?????”People don’t buy what you do; they buy why you do it.” — Simon Sinek, leadership expert and author of Start with Why.

I have to agree with Simon Sinek on that. They’re buying why you’re doing something — and I would quickly add to that: they’re buying what it can do for them.

Welcome to Planet Earth. It works that way here.

People are focused on what their problems are and how they can solve those problems.

When you can show a way to do that in business that is convenient, easy, affordable, and done quickly — hey, you’re on the right track, Sparky!

To build loyalty with your customers, you want to have a purpose that is mutually embraced.

This is part of the reason we like to be in communities, tribes, that think like us and share common values.

Features alone are nice, but they don’t count when it comes to the overall purpose.

And this is where AI comes in.

Here’s what most entrepreneurs miss about Sinek’s idea:

Your WHY only works if it actually lines up with what your audience is lying awake at night worrying about.

Duh!

Knowing your WHY is not the only way to be successful — but it’s the only way to maintain lasting success and have a greater blend of innovation and flexibility.

In other words, your purpose has to stay connected to the real, changing needs of real people.

It needs to be updated and current.

That’s the part most of us have always struggled with. How do you actually know what your audience needs now?

Surveys?

Guessing?

Hoping someone leaves a comment?

Trusting, “My gut tells me…”

Well, with all due respect, Scooter, your gut can be wrong!

AI changes that game completely.

Modern AI tools can now analyze customer interactions across multiple channels.

This allows us to identify common pain points, and what the heck they really want.

The really good news for you and me is that what used to require a research team and a budget can now happen in hours.

And it can be completed with tools most of us already have access to.

Hello, ChatGPT.

Hello, Gemini.

Hello, Grok.

Your handy research team just showed up. And they work for almost nothing.

Think about what that means for your WHY.

You’re no longer operating on gut instinct alone.

That makes the “It better be accurate and evidence-based” journalist in me smile.

You can ask an AI to scan forum conversations, reviews, social comments, and customer feedback.

Then it smiles and comes back to you with a dandy little map of exactly what your audience is frustrated by, afraid of, or desperately hoping someone will solve.

Back home we’d call that — SWEET!

AI-powered sentiment analysis can process thousands of customer interactions to identify emerging issues before they escalate.

That’s not just market research.

That’s intelligence.

That’s competitive advantage.

When I went to business school, they told us that was “Over in the good column!”

When a company starts with WHY, and when their consumers share their beliefs, a sense of belonging occurs.

Yes!

As a consequence, their products symbolize those beliefs.

But here’s the modern twist:

AI helps you discover which beliefs your audience already holds, so you can speak directly to them instead of guessing.

Okay, enough theory. Here’s where we get practical and put some money in your pocket:

#1 Mine The Comments And Reviews. Feed Amazon reviews, YouTube comments, or Reddit threads from your niche into an AI tool and ask it: “What are the top frustrations people have in this space?” THAT is gold!

#2 Ask AI To Build Your Audience Avatar — From Real Data. Instead of creating a generic “ideal customer,” prompt AI with real market data and have it reflect back who your audience actually is, what they’re scared of, and what they wish existed. I think really smart scientists and researchers call that “evidence based.”

#3 Use AI To Stress-Test Your Messaging. Paste your email copy or offer into AI and ask: “Does this address a real problem, or am I just talking about my product?” Brutal, but incredibly useful.

The bottom line?

Simon Sinek was right that purpose drives loyalty.

But purpose without alignment to your audience’s actual needs is just a really good speech.

The right AI tools give you the ability to find that alignment faster, more accurately, and more affordably than ever before.

This is what we cover in our Stark Raving Entrepreneurs program. Real-world people, many just like you, are benefiting from the content, and particularly the community we have.

Here’s something that is already helping a lot of people — how you can quickly generate professional infographics with AI. Lots of people are doing this now. Check it out:

Then drop me a note and tell me — what is your “Why?” in the theme of Simon Sinek’s thinking. I read every comment and look forward to hearing from you.

BTW, I put this email together — with loads of love — myself. Yes, I regularly use AI for research and to get some “rough rough” ideas (I try to be funny and call it my “Doggie Draft” — get it???). Then I edit the daylights out of it making it my own — or as I like to say, I “Terry-ize” it. I will use AI a lot but never to represent me. Yep! When you see and hear me it is the honest-to-goodness real Terry with you. AI is an advisor, not the main player!

To Your Success,

Terry Terry@TerryBrock.com

P.S. This infographic creation capability is a smart and fast way to encapsulate your best ideas and get more people interested in what you’re doing. Check it out: https://youtu.be/Y_4UoaesFQM?si=06j_fdUo6ZBLuQiR