Customers Know What They Want. They Don’t Always Know What They Need.

Customers know what they want. They don’t always know what they need.

That distinction matters in product development.

If we simply ask customers, “What features do you want?” we’ll usually get an answer.

But the answer isn’t necessarily the best product strategy.

Customers experience symptoms.

Product leaders need to understand the underlying problem.

That’s why I prefer customer discovery that combines:

interviews,observation,market data,competitive analysis,technical understanding,and repeated testing of possible solutions.

One of the most valuable things a supplier or product company can sometimes give a customer isn’t another feature.

It’s new insight into the customer’s own problem.

That changes the relationship.

You’re no longer simply taking orders for product requirements.

You’re helping the customer make a better decision.

My preferred sequence is:

Understand the need → generate several possible solutions → review them with key customers → prototype quickly → learn → adjust.

Early feedback is valuable even when the customer dislikes the concept.

Finding out that you’re wrong in week three is much cheaper than finding out after eighteen months of development.

Voice of Customer matters.

But product leadership still requires judgment.