Identifying your customer's needs

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What Does Your Customer Need?
This question is one you must have considered already. However, here is a way of actually categorising what exactly you offer your customer in terms of their life and needs. This may help you to identify what it is that you want from a logo design or corporate re-branding of your identity, and therefore you will be able to better advise your graphic designer on your company's core values.

What does your company offer?
Every company, whether knowingly or not, is at any given time appealing to its customer through logo, brand or marketing materials design to a particular group of needs. This may include several different needs or just one, but it is important that as a company you recognise what you want your new logo to do, and what message you want your customers to receive from the design. In 1943, Abraham Maslow created a hierarchy of social needs. He was referring to human behaviour, but since then his ‘triangle' has been studied as a reference point for marketing of different services to consumers. So, according to Maslow's hierarchy, to what needs are you catering? Read on to find out!

Physical Needs
The first and most basic level of need is the physical. Shelter, food, water, warmth. Anything that stops us from dying! Certain companies pander to this by claiming (whether correctly or falsely) that their product is more efficient, healthier, more economical, etc. However, the need is essentially the same. Humans will want to eat and drink, to be warm and protect themselves from the elements regardless of advertising input. The trick is to convince your consumer that your product is the superior choice for physical well-being. Do this by thinking ‘comfort' for unhealthy foods, ‘natural' for healthy foods, ‘refreshing' for beverages, and ‘comfortable and stylish' for interiors. Anything to do with heating or power should read ‘warm.' Examples of products/services that meet physical needs: food products, drink products, real estate/estate agents, lettings, gas, electricity, etc. Does your company's logo design need to reflect physical needs? Mention this to your graphic designer!

Safety Needs
The second level of need is that of safety. This means physical safety (once the basic survival needs have been met) and security in terms of risk minimisation (i.e. insurance, guarantees of workmanship etc). This category of products should aim to be as trustworthy and corporate looking (i.e. not about to disappear just when you need them) as possible. Examples of products/services that meet safety needs: insurance, guarantees, burglar alarms, security systems, protection plans, etc. Does your company's logo design need to reflect safety needs? Mention this to your graphic designer!

Social Needs
The third and most interesting in terms of advertising is the area of social needs. Maslow indicated that this level was focused around the preservation of vital relationships, but due to the phenomenon of ‘peer pressure' in relation to advertising, many products which fit into a lower category can also be viewed in terms of social needs. By simply making your product fashionable or trendy, you will be appealing to the need to be accepted into a social group. This group of products should appear friendly, exciting and fun. Bright colours are advised. Examples of products/services that meet social needs: leisure activities such as cinema, bowling etc, magazines and newspapers, fashion items, etc. Does your company's logo design need to reflect social needs? Mention this to your graphic designer!

Esteem Needs
Closely linked to this is the fourth group of needs, those linked to esteem. This means seeing oneself as an important and worthwhile individual, and it is here that the lines become blurred. Does your customer need your product in order to be socially accepted, or is it a sense of self worth they are seeking? Design should reflect this distinction. Examples of products/services that meet esteem needs: beauty products, holidays, sports cars, fiction books, etc. Does your company's logo design need to reflect esteem needs? Mention this to your graphic designer!

Self-Actualization Needs
Self-actualization is a point in life that many strive for but never achieve. This is an awareness of self and a wish to better ones lifestyle, achievements and potential. This is the higher level of learning which most of us never experience due to the pressures of the daily grind. However, many of us are aware that this is the ideal and so can be appealed to on this level, despite the fact that the product may not deliver due out our own personal circumstances. This is one area in which the product will seldom get blamed for any shortcomings, as people acknowledge subconsciously that it is only the truly lucky who can hope to experience the phenomenon that is self-actualisation. Examples of products/services that meet self-actualization needs: education programmes, self-help books, the arts, extended travel, executive lettings, specialist sports equipment, time-share, etc. Does your company's logo design need to reflect self-actualization needs? Mention this to your graphic designer!

 

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