How to understand what your customer needs
- Lucy
- Jul 23
- 3 min read
Most business owners are working with a version of their customer that only exists in their head.
They’ve guessed at what their audience wants. Or copied what their competitors are doing. Or built their messaging around a mix of past experience, “ideal client” templates, and vibes.
And sometimes it works. But more often than not, it misses the mark.
If you don't deeply understand what your audience needs from you, your website, your offers, and your copy will struggle to connect. So let’s talk about what understanding your customer actually means, and how to do it in a way that builds trust, drives clarity, and leads to better conversions.
Most people are designing for the business, not the buyer
If your site is full of “we do this” and “I offer that,” you’re not alone.
Most businesses fall into the trap of talking from their perspective, not to their user’s experience. It’s usually not on purpose. It just happens when you're too close to your own work, and you haven’t had the space or support to zoom out and think strategically.
But:
People don’t come to your website to learn about your business. They come to learn about what your business can do for them.
And if your site makes them do the work of translating your services into their own needs, then they'll bounce right back off.
This is where customer understanding becomes everything.
What your customer is actually trying to figure out
Most users aren’t thinking: “Does this business sound credible?”
They’re thinking things like:
“Do they get what I’m struggling with?”
“Have they worked with someone like me?”
“Am I too early / too late / too different?”
“Will this be worth the time, energy, or money?”
And underneath those thoughts are deeper questions:
“Will I feel overwhelmed?”
“Will I regret this?”
“Will I feel like I failed if it doesn’t work?”
None of this is about your process or your features. It’s about their fears, doubts, desires, and internal logic. Understanding those things lets you write and design for what they actually need to hear, feel, or understand in order to say yes.
How to understand your customer needs
The good news is you don’t need to become a market researcher or run an expensive survey to understand your customer needs. You probably already have access to rich, insight-filled data. You just need to look in the right places.
I recommend starting with:
1. DMs and enquiry forms: What language do people use when they first reach out to you? Look for what they’re stuck on, what they want, and how they describe their own problem.
2. Client testimonials and feedback: Go back through past clients and pull out what they say about before they worked with you. What fears did they have? What convinced them to go ahead? What changed for them?
3. Social media comments and reactions: Which posts get saved, shared, or commented on?
What to do with that insight
Once you start hearing the same themes again and again, your job is to build your site around your user.
This means things like leading with the user's challenge or desired outcome rather than your offer on the homepage. Framing your services around the user transformation you can deliver. Mirroring words your customer will use in your copywriting. Or welcoming callouts like "not sure which option is right for you?" in your structure.
In comparison, this doesn't mean:
Trying to build for everyone. Unfortunately, if you try to resonate with too many people then you end up not landing the message with anyone.
Designing for your peers rather than your audience. It's easy to focus on trying to to impress others in your industry, but yuo need to focus on guiding your potential customers instead.
Jumping into solutions. Make sure you communicate they why behind your products or services so users can understand the pain you solve.
What would I do?
If you’re unsure whether your current website reflects what your audience needs, here’s where I’d start:
Run a clarity sprint: That’s exactly what the Business Blueprint is for. A one-week deep dive to uncover the gaps between you, your audience, and your message.
Audit your site through your customers eyes: Reflect honestly on what a first-time visitor would think and feel after 5 seconds on your homepage.
Reframe your copy: Really try to think about why something would matter to your audience. If it's not that relevant, you can cut it back.
Want help finding the clarity your business has been missing?
Book a Business Blueprint and we can dive into who your target customer is and how we can put them at the centre of your website and business strategy.
