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How to build products that customers don't know they want
Quoting this column:
The point is not to go ask your customers what they want. If you ask that question in the formative stages, then you're doing it wrong. The point is to go immerse yourself in their environment and ask lots of "why" questions until you have thoroughly explored the ins and outs of their decision making, needs, wants, and problems. At that point, you should be able to break their needs and the opportunities down into a few simple statements of truth. ... unless you put a face and expectations on that consumer, then disagreements about features or product positioning or design come down to who can pull the greatest political will - rather than who has the cleanest interpretation of the consumer's need.
Love this quote. It reminds me of what good personas are all about: Not listening and repeating what users say, but immersing yourself in their world to such a degree that you can capture their underlying goals and behaviors in such a way that others can start immersing themselves too.
This post reminds me of one of my favorite Henry Ford Quotes "If I had asked my customers what they wanted, they would have said a faster horse"