What is your customer’s cowbell?

You may remember the Saturday Night Live skit “More Cowbell”. In this skit (below if you have not seen it), Bruce Dickenson, a band manager, tries to persuade the band members that their song should include the playing of “more cowbell”. Exasperated, he finally states:

“I’ve got a fever…and the only prescription is more cowbell!”

Every one of your customers and potential customers also has a “fever.” They have something that is causing them pain. It could be caused by a feeling of not fitting “in” amongst a desired crowd, by wanting to look smart or have fun, by a desire to have meaningful experiences with others, by craving to have more time to spend on enjoyable activities, by wishing to save money or many, many other possible causes. Whatever the cause, each one of your customers and potential customers lack something of perceived value to them that they are willing to exchange their time and/or money to find a potential cure.

Your goal is to find out what their fever is and provide them with an easy to understand and valuable prescription (the cowbell). But how do you found out what is the fever or pain for your customers? Just like a doctor, you:

1. Ask questions to try to get to the heart of the problem.
2. Listen empathically to the answers.
3. Offer prescriptions so that they can cure their own fever.

What’s the best way that you have found to cure your customer’s fevers? What are their cowbells?