Since the world is world and companies have a need to sell their products to consumers, sellers have been said to create needs in buyers' minds and lead them through the buying process.
I give you an example to illustrate this topic: I am fascinated by aviation and airplanes, big and small. A salesman comes to my house, or to the office now (as you like more) and wants to sell me a small plane. The seller knows that I like airplanes and he comes armed to the teeth with all the possible arguments and the necessary strategies “to create” within me the need to buy a light aircraft.
Would you buy it? Of course not, because right now, as much as I like planes and flying on them, I'm not in the position to buy one. There may be a desire, deep inside, to buy it, but not enough motivation and money to do it now.
If you do not have the need to buy or you simply cannot, no matter how hard the seller tries to explain the reasons why it would be convenient for you to have his product, you are not going to buy it. It is very simple.
The industry recognized this reality a long time ago.
If you don't believe me, take a look at the cosmetic industry, for example. How long have they discovered that women buy lipsticks to look more beautiful? For a long time. Do you think that a lipstick that does not appeal to this internal need of women, would be successful? Well, doubtfully, and note that their marketing is not based at all on the specific characteristics of the product but on the consumer's need.
Now, what happens, for example, in the case of those women who do not like to use makeup and who promote natural beauty? Do you think you could convince her to buy a lipstick? Again, doubtfully, and not because you do not want to feel beautiful, but the satisfaction of that desire is achieved in another way and it is not precisely using your lipstick.
That is why it is so important to discover the real need, what motivates each person. You might think that this second woman would buy a lipstick because she wants to feel beautiful too, but notice that, in this case, the theme goes differently.
And it is that saying that sellers "create" needs is more a motivational argument used in sales meetings, than an objective reality.
The needs exist, we discover them.
Remember the famous "Maslow Needs Pyramid"? She describes a diverse number of classifications for the different needs that human beings have, from the most basic needs to the deepest.
The trick for a sale to be successful is learning to discover which of those needs is what motivates a buyer to make the decision to buy your product at a specific time, and, once discovered, enhance it and demonstrate how your product will help your client to satisfy this need.
Keep in mind that for each buyer the reason to buy the same product may be different. And that is why dialogue with the client is so important to know their real needs and to be able to connect the characteristics of your product with those needs.
The secret is in the ability to listen carefully to discover it.
Only by allowing your client to express himself openly and with peace of mind regarding your product, his expectations, concerns and many other related things, can you understand that it can motivate him to buy it.
Do not make the mistake of believing that you can create a need in the client, because you will try very hard not to get anywhere. On the contrary, focus your effort on discovering their needs and connecting them with what your product, company or brand offers.
You will be surprised to see the results.
Up to here we concentrated on the fact that, as people dedicated to the marketing of products, brands and services, our main task is to discover the need that motivates our clients to make the purchase of what we sell, and based on this discovery to develop all our commercial and advertising efforts.
If we fail to discover this need, it will be very difficult for us to connect our product with the consumer and achieve the sale.
One of the comments I received reminded me that one of the great product developers of our time said that "we create needs"
I am 99% sure that we do NOT create needs.
And I say 99% because, like everything in this world, absolute truth does not exist and there should always be room for a second opinion, and a third opinion, and many more.
Now I explain my opinion: If it were possible for us to create needs, then consumers would simply be programmable robots that companies could tell us what to consume, how to consume it and when. And that does not happen.
If it were possible to create needs, companies would not need to diversify, sales would not suffer highs and lows, there would be no competition, brands would all be the same, consumption would remain stable, regardless of the economic crisis, and an endless number of more things, and as we see, none of this occurs in reality.
New products are created because there are business opportunities.
Products are created because somehow their creator has discovered a niche into which they can direct the marketing efforts of that product and turn it into a profitable business.
But first that discovery is made. The creator of the product has discovered that there is a pending need for consumers to be satisfied and that this new product will do so in a more efficient, even unique way, as is the case of Steve Jobs, who has managed to direct his marketing efforts towards specific market niches and it has done it in a great way, unique for each of its products.
The genius of figures like him is that he has been able to look to the future and discover that things could be done in a better way, that products could go one step further and anticipate what might be people's consumption trends.
But anticipating is not creating. It is discovering where things will go and getting there first of all. And that is the virtue that successful entrepreneurs have: they know how to analyze the market looking for opportunities to position themselves to develop new products and services.
If we could create needs, the world would be very boring.
And boring because we would all have the same car. Why would we need a smaller one, or a bigger one? Or why would we need a luxury car, when with a two-door we can transport ourselves in the same way? Or maybe we would all live in the same type of house, or we would wear the same type of clothes.
Can you imagine what drug use would be like if drug traffickers could "create the need to use it"?
The power lies, as it has always done, in consumers, who have the power to decide to buy that product, service or brand that meets their needs and will do so with those who know how to discover what really motivates the purchase decision.
With much love, I dedicate this post to you.
