One of our clients, let us call it AgriCo, recently came to us with a problem: It had created an online platform for sourcing farming supplies to remote farms. The platform meant that it was easier, more convenient, and faster for farmers to get what they needed, whether it was a part for their tractor, cattle feed, or fencing. There was no need to make a telephone call to a distant operator; all the farmer needed to do was log in and order.
What Airbnb and Strava Know About Building Emotional Connections with Customers
Efficient transactions are not enough.
May 03, 2018
Summary.
A common pitfall for companies trying to engage with their customers is to focus too much on the transactional layer of the product or service. The best companies go further, adding an emotional layer, which is built through a deep understanding of what your core users want. To do this, find a group of users who love your product. Airbnb started with this strategy. “It’s better to have 100 people that love you than a million people that just sort of like you. Find 100 people that love you,” advised Paul Graham of Y Combinator, one of the lodging platform’s first investors. Strava used the same approach to building its fitness app by tapping into the enthusiasm of early adopters.
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New!
HBR Learning
Customer Focus Course
Accelerate your career with Harvard ManageMentor®. HBR Learning’s online leadership training helps you hone your skills with courses like Customer Focus. Earn badges to share on LinkedIn and your resume. Access more than 40 courses trusted by Fortune 500 companies.
Learn how to keep your customers—and their most important needs—front and center.