Archive for June, 2009

60% of Fortune 1000 Will Host a Form of Online Community by 2010

Gartner research tells us that more than 60% of the Fortune 1000 will connect with customers via an Online community by the year 2010.

One key benefit of the customer community is that an organization can gain tremendous amounts of valuable information about its customer base. Such valuable data is used for campaign targeting, product development, loyalty improvement, customer interaction, customer segmentation. This wealth of data can be used for marketing, in particular, as well as an entire customer-focused organization.”

Gartner warns however that an online community has its hurdles. Gartner predicts that by 2010, more than half the companies with an online community will fail to establish effective purpose, ultimately possibly deteriorating customer relationships. To combat this, companies will have to look to new skills to better understand the needs of a connected customer.

Posted by admin on June 1st, 2009 | Email | Print |

Developing the Customer Social Network…

Company Controls

Consumer expectations have long defined the business world as a whole. Decades ago, meeting those expectations was a relatively simple process. The balance of power was clearly on the side of the company. While a consumer might bother to complain or praise the company to his or her neighbor, little could be accomplished on a mass scale, and that meant that the company literally owned all of the information necessary to hone their marketing techniques.

Even after internet marketing and sales became part of the international vocabulary, the balance of power was still very much with each and every company doing business online. Customers were suddenly offering more information than most companies could ever imagine. Every click and every search meant additional data, and consumers were wholly powerless to stop the information gathering that ruled the ecommerce world. If you wanted to shop online, you had to become part of the data collection heap. The best companies at the time made sense of the data and integrated it into their business models. Others however, had little time to understand all of it and simply shoved it under the rug for a rainy day.

Power Shift
Former Chief Scientist at Amazon Andreas Weigend, recognizes a new data revolution which he dubs as “me-business.” Customer collaboration and socialization are key components of today’s me-business world. In the “me-business” revolution, customers expect to be given access to each other through various means. Forward thinking companies have developed “systematic tools” to connect customers together such as corporate social networks. The proper design, deployment and use of corporate social networks result in keenly defined customer expectations, and those customers who are offered solid incentives contribute meaningful information to the company. There is growing evidence today that an online social network community is likely to be more helpful to the customer than a representative employed by the company.

Today as the balance of power shifts to the customer, it can also mean amazing opportunities for companies who are ready to listen and respond. Weigend states that customers now understand that the material they contribute results in value like never before, but they expect something from the business world in return. For progressive companies, development of proper incentive systems as well as a better understanding of how to address customer expectations is the key to future sales growth.

Posted by admin on June 1st, 2009 | Email | Print |