In the fast-paced world of small business, one thing remains constant—understanding your customers is everything.

Whether you’re running a café in Canberra, a restaurant in Melbourne, or a food truck in Brisbane, knowing what your customers really want is the key to staying ahead of your competitors, improving your offerings, and keeping people coming back. Yet, too many small business owners are left guessing.

According to the 2024 Small Business Connections Year in Review, businesses across sectors - retail, hospitality, and professional services - have started using AI to gain insights into customer preferences and predict trends, giving them a competitive edge in an increasingly data-driven market. The report emphasises:

“This trend highlighted the need for small businesses to integrate technology into their operations not just as a means of survival, but as a key factor for growth.” - 2024 Small Business Connections Year in Review

For small hospitality businesses, this means using tools and technology to actively engage customers, test ideas, and using insights to fine-tune offerings in real time - turning feedback into a competitive advantage.

The report goes on to state that consumer behaviour has continued to evolve - there is a shift toward sustainability: locally-grown and sourced products, environmently-friendly packaging and ethical supply and production practices.

“This shift reinforced the importance of market research, customer engagement, and adapting to emerging trends to meet evolving consumer expectations.“ - 2024 Small Business Connections Year in Review

That’s exactly where Attitude-X fits in.

Attitude-X is a smart, AI-driven tool designed specifically for small hospitality businesses. It provides a simple, powerful way to listen to what your customers and staff are saying—without spreadsheets, guesswork, or analytics degrees. You’ll get structured feedback that helps you answer:

• Are we priced right?

• Do people love our new menu item?

• Is our customer experience helping—or hurting—repeat visits?

• What’s working… and what’s not?

And it doesn’t stop there. Attitude-X also taps into industry data from a variety of sources to help you understand how your business compares to others on key metrics like wage trends, turnover, and sector performance - giving you clarity and confidence in your decisions.

And the best part? You don’t need to be a data scientist. With Attitude-X, insight is delivered in plain language, with easy to understand visuals to help take action.

As Harvard Business Review puts it:

“The most successful companies don’t just collect customer data. They use it to understand human behavior.”

And Sam Walton (American retail business magnate and founder of Walmart) famously said:

“If you don’t listen to your customers, someone else will.”

If you’re tired of guessing and ready to grow, it’s time to take action.

👉 Sign up to Attitude-X today and discover what your customers are already telling you.