We cannot emphasise enough how vital it is to have an 'outward' focus. The road to sustainable, long term success lies in satisfying customers and then holding on to as much of that revenue as possible. Organisations that have an outward focus are looking to increase revenue first and foremost because they recognise that nothing happens unless you and I spend money. The question that they ask of themselves is, “What can I do for you?” Woolworths under Roger Corbett was an excellent example of a company that had an outward focus.

Inward looking organisations, such as Woolworths since Corbett, generally saw customers as walking profit centres – what can the consumer do for me. The question that they ask of themselves is, “How can I get the customer to buy more high-margin things – the stuff that matters to me?”

Woolworth’s push into home brand goods has been driven more by margin-expansion than by identifying and then satisfying unmet customer needs. The Masters project has been hampered from its inception because the venture was in response to a Board-level strategic imperative. It’s birth and implementation have always been driven by the need to attack Wesfarmers rather than how to best understand and serve Australians – an inward focus.

To have an outward focus is to have a sales focus. To have a sales focus is to have an intimate knowledge of your customers. To have an intimate knowledge of your customers is to have a detailed grasp as to who they are, where you can more of them and why they choose to spend more of their dollars with you than someone else.

To have an outward focus is to hide from the customer your pain points and to focus solely on theirs. Returns, for example, are a real pain in the (pick your favourite body part) for all retailers, but a vital part of the service component to a customer. US outdoor goods retailer LL Bean has a policy of untimed returns. If for whatever reason, at any time, you are unsatisfied with your purchase, send it back and they will send you a replacement. The internet is filled with stories of people returning items that are used and worn-through and purchased a decade or more beforehand. All are refunded cheerfully and quickly. An article from NPR sums it up well, “As a business practise, it’s expensive. As advertising, it’s cheap.” As a long-term successful, outward strategy, it’s priceless.