If you pay attention, your customers may very well provide you with your next marketing idea.
For instance:
One customer or client asks you how a specific product or service works. Another wants to know if a specific product is the right choice for their specific needs. Another asks about pricing, or pricing relative to competing products.
Every time, you as a small business owner answers the question, help the prospective client or customer, and move on to whatever task you need to address next.
If several people ask the same question, it could mean that the information needs to be on your website, your advertising campaign, or other marketing materials.
For instance:
If you repeatedly face questions about your service area, you may want to see if your website makes it clear enough or not.
Each question from a prospective client or customer is an opportunity to better understand your prospect, and understand what they want/need to know before they decide to buy from you.
Why are customer questions valuable?
People ask questions to raise concerns, define priorities or needs, or ask for guidance in making the right choice. What gets asked repeatedly provides you with direct insight into what your prospective client or customer values.
Their questions can reveal things like:
Things that are unclear about your services or products.
What they need to know before making a decision.
What causes hesitation on their part.
The specific pieces of information they value.
Your positioning and/or your USP.
What information may be missing from your marketing material.
A simple example:
If you repeatedly face a question about what happens if something goes wrong after the purchase, the prospect may be concerned about your reliability, risk or customer support.
If you answer those questions for prospective buyers, a handful of people know the answers. If you include it in your marketing materials, everybody who sees it will know the answer.
And that may sway people who would otherwise simply not have purchased from you.
You don’t need elaborate market research. All you need is to start paying attention during conversations with prospective buyers, and noting patterns in repeated questions.
Where to pay attention about customer questions:
In-person conversations.
Phone calls, emails and WhatsApp messages.
Social media comments.
Inquiries directed at customer service.
And don’t ignore questions from existing customers either.
A few common customer questions to look out for:
Questions asked right before buying.
Questions about services, availability, deliveries, or pricing.
Questions arising from misunderstandings – after a purchase.
Questions or objections that either delay purchases, or which may cost you customers.
Check your reviews and feedback. While these usually do not come packaged as questions, they usually contain similar concerns and complaints.
The things that customers repeatedly praise you for.
Questions arising after publishing a specific post or offer advertisement.
Suggestion:
Depending on your situation, choose between keeping a physical notebook in your pocket, keeping notes on your phone, or in a text file on your computer. Note repeated questions.
Don’t just look at customer questions – look for patterns:
Not every individual question justifies a marketing response. Repeated questions, however, point to broader opportunities.
For instance:
Classify according to categories – things like price and value, products and services, processes, trust, practical details, and general concerns.
Collect questions like:
What does it cost, and what it included?
Will this product work for my situation?
How does it work?
Do you offer a guarantee?
Where are you located?
Do you deliver to/provide services in my area?
What if I need help?
What if it doesn’t work?
Try to determine the questions that determine whether people buy from you or not.
Ask yourself what people really want to know when asking a specific question. That often reveals deeper concerns.
Turn you FAQ page into better website content:
If any recurring question revolves around general information that can easily be provided online, yoy could simply add it to your Frequently Asked Questions page.
For instance, do you repeatedly face questions like:
Do you provide services in my town/suburb?
What’s included in the price? (services and singular products)
How does the process work?
How long does it take to deliver the product or service?
This can make life easier for the prospect, and also for yourself. It can help prompts some customers to reach out to you, or filter out ones that you cannot help.
Turn customer questions into blog posts and/or social media posts:
Some questions deserve more than a short answer. Blog posts, posts with text and photos on social media, and even short videos can help your prospective customers to make better buying decisions.
For instance:
How do I know which service option is right for me?
How do I choose the right product for a specific job?
Which mistakes do I need to avoid?
How do I care for the product after purchase?
How do I know if I need professional help?
Why does this cost more than the alternatives out there?
Choose the format which best serves the reader. Also, you can provide short answers in your FAQ section, and then link to the blog posts for people who want more information.
Translate customer questions into marketing messages:
On Linkedin we noted an interesting trend…
Instead of being practical and to the point, many people – and businesses – use vague headlines like “driving innovation through disruption”.
But their customers may actually be saying: This is easier to use than anything else.
The language that customers use often reveal the most valued benefits of your products or services.
Take note of the following:
The words customers use to describe their needs.
The benefits your buyers mention after making a purchase.
The specific concerns raised before buying.
The reasons why they choose to do business with you, and not a competitor.
Noting these can help your to improve headlines on your website, ads, social media posts and even brochures.
Do not invent quotations, or assume that one person’s comment represents every customer or client.
Address the questions that stop customers form making a purchase:
Some questions signal uncertainty. Questions like:
What should I buy from you, and not from your competitor/s?
Will this really work for me?
What can I do if I am not satisfied with my purchase
Can I trust you?
Why do you charge more than your competitor/s?
Don’t just steamroller questions like these with a sales pitch – instead, provide the information they need to make an informed, confident decision.
Instead, you could respond – depending on the question – in any of the following ways:
Explain your expertise and experience.
Provide examples of your previous work.
Provide clear pricing information, including information on what is included in the price.
Share authentic customer reviews and testimonials.
Be honest about who the product or service is for, and for who it is not.
Explain your guarantee, your terms of service, or your after-sales service/support.
Instead of trying to pressure people into buying, simply give them the information they need to make an informed decision.
Use customer questions in social media content and other marketing material:
Not every customer question requires a detailed blog post.
Instead, consider the following options:
A short social media post can be used to answer one common question with a simple answer.
A photo or a short video can demonstrate how a product works.
A short FAQ post can answer three common questions.
A customer handout can provide practical instructions.
An email newsletter segment can address a topic which is frequently misunderstood.
For instance:
A gardening center may create a short social media post about how much water a specific plant needs.
An accountant may want to write a simple explainer post about which records a small business should keep.
A local repair business may share a post on issues that require professional attention.
Side note: Instead of being obliged to publish on every platform in every format, pick what works for you, and what you can sustain consistently.
Your weekly habits around customer questions:
Step 1 – collect.
Write down the questions customers ask during the course of the week. If the same question is askes repeatedly, simply add a dot or mark for every additional time it is asked. This will let patterns stand out.
Step 2 – choose.
Look for repeated questions, especially the ones that reveal important concerns. Pick one question to address.
Step 3 – create.
Decide where this question should be answered. Does it belong in a detailed blog post, a short video, a social media post, your website’s FAQ page, or in an advertising headline?
Depending on the question you chose, it may be feasible to answer it in different locations at the same time.
Doing this continuously will eventually compound into a library of valuable, customer-focused information.
Don’t try to guess what customers know:
A word of caution…
Don’t just make up a list of questions. Fair enough, you may know several questions already from experience, but don’t assume you know everything about your customers. Any wrong assumption can cost you dearly.
Instead, listen to actual customer questions, check for recurring questions, and ask customers what they may have found confusing.
Before posting content or changing the website, ascertain whether it will (a) reduce confusion, or (b) increase inquiries.
Don’t just go for things that are easy to write about. Go for questions that are important and relevant to your customers’ needs.
In conclusion:
Your customers can help you market your business better. A long time ago, I watched a video of a professional copywriter at work…
She was crafting a sales page. She scoured forums (I did say it was long ago) for questions and concerns. She put it all together, and said:
“Potential customers have already written the sales copy for me. I just have to arrange it in a way that makes sense.”
Instead of clever slogans, she went after what really matters to the prospective buyers.
If you actually listen, your prospects will tell you everything you need to know. They will tell you what THEY value.
And communicating how you can provide that value is how you win customers or clients.