Create Content That Meets Customer Needs
The Pressure to Keep Posting
A founder stays up late checking competitors’ posts and trying the latest trend. It takes time, but brings few new customers. Posting without a clear reason can turn your content into noise and wear you out. A simple plan can help you share ideas that matter to your audience.
Do Not Guess What People Want
Some founders assume they know what customers want to hear. Others copy brands that seem successful. This can lead to posts about features or generic advice instead of customers’ real questions and problems. Ask customers what they need before planning what to post.
What Research Tells Us
Research from the Ehrenberg-Bass Institute says a brand needs to come to mind when someone is ready to buy. Share clear, recognisable content that connects your brand with common needs in your category. You do not need to turn every viewer into a customer right away.
People have limited time and attention. If a post is hard to understand or does not seem useful, they may move on. Keep your message short, clear and connected to something your audience cares about.
Truly impactful content minimises cognitive load by being clear, concise, and directly relevant to the user's immediate concerns or goals.
Learn What Customers Want to Do
The Jobs-to-be-Done idea is a way to learn why people choose a product. Customers use products to do something in their lives, such as solve a problem, feel better or share what matters to them. Knowing this can help you create content that fits their needs.
Talk about how your offer helps people reach a result. Share answers to their questions and ideas for the problems they face. This is more useful than only announcing a new product. It also shows customers that you understand what matters to them.
A Skincare Brand Listened to Customers
Anya ran a small skincare brand in London. At first, she wrote about the ingredients in her plant-based serums. She knew a lot about them, but sales grew slowly. Many customers cared less about the ingredient names and more about finding gentle products that worked.
Anya learned that customers wanted to feel comfortable in their skin, find products that suited their values and get help with sensitive skin. She changed her posts to share customer stories, simple evening routines and clear advice about common skin concerns. More people responded because the content spoke to what they were trying to do.
The most effective content speaks not to what your product is, but to the progress your customer is trying to make.
Three Common Mistakes
Some brands list product features without saying how they help. Others join every trend or talk mostly about themselves. Choose ideas that suit your customers, explain what your product can do for them and make room for their questions and experiences.
Put It Into Practice
Write down a common customer situation. Then fill in: “When I [situation], I want to [goal], so I can [result].” For example: “After work, I want to make dinner quickly.” Use the answers to plan content.
Make a simple content plan around the needs you hear most often. If customers want to save time, offer short tips. If they find something confusing, make a step-by-step guide. Give every post a clear purpose.
Show how things can improve for a customer after using your product. Share examples and customer stories, with their permission. Focus on the change your offer can support, not only the features it includes.
What Comes Next
People will have more content to choose from and less time to spend on each post. Brands that learn what their customers need can make content that feels useful and clear. Build your plan around real customer needs, keep listening and explain how your product can make something better or easier. Chasing trends alone is less likely to build lasting trust.