You have heard the saying, “ignorance is bliss”. Nothing could be further from the truth. Ignorance of the law does not protect you from jail. In the same way, ignorance of the fundamentals of running a business does not excuse you from failing.

Why ask the right questions

Asking the right questions ensures the right solutions are applied to the right problems. For example, you are a wannabe farmer who was recently inherited a herd of cows. With no farm experience, you do not know where to begin so you go to a farmer’s conference. In the conference you focused all your efforts on increasing your knowledge of how to make your cows produce more milk. You did this because research showed that milk consumption was up and it was the most cost effective way to increase revenue. You go back to your farm to try all the processes you have learned. After one week of no result, you call one of the conference gurus to express your frustrations. The guru out of compassion comes over to your farm and discovers your cows are all males: Males do not produce milk!

This wannabe farmer failed to ask the most basic question of his business, “What am I working with?” As silly as this may sound, failing to ask the important questions causes entrepreneur to do silly things. As a consultant, I have had clients call me thinking they had one problem only to find out they really had a totally different problem. Knowing the right question to ask is half the battle. Without the right questions, the right solutions can never be found.

The fundamental question of business

The fundamental question of business is, “what does my customer/ potential customer want?” Any business owner has to battle with this question one time or the other. You are in business to satisfy customer needs and the only reason you stay profitable is because your customers find you relevant.

In meeting your customer needs, it is not enough to figure out your customers pain points because sometimes, customers have pain points, but are not willing to pay to get a solution. Sometimes, people get accustomed to living with dysfunction. You have to make a distinguishing factor between what your customers want and what they will pay for. This is done by asking the right questions. The right questions should be focused around the underlying assumptions of existing market strategies: Questions concerning the transfer of real value to current and potential customers should be addressed. Asking the right questions, leads you to solutions that deliver optimal value to your customer while eliminating non value added costs.

Steve Jobs stated that, “You can’t just ask customers what they want and then try to give that to them. By the time you get it built, they’ll want something new”. You have to be always one step of your customers, and innovation is the key to doing that.

Lastly, knowing the right questions to ask takes training and experience. As a business owner, you are often blindsided by your own processes which is why ever so often you should consult with someone who brings in an objective perspective.