How To Identify Your Customer's Pain Points (4 Key Tips)

Every type of business out there, no matter the size or industry has its own pocket of customers with their own specific needs. Whether it’s to lose weight, to feel safe in their new car or have a well-functioning vacuum cleaner, your customer's needs will vary depending on your market. When these needs aren’t met, in the sales biz, we call that a customer pain point. Maybe you already have an idea of what your customer pain points are, or maybe you are still trying to get to the bottom of it. No matter where you’re at, it’s important to not only have a general idea of your customer pain points but to also be able to identify them in as much detail as possible. When you know the ins and outs of your customer’s struggles and desires, that is when you’ll deliver them the exact results they need. In doing this, you’ll build credibility and acquire long-term loyal customers. If you don’t you’ll start losing customers left and right. There are a lot of ways you can better identify your customer pain points, and we’ll go over the most effective ones in this article. So, if you want to find a one-way ticket to your customers’ hearts, keep on reading.

What are Customer Pain Points in Business?

We’ve touched a little bit on the concept of customer pain points, but you may still be scratching your head. To make it crystal clear, pain points are the specific problems or challenges that your leads, prospects or customers experience. These pain points can vary significantly as there is never only one area in one's life where difficulties can arise. The level of severity of the pain point can also scale from mild to severe depending on what the problem is and the amount of value it holds for your customer. Essentially, pain points are your ally— they elicit a demand that drives potential customers to seek solutions at your business. Without pain points, your customers don’t need you.

Typical Customer Pain Point Examples

Even though your customer pain points can be unique to each individual customer, they typically fall under four main categories. This will provide a great foundation in the process of identifying your customer pain points and get you one step closer to finding that perfect solution.

Complicated Customer Service

The last thing customers want when trying to find a solution is to feel like they aren’t being supported. For instance, if trying to find an answer to their question on your website is more like solving a scavenger hunt, then you’ll want to consider redesigning your website to be more accessible and user-friendly. This lack of support doesn’t just come up during the customer journey. Your customers could also be struggling with complex tasks that they feel could easily be simplified or completed for them. That’s where your business can work to identify the pain point and jump in to save the day. For example, if your prospect is struggling with their current business phone system’s inefficiency, offer them your new prototype that easily syncs contacts and calendars. Quantify the value and go out of your way to meet their needs. Your customer will be elated and you’ll likely make the sale.

Products with Delivery Charges that are Too High

This is a common pain point for customers because a lot of the time they feel as if what they are paying for costs more money than what it's worth. Therefore, there’s a good chance they’ll begin to seek a different solution that will offer more bang for their buck. This particularly is found with food delivery services. Customers often complain about these businesses because the delivery charge can often double the price of the meal(s) they are ordering. A simple solution to this pain point is to offer discounts or deals every now and then. This will help soften the blow and make your customer feel more financially secure.

Long Waiting Time for Customers

Just like you and I, your customers value how they spend their time. They don’t want to be left waiting around or feel like what they are wasting their time on something that could easily work faster and more efficiently. Let’s say a customer calls your company about an issue they are having with your product. They are then put on hold… for 45 minutes. Do you think they will stay on the line? Or do you think they are more likely to look into a different company and find their solutions elsewhere?Keep in mind, it is just as important to offer quick and efficient solutions to your customers as it is to have a quick and efficient customer journey experience. Customers are always searching for the most convenient way to get what they need as soon as possible. Whether it is a pre-packaged and prepped meal delivered to their door instead of cooking from scratch or a laptop with a higher broadband connection, it’s your job to find the best solution.

Low Sales Volume of Products and Services Offered

Many customers experience a scarcity of what they need. If there is nowhere to turn to in finding a solution, it can be quite disheartening for them. If you aren’t able to supply the demand, you’ll be leaving your customers high and dry. That is why it is so important as a business to have enough products and services to meet your customer's needs. For instance, if you are a supplier to other businesses, you must prepare for bulk purchases. The last thing you want is to run out and show your customers that you aren’t a reliable partner. Sure, creating a sense of exclusivity can be beneficial, but it can also become frustrating when your customers can’t ever seem to gain access to your great products. Understanding the big picture of the common obstacles customers face as a consumer acts as a great baseline. At Wizard of Ads®, we can support you in figuring out where your customers fit within these categories and help you narrow it down from there. Contact us today to learn more!

4 Tips To Better Identify Customer Pain Points

Now that you’ve gotten a better idea of what a customer pain point is and the common ones that your they experience, it’s time to learn how to pinpoint the dynamic problems your customers face within your niche market.

1. Start with a Survey Question

Want to know what your customers are struggling with? Sometimes it’s as easy as simply asking them! Come up with a list of survey questions and send out an email encouraging them to provide you with feedback. You can even offer incentives like a free product or discount when they fill out your survey to boost engagement. Here are some great sample questions you can ask:

• What consumes the most of your time during the day?
• What's the problem with your current process?
• What is the most difficult problem you're currently dealing with?
• You mentioned your dissatisfaction with X. Could you please elaborate?

2. Utilize Social Listening Tools

You can also more specifically identify your customer pain points by utilizing social listening software. Social listening is a way in which you can track what your customers have to say about various brands on social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter. Essentially, social listening is like you’re a fly on the wall that has access to the opinions, values and pain points of your target audience. You’ll have an inside look to what they are complaining about and why which will be extremely useful in your quest of identifying their specific problems and making your business their number one solution. Some great social listening tools to choose from are platforms like Sprout Social and Hootsuite.

3. Add Chatbots To Website

Using real people to take care of customer pain points isn’t always the most efficient method in finding them a solution. Rather than piling more responsibilities onto your staff, add chatbots to your website to offer more convenience for everyone involved. Chatbots are easy to implement and are a great energetic way to answer customer questions, concerns, or— you’ve guessed it, pain points. Not only will it solve typical issues your customers face, but it will also help identify un-served pain points that haven’t been brought to your attention before. These discoveries will clue you in to what products you may want to promote as a solution as well as what products you also may want to consider adding to fill the void. There is a lot of great chatbot software out there, so make sure you go through all of your options to determine which suits your business and customer base best.

4. Align Your Marketing and Sales Teams

Aligning your marketing and sales department is important because if they're not on the same wavelength, there can be a lot of confusion about where potential customers are coming from or what their possible pain points might be. For example, your sales team can ask your marketing team for qualitative research to obtain specific data regarding customer pain points to better equip them in finding solutions. Alternatively, your marketing department can ask the sales team the most common pain points that arise during discovery calls with prospects. When you can keep a line of communication going, you’ll have better alignment with your data and provide the most accurate solutions for your customers.

Conclusion

Identifying customer pain points doesn’t have to be a complicated venture. As long as you can acknowledge and understand the common challenges your customers face, you will then be able to use both your resources and your intuition to guide you the rest of the way. The ability to just put yourself in their shoes alone will make your process way easier. If you think about it, finding your customers’ pain points is actually your own pain point in and of itself, and just like you, we are always trying to make our customer experience better and more efficient. At Wizard of Ads®, we’d be happy to find the perfect solution for you. Contact us today and receive even more information on how you can best serve your target audience— from potential prospects to even your most loyal long-term customers.