Improving,Customer,Relationshi marketing Improving Customer Relationships: Beyond the Buzz
Automation technologies represent a fundamental aspect of any modern industry. The major types of industrial automation solutions, such as DCS, PLC, SCADA, and MES, are used on a large-scale in process and discrete industries.DCS technologie Awhile ago, I got an email from one of the "gurus" I follow and it shocked me. The gist of it was this person wanted to trade services for a household item.To say it floored me would be an understatement.What was worse was a few days later t
Customers are always a hot topic. But lately the discussions oncustomer relationships, including retention, satisfaction, andloyalty, have intensified. What is the basis for thesediscussions, and more importantly, what are leadingorganizations actually doing to improve customer relationships?Savvy organizations have begun to realize that customerrelationships are not the domain of an individual, team, ordepartment. If the accuracy of invoices, or the professionalismof installers or the cleanliness of your store or office islacking, then the relationship can suffer no matter how well thesalesperson or owner of the relationship performs. Savvyorganizations know that they can best enhance relationships withcustomers by improving customer interactions or touchpoints across the entire enterprise.Touchpoints are all of the communication, human and physicalinteractions your customers experience during their relationshiplifecycle with your organization. Whether an ad, Web site, salesperson, store or office, touchpoints are important becausecustomers form their perceptions of your organization and brandbased on their cumulative touchpoint experiences.To help improve customer relationships, there is an innovativenew movement called Customer Touchpoint Management, or CTM. CTMreflects an organizations concerted efforts to improve customerrelationships through the management or optimization of customertouchpoints. Touchpoint optimization can include fillingidentified gaps with new touchpoints, modifying under performingtouchpoints, or eliminating redundant touchpoints. This processcan include optimizing individual touchpoints, or groups ofrelated touchpoints, such as those that make up a process. However, it is not easy to get your hands around the myriad waysin which your organization touches its customers. Tounderstand and improve your touchpoints, the process of Touchpoint Mapping(TM) can be used to inventory and map yourorganizations touchpoints along the seven stages of theCustomer Relationship Lifecycle, and then identify yourcustomers needs in each stage. This process delivers insightsinto your current touchpoint performance, and helps withidentifying how your performance can be improved. An importantcomponent of CTM efforts to improve the consistency of touchpointperformance is to establish touchpoint standards, and manage tothese standards. Improving your customer relationships can deliver tangibleresults to your organization. For example, as a result ofconsistently superior touchpoint experiences with her localLexus dealer, the marketing executive of a $5 billion dollardivision of a Fortune 10 conglomerate became motivated to improvethe customer-centricity of her own organization. She recognizedthe impact of consistently positive touchpoints on her brandperception of Lexus, her purchase decision, and her resultantadvocacy of the automaker. By applying Touchpoint Mapping,Touchpoint Metrics recently helped this executives organizationdramatically improve touchpoint performance across theorganization. Both voice of customer customer satisfaction andemployee satisfaction scores have increased, and theseindications of enhanced customer-centricity are expected totranslate into added sales and profitability. Avis implemented a CTM initiative to understand and improve keycustomer touchpoints. As result, Avis gained market share in keytravel markets and became a leader in customer loyalty andsatisfaction as measured by Brand Keys and JD Powers. Both of these companies, along with other forward thinkingorganizations, are applying the concepts of Customer TouchpointManagement to improve customer relationships, touchpoint bytouchpoint. The benefits are powerful, creating happiercustomers and employees, and improving the financial metricsthat create happier owners.
Improving,Customer,Relationshi