Product Princess Journal / Customer Exprience
Stop selling through your own wallet.
I wish someone had drilled this into my head years ago. 😂
When you own a business, it's incredibly easy to make decisions based on what you would do.
"I would never pay that much."
"I wouldn't buy that colour."
"I don't think anyone needs that."
"I wouldn't spend money on fancy packaging."
Sound familiar?
Here's the problem.
You're not the one buying your product.
I've spent 30 years as an entrepreneur, with the last 10 building product-based businesses. And one of the most valuable lessons I've learned is that my personal preferences don't determine what my customers value.
Sometimes we get so caught up in our own opinions that we forget to ask the people who actually matter.
Our customers.
Your Wallet Isn't Your Customer's Wallet
Let's talk about pricing for a minute.
Have you ever looked at something and thought, "Who on earth would pay that much for this?"
I certainly have.
But just because I wouldn't spend that amount doesn't mean someone else wouldn't happily pay it.
We all have different priorities, incomes, tastes, experiences, and reasons for buying things.
Someone might think spending $200 on home décor is ridiculous but wouldn't hesitate to spend $500 on a weekend getaway.
Someone else might happily invest in beautiful handmade pieces for their home but have absolutely no interest in expensive vacations.
Neither person is wrong.
They simply value different things.
And your job as a business owner isn't to decide what your customers should value. It's to understand what they already value.
Stop Making Decisions Based on Your Personal Taste
This is another trap entrepreneurs fall into.
We choose colours we like.
We design packaging that appeals to us.
We create products we would personally use.
And sometimes, that works beautifully.
But sometimes it limits our business without us even realizing it.
Your customer might love a colour you would never choose.
They might prefer a larger size, a different finish, or a completely different style.
And they might be willing to pay more for features you don't personally consider important.
That's why I believe one of the most valuable skills an entrepreneur can develop is the ability to separate personal preference from business decisions.
You don't have to love everything your customers love.
You just need to understand why they love it.
Sometimes You're Selling More Than You Realize
One of the most fascinating things I've learned from building product-based businesses is that customers don't always buy for the reasons we expect.
A product might seem simple to the person making it.
But to the customer, it might represent a memory, a milestone, a relationship, or a feeling.
A beautiful piece of home décor might remind someone of where they grew up.
A handmade gift might help someone feel connected to a loved one who lives far away.
A practical product might give someone back valuable time or make an everyday task easier.
The value isn't always in the product itself. Sometimes it's in what that product means to the person buying it.
And if you're only looking at your business through your own eyes, you might miss that completely.
Listen to What Your Customers Are Telling You
So how do you get better at understanding your customer?
Start paying attention.
What are people actually purchasing?
What questions do they ask before buying?
What do they mention in reviews?
Why do they choose one product over another?
What brings them back?
And perhaps most importantly, what are they willing to pay for?
You don't need to guess at everything.
Your customers are constantly giving you information.
Sometimes through their words.
Sometimes through their purchases.
And sometimes through what they choose not to buy.
The trick is being willing to listen, even when their preferences are different from your own.
Don't Let Your Assumptions Limit Your Profit
I want to leave you with something important.
Please don't price your products based solely on what you can afford.
Don't eliminate an idea simply because you wouldn't buy it.
And don't assume something has no value just because it doesn't appeal to you personally.
Instead, understand your costs, research your market, and pay attention to what your customers genuinely value.
That doesn't mean charging whatever you want.
Your pricing still needs to make sense for your business and the market you're serving.
But it does mean giving your customers the opportunity to decide what something is worth to them.
After 30 years of entrepreneurship, I've learned that some of the biggest opportunities in business appear when we're willing to challenge our own assumptions.
Your customer doesn't need to think like you. You need to understand how your customer thinks.
And that, my friends, is a lesson worth learning. ❤️
— Product Princess 👑
Your money matters. Your time matters. Your energy matters.