Start here to go viral

Written By Ruth Hartt

"People don't want to buy a quarter-inch drill. They want a quarter-inch hole."

This adage, attributed to Theodore Levitt, is often employed to illustrate a foundational concept in sales and marketing: Consumers buy a product not for its features or specs, but for the benefits it provides—or the problem it solves.

In other words, you’ll have a better chance of success if you market what the product enables the consumer to achieve.

But if you’re trying to sell a drill, knowing your customer wants to achieve a hole won’t get you very far. Why?

Because this insight only scratches the surface of what truly drives a drill purchase. And it doesn’t make for very interesting marketing.

Understanding your audience's deepest motivations is the key to creating profoundly empathetic content. And the only way to truly understand these motivations is to delve deeper, beyond surface-level desires or needs. To sit down with real customers and ask The Five Whys.

The Five Whys

The Five Whys technique originated with Toyota Motor Corporation. Initially employed to identify the root cause of manufacturing defects, it became fundamental to their continuous improvement philosophy and problem-solving culture.

It turns out that TFW is also a powerful tool for understanding the underlying motivations behind customer behavior.

To create powerful marketing content that drives more drill purchases, you need to peel back the layers with (at least) five whys:

  • Marketer: So why did you purchase the drill?

  • Customer: I needed to make a hole in the wall.

  • Marketer: Why did you need to make a hole in the wall?

  • Customer: I wanted to hang a shelf.

  • Marketer: Why did you want to hang a shelf? What was going on in your life that made you want to hang a shelf?

  • Customer: I wanted to display family photos.
    Marketer: Why did you want to display family photos? What prompted that decision?

  • Customer: All of my children have left the nest. I really miss them, and I want to relive our happy memories.

  • Marketer: 🤯 🥹 😭 So it wasn’t really about the drill... [returns to the office and creates a tear-jerker ad that goes viral within hours]

By going beyond surface-level "whys," you’re empowered to create marketing campaigns that resonate on a deeply personal level. This kind of content (like the Chevrolet ad below) drives brand reputation and creates emotional connection.

And that’s a powerful thing.

Want to learn how to stop wasting resources on surface-level whys and start speaking to the deep motivations of your target audience? Start here and I’ll hook you up.

Ruth Hartt

Former opera singer Ruth Hartt leverages interdisciplinary insights to champion the arts, foster inclusivity, and drive change.

Currently serving as Chief of Staff at the Clayton Christensen Institute for Disruptive Innovation, Ruth previously spent nearly two decades in the arts sector as an opera singer, choral director, and music educator.

Merging 23 years of experience in the cultural and nonprofit sectors—including six years’ immersion in innovation frameworks—Ruth helps arts organizations rethink audience development and arts marketing through a customer-centric lens.

Learn more here.

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