--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Often people say they can't base their…" description: "\"Often people say they can't base their strategies on customers because customers make unreasonable requests and because customers vary too much. Such o..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/170/barbara-bund-56150_customer_often-people-say-they-can-t-base-their-s_2503624.jpg" --- # Often people say they can't base their strategies on… ![“Often people say they can't base their strategies on customers because customers make unreasonable requests and because customers vary too much. Such opinions reveal serious misconceptions. The truly outside-in company definitely does not try to serve all the needs of its customers. Instead, its…” quote by Barbara Bund](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/170/barbara-bund-56150_customer_often-people-say-they-can-t-base-their-s_2503624.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/170/barbara-bund-56150_customer_often-people-say-they-can-t-base-their-s_2503624.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/170/barbara-bund-56150_customer_often-people-say-they-can-t-base-their-s_2503624.jpg) > “Often people say they can't base their strategies on customers because customers make unreasonable requests and because customers vary too much. Such opinions reveal serious misconceptions. The truly outside-in company definitely does not try to serve all the needs of its customers. Instead, its managers are clear about what their organization can and should do for customers, and whatever they do they do well. They focus.” [Barbara Bund](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-bund/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote clarifies that a truly customer‑focused company does not try to satisfy every demand but defines clear, achievable service boundaries and excels within them. **In simple terms:** Focus on what you can deliver well for customers. Key Takeaway Define scope and excel in it. Themes customer focus strategic focus excellence business strategy Mood analytical pragmatic Type strategic instructional When to use this quote - product development - service design - brand positioning - team training Key Concepts core competencies value proposition market segmentation Questions to Reflect On - What should we exclude to strengthen our core? - How do we communicate limits without alienating customers? A Different Perspective Over‑specialization can limit growth opportunities. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Customer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/customer/) [Focus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/focus/) [Misconception](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/misconception/) [Opinion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/opinion/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Strategy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/strategy/) ## Related quotes > [Focus too much on the near-term and you won't get tomorrow's customers, focus too much on the long-term and you won't get today's.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-levie/focus-too-much-on-the-near-term-and-you-won-t-get-tomorrow-s/) [Aaron Levie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-levie/) > [“The purpose of every business and organization is to get and keep customers.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shep-hyken/the-purpose-of-every-business-and-organization-is-to-get-and-keep/) Shep Hyken > [Reduce the layers of management. They put distance between the top of an organization and the customers.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donald-rumsfeld/reduce-the-layers-of-management-they-put-distance-between-the-top-of/) [Donald Rumsfeld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donald-rumsfeld/) > [“We don't make money when we sell things. We make money when we help customers make purchase decisions.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-stone/we-don-t-make-money-when-we-sell-things-we-make-money-when-we-help/) [Brad Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-stone/) > [Focus on your customers and make that restaurant synonymous to where you are in terms of area.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-ramsay/focus-on-your-customers-and-make-that-restaurant-synonymous-to-where/) [Gordon Ramsay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-ramsay/) > [“None of that data, however, actually tells you why customers make the choices that they do.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/clayton-m-christensen/none-of-that-data-however-actually-tells-you-why-customers-make-the/) [Clayton M. Christensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/clayton-m-christensen/) > [ I listen to \[customers\] and we make adjustments because we pretty much average a collection every six weeks. We're constantly taking everything in and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eva-mendes/i-listen-to-customers-and-we-make-adjustments-because-we-pretty-much/) [Eva Mendes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eva-mendes/) > [“When I read that letter, I thought, we don’t make money when we sell things. We make money when we help customers make purchase…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-stone/when-i-read-that-letter-i-thought-we-don-t-make-money-when-we-sell/) [Brad Stone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-stone/) > [I want you to say to me right from the start, "We are here to serve customers. We're not here for me to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamie-dimon/i-want-you-to-say-to-me-right-from-the-start-we-are-here-to-serve/) [Jamie Dimon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamie-dimon/) > [“Less successful sellers rush through the Investigating stage; as a result, they don't do such an effective j ob of uncovering, understanding, and developing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/less-successful-sellers-rush-through-the-investigating-stage-as-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When you focus solely on valuation and market share, you win some and you lose some. When you focus on the needs of your…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-schulman/when-you-focus-solely-on-valuation-and-market-share-you-win-some-and/) [Dan Schulman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-schulman/) > [Real teams are much more likely to flourish if leaders aim their sights on performance results that balance the needs of customers, employees, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-katzenbach/real-teams-are-much-more-likely-to-flourish-if-leaders-aim-their/) Jon Katzenbach > [The important thing right now is that the economy still needs customers. We still need people to go out there and spend money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heather-boushey/the-important-thing-right-now-is-that-the-economy-still-needs/) [Heather Boushey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heather-boushey/) > [The number one thing small business needs is to get more customers. Spend more time serving existing customers and getting new ones. The challenge…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brad-d-smith/the-number-one-thing-small-business-needs-is-to-get-more-customers/) [Brad D. Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brad-d-smith/) > [“People and companies have needs. Those of us with sales responsibility represent businesses with potential solutions to those needs. Sometimes those people or companies…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mike-weinberg/people-and-companies-have-needs-those-of-us-with-sales-responsibility/) [Mike Weinberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mike-weinberg/) ## More by Barbara Bund > [The outside-in discipline requires that you have an explicit customer-based reason for everything you do in the marketplace. Managers need to create what I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-bund/the-outside-in-discipline-requires-that-you-have-an-explicit-customer/) [Barbara Bund](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-bund/) > [Often, very talented technical people find it extraordinarily difficult to take the viewpoint of customers, who are often ignorant about the technology and who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-bund/often-very-talented-technical-people-find-it-extraordinarily/) [Barbara Bund](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-bund/) > [Business people face increasing pressure from local and global competitors. They face customers who have more and more information about alternatives and more and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-bund/business-people-face-increasing-pressure-from-local-and-global/) [Barbara Bund](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-bund/) > [I really hope that more and more companies will become much better at achieving and maintaining outside-in. I hope that we will see more…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-bund/i-really-hope-that-more-and-more-companies-will-become-much-better-at/) [Barbara Bund](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-bund/) > [The decision-makers should communicate the customer pictures and the logic of the strategies and actions. That communication allows employees throughout the organization to implement…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barbara-bund/the-decision-makers-should-communicate-the-customer-pictures-and-the/) [Barbara Bund](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-bund/) [Explore all 6 Barbara Bund quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barbara-bund/) ## More Customer quotes > [“Start a business, not a startup”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/start-a-business-not-a-startup/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Amongst the financial Twitterati, the term 'muppets' has come to describe any client used and abused by some financial predator. I've adopted the term…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-ritholtz/amongst-the-financial-twitterati-the-term-muppets-has-come-to/) [Barry Ritholtz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-ritholtz/) > [Many early-stage entrepreneurs make one simple mistake: Describing this 'big picture' in vague concepts and words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunil-nagaraj/many-early-stage-entrepreneurs-make-one-simple-mistake-describing/) [Sunil Nagaraj](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunil-nagaraj/) > [The purpose of this book is to supply, in the form suitable for laymen, guidance in the adoption and execution of an investment policy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-graham/the-purpose-of-this-book-is-to-supply-in-the-form-suitable-for-laymen/) [Benjamin Graham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-graham/) > [Don't think OF the market. Think AS the market.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-fishman/don-t-think-of-the-market-think-as-the-market/) Michael Fishman > [If Wall Street crashes, does Main Street follow? Not necessarily.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-bernanke/if-wall-street-crashes-does-main-street-follow-not-necessarily/) [Ben Bernanke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-bernanke/) > [The exact details of how you practice value investing will vary investor to investor, but the fundamental principle of scouring the world, looking for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/whitney-tilson/the-exact-details-of-how-you-practice-value-investing-will-vary/) [Whitney Tilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/whitney-tilson/) > [The best way to hold customers is to constantly figure out how to give them more for less.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-kotler/the-best-way-to-hold-customers-is-to-constantly-figure-out-how-to/) [Philip Kotler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-kotler/) > [Perhaps the most important reason to be skeptical of government inflation numbers is that the government, like a fox campaigning to guard a hen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-schiff/perhaps-the-most-important-reason-to-be-skeptical-of-government/) [Peter Schiff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-schiff/) > [When the dollar collapses, it's not doing it in a vacuum. If the dollar loses value, it's doing so relative to some other currency.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-schiff/when-the-dollar-collapses-it-s-not-doing-it-in-a-vacuum-if-the-dollar/) [Peter Schiff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-schiff/) > [Corporations invest in sophisticated CRM, or Customer Relationship Management, programs to effectively oversee their relationship with their customers at every point during the buying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marc-ostrofsky/corporations-invest-in-sophisticated-crm-or-customer-relationship/) [Marc Ostrofsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marc-ostrofsky/) > [I believe confusion is good. Worldwide market leaders gain when there is confusion in the market.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/subhash-chandra/i-believe-confusion-is-good-worldwide-market-leaders-gain-when-there/) [Subhash Chandra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/subhash-chandra/) > [Damn inflation, full speed ahead,' Greenspan has said in both action and word. I think an investor should believe him and invest accordingly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-gross/damn-inflation-full-speed-ahead-greenspan-has-said-in-both-action-and/) [Bill Gross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-gross/) > [“When companies get big, they devote most of their care and feeding to the business that got them big. This is as it should…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-schmidt/when-companies-get-big-they-devote-most-of-their-care-and-feeding-to/) [Eric Schmidt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-schmidt/) > [“Salesmanship is usually the art of making it the prospect’s problem, the salesperson’s need or desire to earn money.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mokokoma-mokhonoana/salesmanship-is-usually-the-art-of-making-it-the-prospect-s-problem/) [Mokokoma Mokhonoana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mokokoma-mokhonoana/) [Browse all 9,257 Customer quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/customer/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Often people say they can't base their strategies on customers because customers make unreasonable requests and because customers vary too much. Such opinions reveal serious misconceptions. The truly outside-in company definitely does not try to serve all the needs of its customers. 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