Requirements are those service or product characteristics that the customer requires in order to satisfy their needs. When the business fails to meet these requirements, the customer will not be satisfied. The result is a lost business opportunity. The analysis of these requirements will eventually lead us to customer critical to quality (CTQ) issues.

On the other hand, delighters are those aspects of a product or service that delight the customer when present, but are not required. For example, hotel customers did not expect a free continental breakfast in the past. By providing customers with this service, some hotel chains were able to gain a competitive advantage.

This practice leads to customer expectation. Once exposed to a delighter, the customer can, and usually does, come to require these delighters. In other words, the delighter becomes a requirement. In addition, as is typical with customer satisfaction issues, requirements tend to escalate. For example, where customers were once delighted with a free continental breakfast selection of donuts, juice and coffee, some are now expecting prepared foods.

Finally, customer requirements tend to increase in number and complexity. Once a requirement gets set in a customer’s mind, they do not typically to go away. For this reason, businesses need to plan the rollout of delighters and measure their impact. There is no rest for the business that wishes to gain and keep market share.