I’m about to make a statement that will drive many business owners and consultants nuts, and I may even receive a few “courtesy calls” to check on my mental stability. As a small business owner, one of the worst things you can do for your customer service is to focus on customers. Now it’s out there, so let the flaming begin.

How do you define your customer?

This is a question that, honestly, only you as the business owner can answer. Other ways to phrase this question could be: Who is your customer? What demographic does your business primarily serve? No matter how the question is phrased, it’s vital to know who buys your products and keeps your business profitable. As the face (and brain and, often, personality) of your business, you come in contact with these people every day. You see what they buy, how much they buy, and how often they buy. You focus on increasing sales by providing more products and services to accommodate your target demographic. But is that really enough?

Once you’ve answered the above questions it’s tempting to take all of that relevant data, analyze it and overanalyze it, and use your findings to define your typical customer. All of this information is a good start, but it should never be your stopping point. One of the best ways to truly define your target customer is to actually talk to them. Get to know them. Why do they buy what they do, and why do they choose to shop with you over the big box stores? Once you’ve answered these questions, you can truly begin to figure out how to increase your sales.

The power of “people watching”

Let’s use a retail example here. Imagine you own a general store, the type that typically competes with the hundreds of thousands of Dollar General stores that seem to be popping up on every street corner in every neighborhood. Once per week, usually on a Monday morning, a woman quietly walks through the door, grabs a shopping cart, and proceeds to fill it with laundry detergents and other cleaners. She looks to be in her mid-30’s, and her hair is usually pulled back in a ponytail to complete the casual look of her jeans and t-shirt. You’ve noticed that she usually buys the same products, normally in the same amounts. She likes to use coupons whenever she can, and has been known to put something back if her coupon is expired. She loads her purchases into the back of a large SUV and disappears until next Monday morning. Wash, rinse, repeat.

This particular customer has never caused you any trouble or given you a reason to notice her, and she’s definitely not one of your big spenders. So what’s so important about her? What can you learn from her? In fact, you could learn a lot.

This is an opportunity to be a real-life Sherlock Holmes on behalf of your business. Let’s take a look at the clues, shall we?

• Regular customer, typically shows up on Monday morning
• Mid-30’s, casual look, possibly on her way to do some type of less formal task
• Buys the same products, usually detergents and cleaners
• Uses coupons, likes a bargain
• Large SUV… Are there any decals on the back?

OK, this may sound like you’re stalking this poor woman, but actually all of these clues are small things that you’re likely to notice but never give a second thought to. This is “People Watching 101,” and can tell you everything you need to make a better connection with this customer. Let’s revisit the clues:

• Regular customer, typically shows up on Monday morning — Suggests she’s running on a schedule. Also, that Monday morning shopping trip could suggest that the Friday before was payday, but didn’t want to spend the valuable weekend shopping for mundane house goods.
• Mid-30’s, casual look, possibly on her way to do some type of less formal task — This is typical age for someone with a family… Couple this with the Monday morning clue, and it could suggest that maybe she dropped the kids off at school and is loading up on supplies to get the cleaning done while the house is empty?
• Buys the same products, usually detergents and cleaners — Loyal to a brand (after all, she bypasses the box stores to come to you every Monday) because they work for her in some way. They meet her needs. This could be how well the products clean, or it could be a specific price point. She’s buying the same amounts because she’s tackling the same chores every week.
• Uses coupons, likes a bargain — She may be loyal to her brands, but she’s frugal. She’s managing a budget and wants the most bang for her buck.
• Large SUV… Are there any decals on the back? — Back to the point above, a large SUV can suggest a family with multiple kids. Single people with no kids usually prefer to drive something smaller, more fuel efficient, sportier.

OK, Super Sleuth, now what?

So now you have a basic profile: Female, mid-30’s, family, firmly established income and budget, brand loyal (more traditional, doesn’t really like change unless it provides a definite immediate benefit).

You keep this information in the back of your mind, and patiently wait for Monday morning to arrive. Like clockwork, the woman walks into your store, grabs the shopping cart, and begins her weekly routine. This is your chance. Meet her in the cleaning aisle as you’re stocking a new product and strike up a conversation. You can start with the usual filler: great weather today, (if you’ve noticed a school decal on the SUV) the football team did great Friday night, etc. You know how it goes, anything to get the conversation started. This is your chance for exploratory questions and comments such as, “I notice you buy the same detergent every week. What do you like about it?” This can open up opportunities for more information about family members (“my daughter is on the soccer team, and this helps with the grass stains”), jobs (“my husband is a mechanic, and this is the only stuff that gets the grease out of his shirts”), or pricing (“this works so much better than the expensive stuff”). As you continue the conversation, you’ll learn more about who she is and why she likes to shop with you. This is the data you really need to properly define your customer.

If you can take a few minutes each day to get to know who these people are and how they live, you can choose better ways to manage your inventory to suit their needs. When they come in, you can excitedly tell them about a new product that just came in or tell them about a sale on their regular brand. Most important, though, is you’ve established a good rapport with this person and they’ll feel more loyal to you and your business because you actually care.

These are NOT your customers!

OK, you’re probably thinking, “Wait a minute! He just said to get to know these customers, but now he’s saying they aren’t my customers?!?” Exactly! Once you get to know the people that frequently use your goods or services, they stop being your customers and start being your PEOPLE. I’m a firm believer that your choice of words defines your perception and interaction with the world around you. When you stop thinking of them as “customers,” you focus more on building a work-based friendship and they become “your people.” They tell you what they want or need to find in your store, and they tell you how much they can spend. They ask for your advice when shopping for a new item. They give you reviews on that item when they’ve used it, so you know if it’s going to keep selling or if it’s just going to take up space on your shelf.

When you change your thinking, you change your world. From now on, define “customer” as the ones that come in only once or twice to buy something that fills an immediate want (and remember, there is a discernible difference between want and need). These are the ones you only see a couple of times a year… your business couldn’t survive if it depended on them. Your People, on the other hand, are the life blood of your business. They regularly deplete your inventory and increase your profits. Get to know these people, take care of these people, and they’ll continue to take care of you.