“People tell us who they are, but we ignore it because we want

them to be who we want them to be.” — Donald Draper

Have you ever watched someone shopping? People touch things that catch their eye. They buy things that are not on their list because something changed how they feel in the moment. And as Paco Underhill discovered, they will even stop shopping if the aisles are too narrow and they are “brushed” by other customers.

Your customers are leaving clues about how they feel on Instagram and Twitter, on Facebook and in forums. I’ve seen a woman tell the story of a date night with her husband. An evening in the car watching the sun set by the ocean with a bar of their favourite indulgent chocolate, with single Instagram image. That’s solid gold to the chocolate maker.

We’re so busy trying to convince our customers that we forget to really see who they are and who they want to be. The good news is that it’s never too late to pay attention to the clues your customers leave.

Image by Ed Yourdon.