User Operations: 3 Secrets of Super User Thinking!

The story of the internet celebrity boss lady: As long as you think about your users, money will come to you.

There are 5 pharmacies within a radius of 1,000 meters from my home, but the business conditions of the 5 pharmacies are completely different. The business of the "Internet celebrity pharmacy" owned by the owner, Mrs. Xu, is super good. Many users must go to her to buy their headaches and fevers, while the other pharmacies are quite miserable.

I have always liked to wonder why Boss Xu’s wife’s business is so good? Later, through observation and chatting, I found that her store was indeed different from other stores in treating customers.

Other pharmacies have the same policy for all users and are inflexible, but hers is not.

She will give corresponding gifts based on the user's age and needs. When the elderly buy medicine, they get household items such as hand sanitizer for free, and when mothers buy medicine, they get toys or facial masks for free.

One winter day a few years ago, I had a dry throat, so I went to my boss’s wife’s house for the first time after get off work to buy medicine. She asked the old doctor stationed in the store to check me out, and allowed me to buy the medicine with my social security card, and also gave me a facial mask for free. This is better than going to the community health center. At this point, the boss lady won my trust and I only went to her house when I had a headache or a fever.

Most other pharmacies have medicine and a pharmacist to help prescribe medicine, but hers has more than that.

Her family also hired an old Chinese doctor to provide free medical treatment in the store. She said that most people who come to the pharmacy have minor illnesses. After seeing the doctor, they buy medicine. We then give them some small gifts, which can basically solve 80% of the problems.

Her family also provides the herbal tea that Guangdong people drink all year round and rhinitis treatment services. During a casual chat one time, I asked her why she thought of adding a rhinitis treatment service in the pharmacy.

She said that she had analyzed and found that there were too many people with rhinitis in Shenzhen, which was caused by the climate and geographical location. On average, one in every five people had symptoms of rhinitis. Taking the medicine once or twice will not have any therapeutic effect. Instead, taking it more often, coupled with professional services, can solve the user's problem.

We jokingly call her the "user spokesperson" because she can immediately sense any needs we have. Every time I see her, I can't help but joke: "Your business is so good, tell us about your business."

The lady boss smiled and said, "There is no need to be too business savvy. Just think about the users, solve their problems, give them benefits, and add more experience points, and the money will come to you."

The boss lady is indeed a person with "super user thinking". Now that we know the value of this kind of thinking, how can we ordinary people cultivate it?

Based on my observation and research on "user spokespersons" like the boss lady over the years, I have summarized three effective and practical secrets.

1. Solve the user’s problem

If someone asked me, among the many study abroad companies I visited last year, which one left a particularly deep impression on me?

I would answer without hesitation: MINISO. It is not because of its counter-cyclical growth, but the strategy it pursued to solve problems for users that is particularly memorable to me.

The person in charge of MINISO told many stories that are rarely disclosed. What impressed me most was that they have been looking for solutions to the pain point of users: "wanting brand and cheap price".

Users essentially hope to buy products with high cost-performance ratio, which is what MINISO has been doing. However, there are still many users who want to buy branded products and "eliminate the brand premium."

They conducted many experiments and finally found that in addition to sticking to the low-price and gross profit margin strategy, introducing the brand IP strategy is a good choice. So in recent years, they have made bold attempts and have in-depth cooperation with IPs such as Pink Panther, Luo Xiong, and HELLO KITTY.

Figure: Promotion of famous and high-quality innovative products

The person in charge gave an example. For example, ordinary lipsticks originally had no brand, but users were willing to pay more than ten yuan. After the launch of KITTY cat lipstick, fans who like KITTY cat will definitely be willing to pay for it. The unit price is higher than that of non-branded products, about 30 yuan, but it is much cheaper than those big brands outside.

Therefore, the IP series products not only have a high repurchase rate for individual items, but also will drive the sales of other products. By doing so, they can not only better satisfy users, but also enhance their market competitive advantage by introducing brand value.

From this story, have you discovered that the more problems you solve for users, the more willing they are to follow you?

Second, be good at creating big surprises and big perceptions.

Answer me a question first. After last year, can you remember what happened every day? What I can remember are probably the most memorable food and the most memorable movie...

I think that days that are dull and without surprises are like plain water, which is gone once you drink it, without causing any ripples in your heart. Only days that contain special emotions such as surprise, anger, etc. will be remembered by the forgetful brain. Just like occasionally drinking sweet and sour, delicious fruit juice, that feeling will be remembered forever in your heart.

Picture: Super marijuana

If you ask me what was the most impressive food last year, my answer would be "an extra-large sesame ball."

I had this dish when I went to Hangzhou on a business trip and a friend who owns a restaurant treated me to a meal. My friend ordered a table full of dishes, but no one was particularly excited. But when the super-large hemp balls that had never been eaten or seen before came up, everyone started to get excited and started chatting.

Let’s not talk about how it tastes first. In terms of appearance, it beats 99% of the sesame balls. The uniqueness of a product will make users feel "pleasure", "surprise" and "satisfaction", which will be deeply remembered in the brain and will lead to a series of behaviors. For example, you may want to take photos to share with friends, you may want to ask the chef how it was cooked, etc.

I am a person who seldom posts on WeChat Moments, but that day I posted a photo of a super big hemp ball on WeChat Moments, and it became the post with the most likes and interactions.

From this story, have you discovered that when you create “big surprises and big perceptions” for users, they will be easily impressed by you.

3. Design more experience points in the scene

Photo: The entrance of a provincial kindergarten

This picture was taken when I was working on a provincial kindergarten user experience project. It was not like this at the beginning. This kindergarten has always provided good user experience. When I was touring the kindergarten, I found that there were two large cartoon characters placed on the left and right sides of the kindergarten entrance, both placed against the wall.

I was stunned at the time, and always wondered how this place could be designed. Parents and children can see this place when they first enter the kindergarten, and they will also pass by it when they go back. I think the kindergarten put it here to make the children happy, and children naturally like cute cartoon shapes.

So, I tried to suggest to the leader who was accompanying me: "Why don't we move the two Minions on the left to the outside so that there is enough space at the back for people to go in and take pictures." The leader who was accompanying me at the time didn't quite understand, but he still did it.

I continued, “In the future, you can add a Minions photo-taking area to the cultural wall, and hang some signs of your kindergarten behind it, so that children and parents can help you spread the word.”

After school that day, I took a walk and found that a line was forming at the gate. The accompanying leader was a little confused and hurried over to see what was going on. It turned out that the kindergarten children were lining up to take pictures with the Minions.

From this story, have you discovered that when you set more user experience points, users will become closer and closer to you?

It is not difficult to find that the above three secrets of super user thinking are similar to the business philosophy of the internet celebrity boss lady “user spokesperson”. Help users solve their problems first so that they are willing to follow you; create some surprises and perceptions from time to time so that they are impressed by you; and remember to set up more user experience points to make them more intimate with you.

As management guru Drucker said: " The mission of an enterprise is to create and retain customers."

I hope you can make good use of these 3 secrets, and then money will flow to you continuously.

Author: Chen Huiming

Source: Chen Huiming Study Club