An Important Aspect of WOW

I really enjoy American Idol. There's all that talent, there's the advice from the judges, there's competition and there's a winner who is picked by the public. No doubt it's my favorite show on TV. What always hits me between the eyes is the importance of song choice. These singers, once we get to this place in the season, have the talent and chops to have a singing career. However, many of them, especially this week, are tripped up by song choice. And, many times when the judges tell them that, the singers respond with, "Well, I really like this song". What they may not understand is that WOW is not about YOU. It's about the customer.

Contrast this to a conference call I had this week with two authors. They have the talent, skill and experience to create good products, but they also can create some WOW products because these two people weren't thinking about themselves, they spent the whole conversation talking about how the products would be not only for the customer but also transform the customer. They weren't focused on what they personally liked or disliked they were totally focused on the customer and what they needed in order to live a transformed life.

The lesson from this comparison is this - 9 people went home last night from American Idol and the majority of them went home not because they didn't have the talent. No, they went home because they chose to sing a song they liked and frankly they didn't deliver what the customer (listener) wanted. Conversely, I see tremendous opportunity from the product conference call because the authors involved zeroed in on the customer, the customer's needs and not themselves.

Comments

[Daniel Decker]

Great thoughts. My fav line was this "They weren't focused on what they personally liked or disliked they were totally focused on the customer and what they needed in order to live a transformed life."

The issue of personal likes and dislikes is where many fail. Can't think beyond themselves.

[Wayne Hastings]

Thanks, Daniel. I think that line sums up my feelings very well.