Council Post: When Marketing Is Losing Power, Business Success Relies On User Experience

Alex Kreger, financial UX Strategist, CEO Founder of UX Design Agency, maximizing business success with the Financial UX Design methodology.

According to CB Insights research, of 101 startup failure postmortems, 42% failed because they lacked market need. It’s not only about “inexperienced” startups; this happens even to the “best of us.” Google failed with Google+ and Google Wave, despite enormous marketing budgets and award-winning ads. So here’s the question: Is it a good idea to create a digital product and then stimulate a market need with tons of advertising?

The rapid development of digital technology is making new demands on businesses. Marketing methods that used to work perfectly only a decade ago don’t deliver the expected results anymore. There are so many alternatives available on the market that a pretty package and a catchy slogan aren’t enough to convince people to buy and stay loyal to the product. In the digital age, it’s all about the value the customers get out of the product.

Making а product to convince everyone that they need it is a very expensive Russian roulette game with no guaranteed outcome. A much more reliable way would be to do it the other way around: First define, and then match the market need with the exact product that the customers seek. 

Experience Transformation Vs Digital Transformation

Unfortunately, when it comes to digitalization, many companies still make the same mistake. They put all of their main efforts into creating a product and thinking about the benefits it will provide their business, instead of focusing on the value for the users.

In this process, they usually think about technology, development, business goals and marketing strategies. This is the model of how businesses have been operating for decades, yet when it comes to digitalization, 73% of digital transformations fail, according to Everest group. This shows that the rules of the game have indeed changed and the same approach doesn’t guarantee success in the brand-new circumstances. To keep up with the growing competition, companies can adopt a new way of thinking and operating.

So, if the focus on technology and product alone leads to failure in digital transformation, then what’s the key to success? The answer is simple: Shift the focus from the product to the customers. Successful digital transformation means transforming the customer experience by applying the possibilities of modern technology. Today, customers are the ones deciding your product’s success. And what if they don’t care about all of the fancy features and technological advancements of your product? 

Creating Products Reversely

In the digital world, success is achieved not by creating a selling package for a product, but by turning the product into a value that sells itself. In this case, marketing becomes a waste.

The secret of creating such a user-centered product is to base it on the solution demanded by customers, not on the market segmentation and competitive strategy. This means using reverse engineering, a top-down approach that starts with customer research to define the ultimate value for them and proceeds with an action plan of how to execute that by creating a product. It reduces the uncertainty of whether there will be a demand for the product even before it’s launched. 

Different Gap, Different Bridges

In the previous industrial age, the gap between the fast-moving consumer goods brands and the sales was about a lack of market distribution and promotion. Times have changed and for digital products, this is not the issue. 

In the digital age, it’s possible to reach almost anyone, without any marketing budget, using social networks, blogs and SEO. The main gap today: Can you provide something the customers actually need — a product that will solve people’s problems and make their lives easier? 

Those who can reply with a confident yes will be able to succeed even without any marketing budget. That’s because in the digital age, you can bridge the gap between your product and the customers only by providing an exceptional customer experience. A huge advertising budget or nice packaging won’t help here. A user-centered product that’s based on the customer wants, needs and expectations will always be able to market itself without any marketing budgets.

For example, we can probably all name a local restaurant that offers an unforgettable experience to its customers and creates a ton of positive emotions. After visiting, people recommend it to their friends and post about it on Instagram, and it’s not long before it’s almost impossible to book a table because it has become so popular. And it’s not thanks to intensive advertisements, but word of mouth because people were so happy and satisfied with it. 

It is no miracle. Anyone can integrate this into their company, whether it’s a large corporation or a small startup. With dedication, you can satisfy customers by creating an unforgettable experience.

So the only way to survive the digital age is to go big on delivering outstanding customer experience. And people will pay you back by becoming the ambassadors of your product, happy to recommend it to their friends. 


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