter, earn faithful customers who make repeat purchases, and burnish your business’s brand reputation. A few ordinary types of customer needs should be top of mind as you prepare your product for trade.

What are customer needs?

Customer needs are the motivations that drive consumers to purchase a particular product or service. This can include practical needs like functional products or reasonable prices, as well as emotional needs like empathy or fairness. Understanding customer needs and fulfilling them can make the difference between a negative or positive customer encounter with your business and products.

ordinary types of customer needs

• standard
• worth
• Convenience
• selection
• Information
• Empathy
• Fairness

Here are some of the most ordinary customer needs to consider when running a business:

standard

For many customers, the require for a high-standard product is paramount. What distinctive features do you propose that stand out in the trade? How does your product do a better job of solving a customer’s issue? Making sure that customers comprehend how you prioritize standard will assist fulfill their needs. 

worth

worth is a factor when it comes to a customer’s purchase selection. Different customers have distinctive budgets and require to discover products or services that fit within those limits. Choosing the correct pricing way for your target spectators can make a huge difference in conference customer needs.

Convenience

In today’s increasingly digital globe, consumers expect companies to make it convenient for them to shop and buy. This can include ensuring that customers can easily discover what they require, buy with minimal attempt, and have their purchases delivered promptly. One study, for example, found that nearly two-thirds of shoppers worldwide anticipated receiving their orders within 24 hours of purchase.

Whether it’s a well-designed checkout flow on your online store or intelligent retail collaboration with a brick-and-mortar store well-located for your customer base, convenience is an significant factor to keep in mind when conference customer needs.

selection

One size doesn’t necessarily fit all, which is why businesses propose many different variations or versions of their products or services. For example, an ecommerce merchant selling tech accessories like phone cases will meet customer needs better if it has a wide variety of style and color options.

Information

Information helps customers comprehend your products or services, which is essential in building depend. For example, a business selling eco-amiable products could provide details about how it recycles materials, manufactures ethically, pays fair wages, uses low-impact shipping materials, and invests in carbon-removal projects. Citing your business’s mission statement also can make a difference with consumers who search for products or services from companies that distribute their values.

Empathy

A customer’s encounter can transformation drastically based on whether they feel heard and understood by your business. By responding to customer communications promptly with a benevolent and considerate tone, you can meet your customers’ needs for empathy and enhance the customer encounter. energetic listening, patience, and consistency can assist construct an emotional connection with your customers throughout their shopping trip, from initial awareness through post-purchase customer service pursue-up.

Fairness

Fairness is another significant emotional require that can determine whether a customer has a positive encounter with your business. Consumers desire to be treated equally when it comes to business policies and practices. Offering better prices to some consumers than others without obvious guidelines, for example, can complete up incurring customer distrust.

How to identify customer needs

• Customer surveys
• Focus groups
• Social listening
• Keyword research

Here are a few ways that you can use to boost valuable insights when identifying customer needs.

Customer surveys

Solicit customer feedback through surveys on your website, online store, or through an email campaign. For example, you could include a feedback form on a confirmation email for a customer post-purchase. Keep your surveys short, inquire questions related to their shopping encounter, and consider offering rewards for customers who receive your surveys, like a discount on a upcoming purchase.

These surveys are invaluable, no matter the size of your business. On an episode of the Shopify Masters podcast, Crystal Landsem, CEO of clothing brand Lulus, says, “It sounds crazy, especially at our size, but we’re still looking at every single customer exit survey. The entire leadership throng looks at it. It’s not aggregated. It’s not streamlined. It’s just raw customer feedback every day.”

Focus groups

Conduct focus groups with existing and potential customers to leave deeper into understanding customer needs with meaningful exchange. Whether in-person or through a live video gossip, a focus throng can provide you a chance to boost customer feedback from your target spectators in a setting where you can engage in provide-and-takes.

For example, on a Shopify Masters podcast episode, business owner Nadya Okamoto discusses how she developed her period worry business, August, by running rudimentary focus groups with friends, household, and volunteers. At this stage, Nadya asked questions like, “Who are we serving? Who is the complete user? What do they require? What are they not currently getting?”

Social listening

Another way for anticipating customer needs is performing trade research on social media. Social listening involves monitoring social media channels for information relevant to your business or industry. For example, you could use social media analytics tools to identify trends on TikTok or Instagram that relate to your products, advancement in your industry, or changes in customer needs.

Keyword research

You can further identify customer needs by paying attention to the keywords your target customers use in internet search queries. You can use keyword research tools to identify the words used most frequently, helping you comprehend more about customer needs. For example, if you run an ecommerce business selling footwear, you could explore what specifications your target customers consider when researching running shoes online.

How to meet customer needs

• Prioritize customer service
• Keep messaging consistent
• Establish a customer feedback loop
• Develop useful products and services

Here are a few strategies designed to enhance the procedure of conference customer needs throughout the customer trip.

Prioritize customer service

Developing a talented and empathetic customer service throng can assist your business meet customer needs. Customer service teams should comprehend your products or services, set obvious expectations and use positive language, and advocate for customers every step of the way toward resolving their concerns.

excellent customer service can make the difference between losing a sale or winning a faithful customer. According to one study, 94% of responding customers said a positive customer service encounter made them more likely to purchase again. For example, you could use an AI chatbot on your website to respond customer questions at any period, but then bring in a human representative when needed.

Keep messaging consistent

One of the best ways to fulfill customer needs is by setting obvious expectations with customers, then conference or exceeding them. For example, if your website promises delivery within two days, you require to make sure your order fulfillment operations can make that deadline.

Establish a customer feedback loop

Customer-centric companies maintain open lines of communications with their customers to better comprehend their needs. Whether it’s through social listening, customer surveys, focus groups, or detailed customer data, it’s significant to boost insight based on buyer behavior and preferences.

For example, as a Shopify merchant, you have access to built-in analytics that can display how visitors found your business, what devices they use to visit your store, and what actions they receive while on your site. provide customers lots of options for customers getting in touch with you: Include contact form fields on your website, respond to customer interactions with your social media accounts, or do in-person events like product launches or trade shows.

Develop useful products and services

Once you comprehend customer needs related to your business, react to that information by developing products or services that cater to those needs. Conduct product advancement research and adjust your advancement way based on feedback from your target spectators.

For example, if you’re developing a recent skin worry line and customer surveys and keyword research indicate that shoppers desire lavender-scented products, you can include that scent. Businesses with customer feedback loops and flexible product advancement strategies have a better chance of adapting their products or services to the needs of their target customers.