Customer Understanding Does Not Come from Assumptions

Customer understanding is a term that is frequently discussed, but what does it actually mean in practice? In sales, the best results rarely come from price-driven campaigns or impressive sales pitches. Instead, they come from the ability to be curious, to listen, and to understand. When customer understanding is in place, both marketing and sales hit their target more effectively.

I have never considered myself a traditional salesperson. Yet I have built my career around sales. There is something about the word “salesperson” that tends to make Finns uncomfortable, often bringing to mind the stereotypical “Do you have your mobile subscription sorted out?” type of encounter. My own approach to sales is softer.

When I reflect on my years in both B2C and B2B sales, the most successful customer relationships and business deals were not characterized by perfectly polished sales pitches or the lowest prices. It is easy to think that businesses buy from businesses, when in reality decisions are always made by people, not organizations. Even in B2B sales, decisions are driven by emotions, experiences, and trust. To truly understand the buyer and the reasons behind a purchase, the modern salesperson must understand the customer – in other words, the person.

Many entrepreneurs create a service that they themselves would want to buy and communicate the aspects they personally find interesting or are proud of. However, customers do not necessarily buy for those reasons. We may have worked in the same field for years, served similar customers for a long time, and therefore assume we know our customers well. But customer understanding is not built on assumptions – it is built on asking questions.

One of the most important skills in sales, marketing, and entrepreneurship is knowing how to ask the right questions. Instead of asking customers whether they want a particular service or feature, we should aim to understand the goals, challenges, and wishes that exist in their daily lives. The deciding factors may be convenience, trust, reliability, or making everyday work easier. However, asking questions alone is not enough, active listening is equally important. Too often we listen in order to respond, when we should be listening in order to understand. When a customer shares their situation, our task is not to rush toward a solution but to pause for a moment.

Long-term partnerships are not built on quick wins. What is the customer really trying to say? What is the root cause of the problem? What goals or barriers to purchasing are hidden behind their words? Ensuring that you understand the customer’s direction and current objectives is important even when working with long-standing clients. A lack of customer understanding can be seen in many ways. Marketing fails to reach the right people or speak about issues that matter to them. Sales conversations remain superficial. The solutions offered do not address real needs. In the worst-case scenario, a company spends time and money on things that provide no value to the customer.

A company may also become dependent on low prices and discounts because it cannot demonstrate its added value in other ways. Competing solely on price is challenging because there will always be someone willing to sell for slightly less. That is why sustainable competitive advantage should be built around customer value. The better a company understands its customers’ needs, the better it can offer solutions that stand out from competitors and build long-term customer relationships.

At its best, customer understanding is reflected in the customer feeling heard. Marketing feels personally relevant, sales conversations feel natural, and cooperation is built on trust. Customers may not remember everything that was said to them, but they will remember the feeling of being understood.

Customer understanding is not just a marketing term. It is the key to better decision-making. While tools, platforms, and trends continue to change, one thing remains constant: people want to be seen, heard, and understood.

That is why I believe the most important acronym in marketing and sales is not AI, KPI, or SQL – it is H2H (Human to Human).

Tea Koivula
Key Account Manager
Kaleva Media