The Customer-First Growth Strategy | Tory Burch Foundation

When business stalls, the instinct is to do more—work longer hours, launch new products, enter new markets. Perhaps you need to pivot. Or simply invest more. 

According to systems strategist and Access Blueprint founder Reginé Gilbert, there’s a smarter move, one you can make before sinking resources into an unproven idea: pay attention to your customers. Your biggest opportunities could be hiding in plain sight. 

As part of our webinar series, Gilbert shared a framework for uncovering, interpreting and validating the customer signals most founders overlook. “Work always starts in the same place—understanding the people you’re designing for,” explained Gilbert, who’s also a professor at NYU Tandon School of Engineering. “Once you have proof, moving forward isn’t a leap of confidence. It’s the next obvious step.”

ASSESS YOUR BUSINESS.

Is the company you’re running the one you started?

Chances are you’ve drifted and may not even realize it. Or business has shifted as sales slowed. “It’s rarely dramatic,” said Gilbert. “It’s one fewer inquiry, one proposal that doesn’t close.”

All of which raises the question: are you optimizing for a customer who’s already changed? Be honest with yourself. 

TUNE OUT THE NOISE.

Founders are inundated by outside opinions. Advisors and board members chime in one ear; investors in the other. There’s the push to keep up with competitors, not to mention industry expectations and benchmarks. Gilbert herself joined multiple networking groups—only to realize that the advice she received wasn’t always relevant. 

“When something doesn’t fit, there’s pressure to stick with it anyway,” she said. “Don’t force yourself to follow someone else’s roadmap. You can take a different route and the destination will still be the same.” 

During a slump in her business, for example, Gilbert was told to be more visible, so she expanded her marketing efforts across numerous channels. It wasn’t sustainable—she was exhausted with little to show for it. What worked was focusing on the one channel where her customers were most engaged—and, in her words, “going deeper instead of wider.” 

Another case in point: recognizing when a customer relationship has run its course. “You feel it in your body—the eye roll, the deep sigh,” said Gilbert. Most people push past these reactions. Don’t. That’s data. It’s your body telling you, loud and clear, it may be time to move on.

ZOOM OUT.

Once you’ve tuned out the distractions, step back and observe. Gilbert borrowed an image from systems thinking: the dance floor and the balcony. When you’re caught up in the day-to-day, you’re down on the dance floor. “You’re answering emails, you’re serving clients, you’re solving today’s problems,” she said. You’re reacting—never quite seeing the whole room.

The move is to step onto the balcony. Same room, different vantage point. “You start seeing patterns instead of individual moments,” she explained. You stop looking at one customer and start looking at all of them at once.

Look for what repeats. What customer questions keep coming up? Which requests surprise you? Who keeps asking for your help—and who never does? They’re clues pointing to your next opportunity. That’s how Gilbert discovered a gap in her own clientele—people with disabilities and older adults—which led to her work in inclusive design and accessibility. She went on to write four books on the subject.

ASK WHY. THEN DO IT AGAIN.

You’ve spotted the patterns—now what do they mean? 

This is where Gilbert introduced the Five Whys method. First developed by Japanese industrialist Sakichi Toyoda, it’s a problem-solving technique based on a simple premise: keep asking why until you move beyond the surface answer and uncover the root cause. In this case, that means recognizing a customer’s underlying needs. 

Take Gilbert herself. As an educator, she had carved out a niche in inclusive design when she was suddenly asked to teach AI. Her first reaction: why me? After all, this wasn’t her specialty. Instead of dismissing the request outright, she ran it through the Five Whys:

1. Why was she surprised? 

Because people knew her for design and accessibility, not AI.

2. Why did they ask her anyway?

Because they trusted her to help leaders understand complicated change. 

3. Why did they need someone they trusted? 

Because AI felt unfamiliar, high pressure and easy to get wrong.

4. Why was it easy to get wrong?

Because leaders were making decisions about tools they didn’t fully comprehend.

5. Why was that something she could help with?

Because her work has always been about making complex systems understandable and usable.

The opportunity wasn’t AI training. It was helping leaders make sense of change—a skill she had all along. 

Most founders miss this. They respond to the obvious ask (e.g., teaching AI) and neglect the deeper need. Keep asking why until you grasp the true value customers see in your business.

TEST SMALL, LEARN FAST.

Put your theory to the test. The next step is determining whether your observations hold up, and the most strategic way to do that is with small experiments—emphasis on small. This reduces risk and confirms what works without wasting significant time or money. 

Gilbert, for example, launched a newsletter on Substack to expand her following. Her reasoning was sound: people were finding success there, and she had the credentials and the expertise. Except, four months in, she had only gained 40 subscribers. So she tested the newsletter on LinkedIn—the response was immediate. Lesson learned: right content, wrong audience. 

Plus, gradual adjustments help you avoid alienating existing customers. Gilbert highlighted a fashion brand that overhauled a popular pair of pants—new fit, to draw in a new audience—and watched sales plunge as longtime customers were turned off. The better bet: a limited rollout, a short trial or an A/B test. “Let go of the perfectionism,” she stressed. “Approach it with a growth mindset.” 

Feedback is just as crucial; consider it more evidence to guide you. Whether a survey or a quick call, “get customer feedback right after they use the product or service,” said Gilbert, who notes you can also offer incentives, like coupons. 

These signals, ultimately, are your strongest proof. “You don’t need funding to find your next customer. You need to notice them,” she added. “Revenue is the most powerful investor you have.”

FINALLY, TAKE ACTION.

Spoiler alert: knowing what to do doesn’t mean founders always do it. “Seeing the opportunity isn’t the hardest part,” Gilbert acknowledged. “Acting on it is.”

If you’re stuck, it helps to identify the type of obstacle because that directs you to the fix. There are two categories: confidence barriers (e.g., will customers trust me?) and practical barriers (e.g., how do I reach them?). Practical barriers can be solved through testing; don’t let noise steer you wrong. “The truth is, as founders, we do know more than we think,” said Gilbert, borrowing a line from her dance instructor. Confidence barriers are different. That insecurity may feel like a private issue, but it often requires an outside perspective and support from others. “Community is the most important thing,” she emphasized.

“Don’t forget that while you’re doubting yourself, someone else is admiring your strength,” Gilbert added. “The irony of entrepreneurship is that we’re often the last people to see how far we’ve come.”