Customers are the very heart of any business organization or retailer. As a business owner, your every decision should be taken with your customers in mind, and in order to do that, you need to know who your customers are and what they are like, and create a clear picture of your customers. You can learn a lot about your customers’ behaviors by using various social media platforms available and also through solicited methods such as surveys, to gather insight about your customers.
Your relationship with your client will be much stronger if you know a thing or two or 20 about them. It will help you to sell and target your products if you know their buying habits, surfing habits, needs, preferences, purchase power, legal requirements, or even personal information such as birthdays and anniversaries.
Many businesses make the mistake of making their key decisions based on guess work and suffer great losses. Copying competitors or buying solutions that aren’t aligned with the needs and behavior of your customers will not benefit your business.
Here is a list of 20 important things a retailer should know or understand about their customers
1. Know the area where your customer lives
2. You should know how much your customer is able to spend
3. Why your customer returns something
4. Know their likes, dislikes and buying habits
5. How conscious are your customers abut price?
6. Understand why your customers may purchase from your competitors instead
7. Find out if your customers have/would recommend you to their friends and family online
8. Find out about your customers’ satisfaction level with your goods or services
9. What stage of life your customer is in? There are different needs at different ages and 
stages.
10. Understand interest and habits
11. Know who are your valuable customers and give them some special treatment
12. Shape specialized incentives focusing on different customer groups
13. Focus on first time customers and products that they may buy
14. Understand the value of a lifetime customer
15 Understand personal value of a customer and their purchasing power
16. Find different ways to interact and get in touch with your customers
17. Tailor your marketing strategy based on how well your customers respond
18. Know what your customers like or dislike about your business
19. Know the lag between your first interaction and sale
20. Know how much you should spend on acquiring new customers and budget your marketing plans
Why is it important to know your customers?
Happy customers are more than likely to spend more money and stay loyal to you longer, if the retailer can deliver according to the expectations. If you cannot deliver a happy customer experience, they will be more than happy to take their business elsewhere, and in today’s market, it’s not difficult to find a substitute for your business. So, your every decision should take your customer into consideration and think about what would work best.
Understanding your customers is a key to running your business successfully. It will help you deliver what your customers want and not what you think they want. Knowing how they behave will give you a huge advantage when you market your goods and services, leaving all the guess work out. It is therefore essential to focus on the right data regarding your customer when you make a business planning or decision.
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Source: Balanced Life Team
