Sometimes you just never know where ideas are going to come from. In this episode I’m going to give you a way to uncover a FLOOD of great ideas for improving the experience your customers have with your products or services.

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Big Ideas

Where Did This Idea Come From [1:54] 

This particular idea for this episode came while I was sitting on the toilet. Long story short, I needed to do my business. As I was on the toilet, I realized that the paper was so far away, it was a struggle to be able to get a piece. And it got me thinking, did anybody who install this or design this, experience this themselves? Did they sit on the toilet and try to reach for the toilet paper? Clearly they did not. If they had, they would have seen how frustrating that experience was. My point here is that too often we’re just creating, but we’re never experiencing what it’s like to be our own customer. But if you do experience it, you’ll get so many different insights! I’m going to give you three personas that I want you to adopt to get those insights.

Become Your Own New Lead [3:25] 

Persona number one, play the role of a new lead coming into your business, and opt-in for your own stuff. What was the experience like? When you landed on the thank you page, was it clear what you got and what you have downloaded, or what will be happening next? What about the emails that you received as a result of that? Was the subject line clear? Did the email make sense? Did you get what you opted in for?

Become Your Own Buyer [4:22] 

For the second persona, become a buyer. Go to your sales page and click on it as though you’re going to buy. Do you have a ton of different options? Is it clear what you want people to do? Then, look at the checkout page. Is the checkout page clear? Are you able to fill out your information easy and effortless? And what about the thank you page, is it clear what happens next? Are you explaining that it might take a few days to reach their doorstep? What about the thank you emails? Are they very transactional, or could you add a little bit of personality to those emails? When you do that, you’re going to see areas of opportunity to improve, whether it’s clarifying certain things, adding more personality, or managing expectations. 

Become Your Own Consumer [6:17] 

For the third persona, become a consumer. Did the product you buy get delivered in a way you imagined it to be delivered? If it’s a digital product, did you receive a login and password? When you experienced the product, did it actually work? Did it look the way you envisioned it? Did it arrive on time? Was it clear on how to contact customer support? Was it obvious what you wanted people to do next? When you’re your own customer, you’re going to have a ton of insights that can help you improve your overall marketing and experience. 

Small Things Lead To Big Frustrations [8:03] 

So many of these almost insignificant experiences often become major frustration points. Then before you know it, people are frustrated and don’t like what it is that you’re offering because of tiny little things that could have been solved if somebody, aka you, the business owner, had just played the role of a new lead, a buyer or a consumer. When you do that, you eliminate those frustrations, and you amplify all the good that you’re doing in the world with your products and services. Great word of mouth doesn’t just come from a great product. If these other elements start frustrating the heck out of people, it’s only a matter of time before you start to see your sales decline.

Memorable Quote

“Go buy your own stuff, go consume your own stuff. Play the role of a new lead, a new buyer, and a new consumer.” – Stu McLaren

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