The #1 Most Important Question to Ask Consumers | Seth Waite, Schaefer

On this episode, we’re joined by Seth Waite, Partner at Schaefer, the buyer psychology firm that helps brands understand why people actually buy. Seth has spent his career building, advising, and investing in businesses at the intersection of CPG, ecommerce, and analytics, with a deep focus on turning consumer insight into commercial clarity.Seth breaks down how Schaefer approaches buyer research, why brands routinely misdiagnose demand, and the lies teams tell themselves about customer behavior. He introduces the single highest-leverage question a brand can ask to uncover true motivation and walks through Schaefer’s core frameworks, including the Kingpin Strategy and the Why People Buy Pyramid.We also get into the Marketing Efficiency Paradox, why functional benefits alone rarely create durable advantage, and how brands accidentally make shoppers do the work through over-messaging and feature overload. Seth brings the theory to life with real-world examples, from kale at Pizza Hut buffets to what French’s Mustard teaches us about focus, meaning, and growth across DTC and retail.---------------Episode Highlights:🧠 How Schaefer studies buyer psychology❌ The lies brands tell themselves about why customers buy❓ The highest-leverage question in consumer research🎳 The Kingpin Strategy and why focus beats expansion📉 The Marketing Efficiency Paradox🔺 The Why People Buy Pyramid🥬 Kale at Pizza Hut buffets and what it proves🛒 Why brands shouldn’t make shoppers do the work🟡 Lessons from French’s Mustard🏬 DTC vs. retail: what actually changes📦 Why “functional” is rarely enough🔮 Trends and brands Seth is watching---------------Table of Contents:00:00 - Intro00:47 - Schaefer breakdown07:08 - Lies that brands tell themselves about why customers buy09:20 - The highest leverage question a brand can ask13:11 - The Kingpin Strategy17:18 - The Marketing Efficiency Paradox19:58 - The Why People Buy Pyramid28:54 - Kale at Pizza Hut buffets and beyond30:31 - Don’t make shoppers do the work33:25 - What we can learn from French’s Mustard37:42 - DTC vs Retail42:43 - Functional this, functional that45:00 - Brands and trends Seth is watching---------------Links:Schaefer - https://schaefer.co/Why People Buy - https://whypeoplebuy.com/Follow Seth on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/sethwaiteFollow me on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/adam-martin-steinberg/For help with CPG production design - packaging and label design, product renders, POS assets, retail media assets, quick-turn sales and marketing assets and all the other work that bogs down creative teams - check out KitPrint.Shout out to my friends over at Glimpse, the go-to partner for automating retail-related back-office operations and unlocking margin trapped in invalid fees and manual processes.Are you in the market for a new flexible packaging partner? Check out HD Packaging. Third-generation, family-owned and built for the needs of category leaders like Newman’s Own and A Dozen Cousins. Faster launches, lower costs, and no artwork fees.