When you ASSUME you make an ASS out of U and ME
A lot of entrepreneurs say they know exactly what their clients want. The problem is that most of them “think” they know what their client wants.
Unfortunately, chances are they lack the art of actually “listening” and “watching” so what they believe they know – are mainly assumptions.
Clients can be fantastic. When you find the right one, you can create this amazing symbiotic relationship where the two of you feed off each other and create beautiful things together. And then there are ones that could be amazing to work with, but you just can’t figure out exactly what they want.
Wouldn’t life be much simpler if you knew EXACTLY what products or services your prospects really WANT?
While there is no magical marketing crystal ball, there are definitely some strategies you can use to get a good idea of what your target market is looking for.
Here are 10 ways you can find out what your prospects REALLY want to buy:
1. Survey Them
You can use a service like Survey Monkey or Google Forms; However, you can make it seem more personal and less automated. Send them an email from an actual human being, not the company right after they’ve purchased or signed up for your service. Ask them to reply with a simple answer to 1-3 simple questions (some examples below).
2. NPS Them
Find out how your clients like your product/service/company via a Net Promoter Score survey. It works by asking them 1 question: “On a scale of 0-10 how likely are you to recommend our product/service/company to a friend. The process includes a second follow up question that depends on their answer to the first question. You can learn all about NPS here.
3. Interview Them
Get prospects or existing clients face to face (Zoom is fine) and start by asking your interviewees to describe solutions or products they wish they had. Ask them for details: How would that product benefit them? What would it look like? Why would they use it? Only at the end, talk about your solution and ask for an honest opinion.
4. Watch Them
Take time to observe your clients, their reactions to your offers, products, presentations and prices. Track their flow through your store or website. Identify any hotspots, bottlenecks and areas that get least attention.
5. Listen to Forums and Social Media Conversation
By hanging out in niche or industry forums and social media groups, you get to be a ‘fly on the wall’ to find out what your target market really wants. Read through posts and ask yourself the questions: Do you see any common themes? What frustrations or issues come up frequently? How can you meet these needs or help to solve these problems?
6. Analyze Their Frequently Asked Questions
Chances are you already have a FAQ page on your website. If not, run through your emails to see what questions your prospects or clients are frequently asking. Do you see any common themes or threads? Are there needs that aren’t currently addressed in the marketplace? Can you offer a product or service that would address these problems or meet these needs?
7. Brainstorm With Them
Bring a few of your clients and/or prospects together (online or offline), ask them to put their creative hat on, and suspend their judgment and critique. Ask them a question and give them the space to answer, listen to others, get inspired and come up with even more ideas.
8. Find Out Their Goals
Here are a few questions that would reveal their goals and aspirations: “What are you looking to accomplish?” “If you had a magic wand and could change anything about (your product or service category), what would it be?” What Would You View as a Success?
9. Find Out Their Challenges
Sometimes asking your prospects or clients for what they want doesn’t give you a clear picture (as often they don’t know what they want). However, they will be able to tell you what their biggest issue, problem or pain point is…
10. Find Out Their Frustrations
Even when they don’t know what they want – your prospects and clients do know what they hate, and that’s where you can ask follow up questions (like: “What don’t you like about that?” “Why does it bother you so much?” “How would you like it to be differently?”)
Now It’s YOUR Turn
For five minutes… come up with as many ideas as you can… how could YOU find out what THEY want?
Let's Brainstorm
Please share your ideas (all of them or just one) in the comment box below… and let’s get WOWing.
Live fully, stay awesome,
Nisandeh Neta




Top Commenters – last 30 Days
Let's Brainstorm
Please share your ideas (all of them or just one) in the comment box below… and let’s get WOWing.
Live fully, stay awesome,
Nisandeh Neta


94 comments



A bit tricky for us, since we don't have 1-1 sessions with our customers. What we think they want came from working on an actual shop for many years. We wanted to listen and talk with them and be able to sell them something they needed instead of forcing them to buy something they wouldn't use. We end up with many returning customers. We are trying to apply the same approach now as well.
112 comments



I am a member of several FB groups where the parents hang out to find out what they are struggling with. This is a longterm process.
Some colleagues of mine are my target audience (parents), so a chat with them reveals also what they are struggling with and sometimes they come for advice.
I could go to sportmatches for children, however, it is not one of my favourite passtimes and I would lose authenticity.
In fact, anywhere where parents are is a good place to be for me.
160 comments





I took a while, I posted a lot in a new group, but nothing really happened. Then all of a sudden, my group grew and people are interacting with each other big time.
I welcome new members. Ask directly what they want or need help with. I follow the discussions and reply as well. Now actually I should create blog posts on every subject they mention.
I want to do a 1,5-day event, but lack of time is the problem most of the time. So it's better to do self-paced courses and group and one on one coaching at different times. Plus short live or online courses. I noticed that people really want to get out of their environment at home and meet with like-minded people, but a few hours is the max.
576 comments





