--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: You‘ve got to start with the customer…" description: "\"You‘ve got to start with the customer experience and work back toward the technology - not the other way around.\" — Steve Jobs" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/683/steve-jobs-307_customer_you-ve-got-to-start-with-the-customer-ex_750249.jpg" --- # You‘ve got to start with the customer experience and work… ![“You‘ve got to start with the customer experience and work back toward the technology - not the other way around.” quote by Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/683/steve-jobs-307_customer_you-ve-got-to-start-with-the-customer-ex_750249.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/683/steve-jobs-307_customer_you-ve-got-to-start-with-the-customer-ex_750249.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/683/steve-jobs-307_customer_you-ve-got-to-start-with-the-customer-ex_750249.jpg) > “You‘ve got to start with the customer experience and work back toward the technology - not the other way around.” [Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Focus on user experience first, then develop technology that serves that experience. **In simple terms:** Put customers first, then build tech. Key Takeaway Design with the user in mind. Themes customer focus design thinking innovation Mood inspirational pragmatic Type business leadership When to use this quote - product development - UX research - marketing strategy Key Concepts human-centered design service design Questions to Reflect On - What user need drives your next product? - How do you balance user desires with technical limits? A Different Perspective Neglecting technical feasibility can stall progress. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Customer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/customer/) [Customer experience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/customer-experience/) [Experience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/experience/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Inspiring customer service](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspiring-customer-service/) [Technology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/technology/) ## Related quotes > [“You’ve got to start with the customer experience and work back toward the technology, not the other way around. —STEVE JOBS”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/darlene-price/you-ve-got-to-start-with-the-customer-experience-and-work-back-toward-2/) Darlene Price > [You've got to start with the customer experience and work backwards to the technology. You can't start with the technology and try to figure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/you-ve-got-to-start-with-the-customer-experience-and-work-backwards/) [Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/) > [Get closer than ever to your customers. So close that you tell them what they need well before they realize it themselves](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/get-closer-than-ever-to-your-customers-so-close-that-you-tell-them/) [Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/) > [Customers don't always know what they want. The decline in coffee-drinking was due to the fact that most of the coffee people bought was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-schultz/customers-don-t-always-know-what-they-want-the-decline-in-coffee/) [Howard Schultz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-schultz/) > [The complaining customer represents a huge opportunity for more business.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zig-ziglar/the-complaining-customer-represents-a-huge-opportunity-for-more/) [Zig Ziglar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zig-ziglar/) > [The single most important thing is to make people happy. If you are making people happy, as a side effect, they will be happy…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/derek-sivers/the-single-most-important-thing-is-to-make-people-happy-if-you-are/) [Derek Sivers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/derek-sivers/) > [The longer you wait, the harder it is to provide outstanding customer service.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-davidow/the-longer-you-wait-the-harder-it-is-to-provide-outstanding-customer/) Bill Davidow > [There is only one boss. The customer...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-walton/there-is-only-one-boss-the-customer/) [Sam Walton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-walton/) > [Make the customer the hero of your brand's story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-mainwaring/make-the-customer-the-hero-of-your-brand-s-story/) [Simon Mainwaring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-mainwaring/) > [Customer service is not a department, it's everyone's job.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-blanchard/customer-service-is-not-a-department-it-s-everyone-s-job/) [Ken Blanchard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-blanchard/) > [A customer is the most important visitor on our premises, he is not dependent on us. We are dependent on him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/a-customer-is-the-most-important-visitor-on-our-premises-he-is-not/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [Customers don't expect you to be perfect. They do expect you to fix things when they go wrong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-porter/customers-don-t-expect-you-to-be-perfect-they-do-expect-you-to-fix/) Don Porter > [Revolve your world around the customer and more customers will revolve around you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heather-williams/revolve-your-world-around-the-customer-and-more-customers-will/) Heather Williams > [There is a spiritual aspect to our lives - when we give, we receive-when a business does something good for somebody, that somebody feels…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-cohen/there-is-a-spiritual-aspect-to-our-lives-when-we-give-we-receive-when/) [Ben Cohen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-cohen/) > [All the businesses from the beginning of history have struggled with product development (assuming there is a market, doing the market testing and so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-tracy/all-the-businesses-from-the-beginning-of-history-have-struggled-with/) [Brian Tracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-tracy/) ## More by Steve Jobs > [Who wants a stylus. You have to get em and put em away, and you lose em. Yuck. Nobody wants a stylus.