Perception is Better Then Reality

I had an interesting conversation at an industry event a short while ago that is worth sharing.  To protect the innocent, let's use the name Sam.  Sam was questioning the value of voice of customer analytics.  His premise was "why do I care what they say, I care what they do.  Satisfaction, attitude and perception are soft and fluffy.  Give me hard data that I can rely on, clicks, hits, page views, conversion rates and sales."

My answer -- perception is reality, better yet, perception is better then reality.

Well, what do you think?  Which is correct?

Let's dive a little deeper.  I can understand where Sam is coming from.  Real numbers are good.  I know when I am looking at our financials I want real numbers, not opinions and perceptions.  I know when I am looking at the shrinking stock market, I want real numbers, not excuses and opinions.  So why do I want perceptions, intent, attitudes and opinions when talking about something as important as the success of my website. 

There is more to the visitor then today.  There is tomorrow - what the visitor will do in the future - will they return, recommend my site to others, will they be loyal?  There has been a lot of work done in years past on the lifetime value of a customer.  That is an important concept. 

What the visitor will do in the future is directly dependent on their perception of the experience today.

The visitor may have bought today.  But will they buy tomorrow?  If they were satisfied they will. If they were not satisfied they won't buy from you in the future - they will go elsewhere.  The visitor's perception of the experience (their satisfaction) will determine what they do in the future.  Their perception of the experience is far more important then the actual and factual experience.

Comments

[Ron Shevlin]

I think you're dismissing Sam's concerns too soon. C'mon, even you have to admit that people don't always SAY what they really feel. And I don't mean that they lie or intentionally deceive.

But what Sam is implying -- I think -- is that the patterns in a person's behavior over time may be a better indicator of their "perceptions", "attitudes", or whatever, than what they tell some market researcher or firm when surveyed.

[Larry Freed]

People don't always say what they feel, but if you ask the right way you get remarkably good results. But the point of perception is more then that. What people remember of the experience will determine what they do next.

Now, the question is what is the best way to measure their perception. While behavioral patterns can be insightful, they also can be misleading.

Are those abandoning their shopping carts on ecommerce sites going to purchase in the store or purchase from a competitor?

[Ron Shevlin]

1) "if you ask the right way you get remarkably good results."

Couldn't agree with you more. But that puts a lot of pressure on the researcher to ask questions the "right way" and how do you know what's the "right way" and the "not right way"?

2) "Are those abandoning their shopping carts on ecommerce sites going to purchase in the store or purchase from a competitor?"

I have no idea. Which is not an admission of the weakness in looking at behaviors, but proof that you can't simply look at just ONE behavior. (Just as you can't simply ASK just one question).