“Huh?! Gusto mong maging Pinoy ulit? Baket?! Sigurado ka??”

Picture this: My aunt, a Canadian citizen, holder of one of the world’s most powerful passports, sent a help signal.

“Help me become a dual citizen.”

Nope, not the Canadian and senior citizen type of joke.

She wanted to become a Canadian and a Filipino citizen.

Dual citizenship.

I thought she lost her mind.

But then came the marketing lesson I didn’t know I needed.

Prior to her asking our help, I didn’t know anything about immigration concerns.

Until I did what every good marketer should do: I probed.

I listened.

I learned.

Turns out, my aunt wasn’t just feeling nostalgic.

She had practical reasons that I’d never considered:

• Senior citizen benefits (to be honest, this is superficial)
  
• Freedom to open bank accounts (big deal)
  
• Property ownership rights (big deal)
  
• No more overstaying penalties (big deal. Pandemic taught her this one!)
  

Mind. Blown. to me.

Here I was, making assumptions about her motivations.

When the reality was far more practical and thought-out than I’d imagined.

Three months and countless papers later, I watched her take her oath as a Filipino citizen.

Why? Because she specifically asked me to be there. (Another lesson in itself!)

Marketers, take note: Sometimes what we think our customers want isn’t even close to their actual needs.

The key? Just ask.

Then listen. Really listen.