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/who-wants-a-stylus-you-have-to-get-em-and-put-em-away-and-you-lose-em/) [Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/) > [The reason that Apple is able to create products like iPad is because we always try to be at the intersection of technology and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/the-reason-that-apple-is-able-to-create-products-like-ipad-is-because/) [Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/) > [I admire Mark Zuckerberg... for not selling out, for wanting to make a company. I admire that a lot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/i-admire-mark-zuckerberg-for-not-selling-out-for-wanting-to-make-a/) [Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/) > [If you want to hire great people and have them stay, you have to be run by ideas, not hierarchy. The best ideas have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/if-you-want-to-hire-great-people-and-have-them-stay-you-have-to-be/) [Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/) > [Everything around you that you call life was made up by people that were no smarter than you and you can change it, you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/everything-around-you-that-you-call-life-was-made-up-by-people-that/) [Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/) > [“Innovation is not about saying yes to everything. It's about saying NO to all but the most crucial features.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/innovation-is-not-about-saying-yes-to-everything-it-s-about-saying-no/) [Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/) > [I have always said if there ever came a day when I could no longer meet my duties and expectations as Apple's CEO, I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/i-have-always-said-if-there-ever-came-a-day-when-i-could-no-longer/) [Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/) > [When you first start off trying to solve a problem, the first solutions you come up with are very complex, and most people stop…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/when-you-first-start-off-trying-to-solve-a-problem-the-first/) [Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/) > [I'm not dismissing the value of higher education; I'm simply saying it comes at the expense of experience.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/i-m-not-dismissing-the-value-of-higher-education-i-m-simply-saying-it/) [Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/) > [“To YoYo Ma: "You playing is the best argument I've ever heard for the existence of God, because I don't really believe a human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/to-yoyo-ma-you-playing-is-the-best-argument-i-ve-ever-heard-for-the/) [Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/) > [The most important thing is a person. A person who incites your curiosity and feeds your curiosity; and machines cannot do that in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/the-most-important-thing-is-a-person-a-person-who-incites-your/) [Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/) > [The tragedy is that Dell didn't win it - we lost it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/the-tragedy-is-that-dell-didn-t-win-it-we-lost-it/) [Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/) > [“I think great artists and great engineers are similar, in that they both have a desire to express themselves. In fact some of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/i-think-great-artists-and-great-engineers-are-similar-in-that-they/) [Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/) > [It's rare that you see an artist in his 30s or 40s able to really contribute something amazing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/it-s-rare-that-you-see-an-artist-in-his-30s-or-40s-able-to-really/) [Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/) > [We're going to be able to ask our computers to monitor things for us, and when certain conditions happen, are triggered, the computers will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/we-re-going-to-be-able-to-ask-our-computers-to-monitor-things-for-us/) [Steve Jobs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/) [Explore all 695 Steve Jobs quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/) ## 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. 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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": "You‘ve got to start with the customer experience and work back toward the technology - not the other way around.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Steve Jobs" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/you-ve-got-to-start-with-the-customer-experience-and-work-back-toward/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Customer" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/you-ve-got-to-start-with-the-customer-experience-and-work-back-toward/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/683/steve-jobs-307_customer_you-ve-got-to-start-with-the-customer-ex_750249.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/683/steve-jobs-307_customer_you-ve-got-to-start-with-the-customer-ex_750249.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/683/steve-jobs-307_customer_you-ve-got-to-start-with-the-customer-ex_750249.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“You‘ve got to start with the customer experience and work back toward the technology - not the other way…” — Steve Jobs", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Steve Jobs", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-jobs/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "You‘ve got to start with the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/you-ve-got-to-start-with-the-customer-experience-and-work-back-toward/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-jobs/you-ve-got-to-start-with-the-customer-experience-and-work-back-toward/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```