It’s always a bad idea to go grocery shopping on an empty stomach. The last time I did, I ended up with a grocery bill $50 higher than usual and wound up throwing out several meals’ worth of food a few weeks later when it all spoiled. Even if I am in desperate need of food, I always make a point of eating a good meal before stepping into Safeway.
Last week, though, I broke my rule. I went shopping on an empty stomach. Given, it wasn’t shopping for groceries, but I was tempted to overbuy nonetheless. As I was finishing my winding hike through IKEA, I came across this amazing poster of a 20-foot long hot dog. Considering all I’d had to eat was half a bowl of Cheerios, a 20-foot hot dog sounded like a great way to sate my hunger.
Even though you can buy just about anything at IKEA, I know they’d never really sell a 20-foot hot dog. But for some reason, they still had to add a note to the bottom of the image: “not actual size.”
Every now and then, we need to clarify for others what might seem like obvious to us. When you’ve been working with a piece of software long enough, clicking a particular icon or visiting a certain screen becomes second nature. You forget that step is even there. Driving from the office to your house is done on autopilot – even though you make the drive every day, you still need to pause and think when reciting directions.
I tell my clients all the time to imagine a customer of average experience. Now keep in mind that half the population is less experienced than that person! If your marketing and instructions target someone in the top 10% of computer or technology or literary expertise, then you’re ignoring 90% of your customer base. Very few products have succeeded by starting with this narrow a focus.
So even though it might be obvious to you that you’re not selling 20-foot hot dogs, remember that first time visitors might be so overwhelmed by your massive store that they might just expect a 20-foot hot dog for 50¢.
