What's your Story?

We spend a lot of time figuring out what's on the mind of our customers. We use process maps and tools like Voice of Customer (VOC). Yet, very rarely we can capture the specific moment and factors that tilt the customer's decision in our favor. It is an endless struggle of guessing followed by several hits and misses. We spend inordinate time and money in tweaking our products to fit the market requirement.

We usually have a clear goal in mind. Many times it is as simple as selling certain units per quarter. The difficult part is figuring out the exact customer segment. There are many possible reasons why customers within the same segment buy. It is, therefore, necessary to find common themes that fit a majority of customers in a segment. Storyboarding is a solution for this.

When we study and understand our customers' journey we can chart it in the form of a story. Stories are powerful. They capture the actions and emotions of the customer at various stages from awareness to the endpoint. It helps us to imagine their challenges and concerns and design products that address them effectively. It is also easy to interview potential customers to verify the match between our story and reality. Instead of the product, the stories can be tweaked as needed. When we have a matching story, we can get to product development using the insights. It's much more effective than the conventional process of development we follow today.

• How confident are you that you know your customer's story?

• Have you verified it?

Metrics:

1. Map the customer journey from the beginning to the end.

2. Identify the points and imagine the concerns and decisions a customer makes along the way.

3. Create a storyboard and match it with reality.

4. Perfect the story.

5. Build products from the insights gained.
   

• Subodh

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