In today’s world, there are plenty of resources to help you do a DIY project. On at least three different occasions in the past two weeks, I’ve taken matters into my own hands with the help of the internet. First, I searched how to change my car’s cabin filter, saving a trip to the dealer to sit in a waiting room and avoiding paying 4x the cost of the filter that I had been able to easily acquire from the local parts store. Second, I learned how to substantially trim down my rose bushes. Last, I whipped together an impromptu pasta sauce, repurposing ingredients I had on hand, and saving the time it would have taken me to run to the store in order to get food on the table for the family.
That said, it is important that we recognize something in each of these instances: I was never actually alone. I referenced materials that someone else was kind enough to put online. Rather than paying a premium for someone else to do it for me, I did the task myself. As a result, I learned much more in the process. While hiring someone else to do the work for you might seem like it would save time, in many instances, it actually costs time. By fixing my own cabin filter, I saved myself the hassle of being car-less for a day while my car was at the mechanic. While it seems like it might save time, outsourcing work still requires a lot of time and coordination. In every instance when I did a DIY project, I was able to save time and money and acquire new skills along the way.
The same can be said for outsourcing at work. When we choose to outsource our work, we lose a critical amount of knowledge that we otherwise could have benefitted from. However, to DIY does not mean to do all of the work without any help. While you may be doing the work yourself, there are tools, guides, teachers, technologies, and other resources available to help you along the way. In other words, you’re doing it yourself, but you’re never doing it alone. Instead, you’re redefining how you accomplish the task(s) at hand.
At Discuss.io, we’ve set out to help you redefine how you connect and have actual conversations with consumers. Where previously you may have outsourced this work, we’re on a mission to empower brands to get to know consumers on a personal level. We’re helping all stakeholders in your marketing and insights teams decide who you want to speak with, when you want to speak with them, and enabling you to engage in that conversation through a live webcam session. When teams speak directly with consumers, they’re able to build empathy with the consumer and drive faster, better business decisions. In connecting directly and online, the time that’s required to coordinate this connection by traditional methods is substantially reduced. We’re helping you evolve the process and workflow of these “consumer connections” or informal/formal qualitative sessions, and through smart application of DIY instead… but never alone. We’re here to help you every step of the way, as a partner in a full service project or a guide as you DIY. No matter what route you choose to go, every session conducted on the Discuss.io platform is joined by a live support person. Why? We want to convey a simple message: you’re not alone, we’ve got your back!
Start a conversation with us to learn more about how you can connect and converse directly with consumers by booking a demo.
Kirk O’Connor is a Discuss.io Account Executive working with our customers in the Eastern US. You can reach out to us to learn more about Kirk and how he is enabling “agile empathy” between our clients and their consumer targets globally, by e-mailing Kirk at kirk@discuss.io or info@discuss.io.
