When it comes to delivering value to others, if you know why they do what the do, you can deliver value that matters. This means you can discover ways to be important to a customer or employee or anyone else you’re focused on. If you only know what people do or say they want, you should ask yourself if you’re delivering a product or service narrowly based on a transaction you’re interested in, what a customer tells you they want, or something you simply imagine a customer is interested in based on their past activity.
WHY is where real discovery takes place. It places the “what” in proper, critical context. The “why” is rooted in a person’s expectations.
In a study in which we spent intimate one-on-one time with parents considering online schooling for their children (prior to the Covid pandemic), we found that while most online school programs are competing on the convenience, resources, educational rigor, and environment they provide, the parent narrative regarding their children’s education is not actually about those things. That’s the “what” of the parent experience – the type of education, the format of the school, the credentials of the teachers, the reputation that will follow their children. When you listen more deeply, you find that the why is that parents want their children to be “OK.” Parents want to feel they are good parents and can be at peace that they’re doing everything possible to ensure their children will be happy.
I know. Sounds intuitive, because most of us can relate to that “why.” But if you look at what many schools talk about, typically they talk about “what” parents want, rather than “why” they want it.
Schools, for example, that DO get the significance of dealing in the “why” follow a different approach:
Instead of addressing parents who say they want safety by illustrating how studying at home will keep their children safe, effective online school marketing should be sure to communicate that their culture and curriculum strives to ensure children feel confident and secure in their own skin as they make their way through life.
Instead of addressing parents who say they prioritize curriculum that will help their children get into college by simply detailing the rigor of the courses, the effective school can explain that their goal is to ensure that children have self-awareness, maturity, and peace of mind when making life and career decisions.
The nuance in these messages (and attendant programming) is subtle, but powerful.
Note: A theme you’ll find throughout our discovery work at The Good People Research Company is that people are typically not able to communicate the why of their priorities or actions. You need to listen carefully to understand the why even if they don’t, by studying their Guiding Narrative® and values, as satisfying the “why” is ultimately how the customer or employee will judge your performance, more than the “what” you deliver.