This is so, so valuable guys that this topic came up now.
I offered my "tribe" a free training- as a thank you for proofreading and interviewing them. (100 people). Only 1 took it. I could have been disappointed, and think that I probably am not that interesting etc but instead because of this discussion I thought let's ask them. So I contacted a few on LinkedIn, and at the end of the day one of them contacted me to tell me he was interested but couldnt make it.
They do want a training, but: not a whole day, and not knowing it only 1,5 week in advance.
So I'll do it again, and I'll first check what is better for them, maybe during lunch or so.
So grateful for this community...
576 comments





I was doing this the past months pretty much fulltime.
I called every person in my network and asked them what frustrated them and then checked if what I could offer them would be interesting for them.
That gave me sooo much insights.
I came from teambuilding and training and asked my clients: what was your biggest frustration in working remote?
Answer: missing the connection. The social talk. My team.
I thought that now they would really need teambuilding. But that’s not what they asked for.
My next question was: if I would give you a day of my time for free, how would you use it? And most of them asked then to facilitate their headache meetings. So that was different!
My tip for today: also don’t assume that you have the solution if you know what the problem is but continue and dig for what they want. Because it’s often different from what they need. And we love offering what they need, but then they won’t buy it…
276 comments


My mind immediately goes to direct contact with clients. I think there are many ways to connect during the delivery of value.
1. Lead small talk. In the moment before or after you meet someone, have some topics ready you want to ask about. A lot of information is outside of the formal meeting.
2. Continuity/coaching programs. Meeting regularly and hearing what is going on creates space to talk about how else you can deliver value.
3. Iterate offersOffer, get turned down, offer something else, get turned down again, offer something else. Sometimes people need to see it before they know they want it. Just iterate on the products until you have something.
4. Tell them that you read everything. There are only a few e-mail newsletters I reply to. And the main thing they do is asking questions and letting me know they read everything.
175 comments





I agree with you @Max. Small talk is a great and fun tool to get information from prospects. I also like your #4! It's very sympathetic.
576 comments





Ah Max that is so valuable- keep on offering them things! It’s one of the things that I admire so much in Nisandeh Neta he is driving me crazy with all the offers! But he never drops off but always keeps on offering new stuff until he finds what works. This is for me something to improve.
160 comments





Hi Max,
number 4 is great. I do read everything, but I don't always reply (immediately), but it's good to let them know!
175 comments





I wonder if companies have alternative, elegant ways to ask the 'ultimate question'. When I get an NPS pop ups on my screen, I immediately get annoyed and never respond to them. I like the way you do it under your video about NPS. Just simple questions right under the video you just watched. There might be more examples?
To find out what (my) clients want:
1. Present your work at a fair - You can observe people's reactions and talk to them in real. For me it's important having people touch my products.
2. Listen to existing clients - My existing clients have been my main source of information for years. It's not a very efficient way of gathering information though.
3. How do people react on your social media posts? - It gives you a lot of information about their pain points, needs and passions
4. Reviews tell a lot about how good your solution for your client's problem has been.
5. Check your successful competitors - Why are their products successful? What needs do they fulfill?
328 comments


Such a great tips, I am going to pint all these out, love them!
One of my best ways to find out, is organising an Live Event, about a Totally New Concept, Just inviting all my alumni and Inner circle and then let THEM talk about it and brainstorm LIVE together. I still implement this strategy every 90 days and it is amazing how great they feel when ever that feel that we are "Co-creating" and they actually love to be part of this Co Creation Family.
Another way that really works for me, is: I research in which online groups and communities they are the most active, and just becoming (paid or free) member, just to find out how they behave in that community, and well.. You just see it here... That's exactly what I am doing now in this Challenge 🙂 I am engaging, listening, answering, having with you AND I get to know you and find out how you are doing.
And yes: Final way: Creating a real Engaged Community! For me: That's my #1 secret of success. I invest a lot of time, energy, effort on building my Online Community and it always pays off when ever I am launching or researching to creat new products/programs/services. Because then I have created enough credits and people love to pay back.
175 comments





Love your contribution @Aramik. Especially #1 and #2
576 comments





Wonderful idea Aramik! I love that. Is that working when you don’t have a very active community yet?
576 comments





Just wondering.
If I would be invited for a free training or for a brainstorm- I would also probably prefer the brainstorm! Interesting…
111 comments



I must say that many of the ideas above I can use, but I think in the end it depends on your target audience what method would you use.
What works for me most is listening to them when they are in their daily activities.
I also talk with other type of professions that meet my target group and ask them questions about my target group
I try hard to use the language that they use so sometimes I even ask my kids whether if what I wrote is how kids their age speak...
But in the end my favorite way is really to TALK to them and listen to them