Almost every organization has said it.
Emphatically.
With workshops.
With Post-its.
“We’re going to become customer-centric.”
And it sounds right.
But here’s the uncomfortable truth:
most of what’s called customer centricity isn’t really about the customer.
It’s about ourselves.
🤔 A silent add-on that changes everything
We ask questions that sound customer-centric:
What challenges do our customers face?
What solutions are they looking for?
Where does friction occur?
But almost always there’s a silent add-on at the end of the sentence:
… when they interact with us
… when they consider us
… in relation to us
It’s human.
We can only see the world from where we stand.
So we say:
“I’ll put myself in your shoes,”
but what we really mean is:
“I want to understand how you think about me.”
🔄 Try something radical (and simple)
Remove yourself from the picture.
Completely. Just for a moment.
Not:
“How does the customer experience us?”
But:
“What is the customer trying to get done?”
Not:
“What problems can we solve?”
But:
“What problems does the customer have—even when we’re not part of the solution?”
💡 Why this works
Those who understand the entire context
become more important than those who understand only part of it.
Those who give customers a language for their problem
don’t need to shout about their solution.
In B2B, this is often the difference between
being evaluated, and being chosen.
Customer centricity is not a goal
It’s a result.
A result of:
– Immersing yourself in the customer’s reality
– Accepting that you’re not always the answer
– Daring to be relevant before trying to be selectable
🎯 Sometimes the best and most generous thing you can do for the customer
is to stop talking about yourself.
Try it.
And see what happens.
Here you can read about how top salespeople conduct a sales presentation.
