Marketing "is the whole business seen...from the customer's point of view," the legendary management consultant Peter Drucker wrote in his The Practice of Management. Drucker also noted that profit is not the goal of business: Profit is a byproduct of organizations' doing a good job of delivering what customers want.

Those insights should resonate with all CMOs who want to have their marketing teams be more customer-focused.

But how do you really become customer-focused?

In theory, it's easy. Simply gather and process customer information, segment, focus on target segments, understand customer perceptions, act on customer information, and know when and how to build customer relationships.

So, why is being customer-focused so hard for many companies?

It takes time and discipline. It sometimes costs a lot of money. And it requires skills to listen carefully to customers. In short, it's hard work.

Is there a downside to being more customer-focused? Not really: Customer-focused companies are more likely to retain and attract customers.

Now, these days many companies believe that Big Data will give them all the customer insights they need. But Big Data merely shows behavior—not motivation, long-term needs, or customers' perception of your company versus your competitors.

So, for now, forget about Big Data and focus on customers. Here are a couple of ways to get started right now:

1. Run focus groups. Watch what customers (and even noncustomers) do and do not do. Ask the right questions (e.g., seek out customer "tradeoffs"—which benefits customers are willing to trade for other benefits. For example, do they care more about price and are willing to trade off performance to get a good price? This approach prevents participants from getting away with using general words—like "value," "quality," and "performance"—when characterizing your product or service). Have them play with your product and see where they get stuck.
   
   Regularly talking to real customers, face to face, is the easiest way to become customer-focused.
   
   
2. Conduct surveys. You can use online survey tools (SurveyMonkey, Google Forms, Typeform, etc.) to create simple yet impactful surveys. Survey results provide valuable information about your customers' attitudes toward your brand, product features, pricing, and overall satisfaction levels.

As next steps, focus on the following to become—and stay—a customer-focused company.

1. Improve customer retention. Retaining your loyal customers is critical for maintaining long-term growth and success.

Offering exceptional customer support, providing excellent value, and keeping up with industry trends can all contribute to higher customer retention rates.