The analysis of consumer needs is a core function not only for the marketing of existing products, but also for the modification of products and services and for innovation management. The fundamental question is how the purchasing decision process takes place and what satisfaction is associated with its use. In a world of increasingly unstable consumer preferences, greater individualization of product offerings, and rapid market changes, a decisive competitive advantage for companies lies in anticipating the needs of their customers. On the one hand, this requires the use of a set of methods that make visible (articulable) and hidden needs recognizable and translate them into characteristic attributes. On the other hand, a corporate culture that wants to use this information as a basis for decision-making and suitable processes is required, with the help of which customer proximity can be developed into a continuous and cross-divisional approach.