Remember in your undergrad psych class when you had to learn about Abraham Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs? (I know, it’s been a while…) As a refresher, Maslow’s theory was that humans have certain needs, and that some are more important than others. Basically, if your fundamental needs aren’t met, you can’t have the luxuries in life. As it turns out, this theory applies to your client experience strategy, too.
The Foundation: Stuff We Literally Can’t Live Without
In Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, the base of the pyramid consists of physiological needs. These are things like food, water, warmth, rest—basic necessities for human survival. In marketing, it’s about ensuring that your product or service covers all the basic needs of your audience. Before you can get fancy, you have to make sure it serves its purpose.
For a marketing agency like Silverbrook, our audience is people who need marketing services. Let’s niche it down even further and say that our specific audience is small business owners who need graphic design. (Hi!) Our service—the design work—has to serve the audience’s basic needs: it has to contain all pertinent information to be conveyed. That’s it. It’s the bare minimum, but that’s the most important part.
Still Important: Seatbelts and Bubble Wrap
Safety first, right? Well, almost. The next most important level is safety needs, including security. Your brand should aim to be the seatbelt in the wild rollercoaster of life, along with a snug security blanket of reliability. You have to make your audience feel secure in their decision to purchase your product or service.
For Silverbrook, we aim to give all our prospective clients reasons to trust us with their projects and show that their reputations are in good hands. A good way to do this is to share social proof—testimonials, reviews, and other feedback from “real people” who have used our services in the past. A great review from a happy client makes a massive impact on someone else looking to sign a contract for the same service.
The Next Level: Feeling the Love
The middle level of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs pyramid is belongingness and love needs. The need to love and be loved, whether it’s through intimate relationships or platonic ones. People need to feel connected to other people (and I’d argue that pets fall into this category as well, to a lesser extent). We all know that marketing isn’t just about selling stuff; it’s about creating a vibe, a community. You want to position your brand as a favorite buddy who shares the latest gossip over a Frappuccino.
I’ve made a priority out of customer experience in my business. At Silverbrook, we treat our clients like family. Better than family, really, because we are always polite and rarely deny them anything, unlike our real families! We also try to make sure we are always engaging on social media and answering any comments to make sure our audience feels like they’re a part of the “in crowd.” We are a small club, but we’re a welcoming one!
Near the Top: Earning High-Fives All Around
Only one level from the pinnacle, esteem needs are about feelings of accomplishment and pride. Your audience wants everyone to know that they are responsible for the awesome results from their decision to use your company. You want to give them the warm fuzzies, making them look good in front of their bosses and peers.
Silverbrook doesn’t just give our clients what they ask for. Continuing the graphic design example, we recently were asked to alter an image that would appear on a large wall in a client’s lobby. We could have just made the change and sent it back. But that’s not how we operate! I can’t in good conscience let something go without speaking up about any potential issues I can prevent.
In this case, I mentioned that the image was not a high enough resolution to print well at that size. I encouraged the client to discuss the minimum resolution necessary with their printer of choice, because I didn’t want them to get all the way to the installation and realize that the whole thing was horribly pixelated. This quick discussion may have saved them embarrassment, not to mention the additional cost of having to redo the print.
The Peak: Achieving Full Potential
The top of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs pyramid is self-actualization: reaching your full potential, including creative activities. This includes the luxuries of life, the feeling that you’ve “made it.” Your brand has the ability to help your audience achieve their goals! This is a big deal, and it’s the level where clients are made into ambassadors for your brand.
Silverbrook’s emphasis on client experience goes beyond just making someone look good. We encourage transparency, honesty, and an open exchange of ideas with our clients. We want to teach our clients more about marketing to help them achieve their full potential… but we also want to learn FROM them so that we can better serve them.
Your Turn: How Can You Fulfill Your Customers’ Needs?
I hope this hierarchy of needs comparison has given you some food for thought when it comes to how your brand is supporting your audience. Remember, it’s not just about sales! When your brand can fulfill ALL your customers’ needs, you become an irreplaceable partner that they won’t even consider breaking ties with. Welcome to the land of brand evangelism, my friends!
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