Think Like a Planarian

Last year I discovered a significant number of disgusting looking worms in my garden. These worms were long and slender, with a pointed head. I soon discovered that they are land planarians. I also learned that they like to eat earthworms. Since I consider earthworms to be my friend, I was concerned.

I researched these slimy beasts but could find no information on eradication. I visited a garden forum and was told to “think like a planarian” in order to find their hiding places. At first I thought this was a little silly. After all, planarians are very simple creatures and I seriously doubt that they have any cognitive powers. But the advice worked.

A similar piece of advice holds true regarding our paint contracting company. But rather than think like a planarian, we must think like our customers. We must identify what our customers are looking for in a painting contractor, and then offer those values.

It’s not enough to offer our customers what we think they want. We must offer what they want. Our values may differ from our customers.

Henry Ford once said that his customers could purchase a Model-T in any color they wanted, so long as it was black. His competitors gained market share by offering cars in different colors—the competitors offered customers what they wanted.

We must examine our business from the perspective of a customer. If we don’t, our business can easily look like our competitors. And that leaves us with no way to compete except on price.

© BEP Enterprises Incorporated 2008