With 2010 around the corner, businesses everywhere are gearing up to tackle a laundry list of resolutions designed to increase their bottom lines. In order to start the New Year in prosperity, businesses must look to overcome barriers that prevented them from reaching their objectives in 2009 and to set new goals that will help increase earnings in the coming year. Here are seven resolutions that businesses can adopt to help them prosper.

Continue reading "7 Business Resolutions to Adopt in 2010" »

Posted by Mila D'Antonio at 7:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

It seems that the holidays are a profitable time not just for retailers, but also for thieves who steal gift cards from the mail. Or perhaps it's not so profitable for those thieves after all--especially when a retailer like J.Crew is involved. The company's proactive approach to service saved the day, and the sale.

Continue reading "J.Crew Saves (One) Christmas" »

Posted by Ginger Conlon at 1:28 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

In the not too distant past the addage "a rising tide lifts all boats" was true for many markets. It didn't seem to matter your industry -- incredible growth and expansion meant that many firms benefited from the high economic tides that brought double- and, in some industries, triple-digit annual growth. To succeed, the management team simply needed capital and a plan to expand sales channels to achieve revenue growth. Ah, yes, it was all about the top-line revenue number, the need to increase revenue, just adding "feet to the street." We all miss those high-tide days.

Flash forward to the present. As we begin 2010 we're faced with the reality of lower tides, with less demand for the products we sell -- and, an increase in competition for the opportunities that do exist.

Continue reading "Guest Blogger Craig Nelson: Co-Creating Value With Customers Is Essential " »

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More than 75 percent of Fortune 1000 companies with an existing online presence have undertaken some form of social media for marketing or customer relations purposes, according to Gartner research director Adam Sarner. However, Sarner also believes that some 50 percent of these campaigns have been or will be classified as failures.

While it is increasingly clear that companies are incorporating social media into their overall communications strategy, questions still remain for marketers: "How do I build long-term credibility through social media?" Or more simply put, and perhaps harder to tackle, "How do I maintain the conversation?"

Continue reading "Guest Blogger Steve McAbee: The Social Media Conversation" »

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Another year has come and gone. We at 1to1 Media have seen our fair share of innovation and best practices around customer strategy. Whether its social media's impact on marketing, sales, and service, or companies finally integrating data across channels, there has been much progress in 2009 in the name of customer centricity.

Continue reading "What Was Your Favorite Customer Strategy Story of 2009?" »

Posted by Elizabeth Glagowski at 10:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

It's a week before Christmas and all through the mall
Every shopper is rushing, buying things big and small.
The items were displayed in the stores with great care
In hopes that they'd sell till the walls were quite bare.
The sales signs were hung to catch shoppers' eyes;
Few products were full-priced, even the ties.

Continue reading "A New Spin on a Classic Holiday Tale" »

Posted by Ginger Conlon at 9:39 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Most experts say you should work harder than ever during a recession, doubling your efforts both to increase your value and make up for production lost to downsizing. Likewise, many advise a similar tact in customer relationships during hard times; concentrate on keeping the customers you have since new ones are in short supply. Neither is wrong, but maybe there are better solutions.

This isn't news, but many industry-changing companies were created during past economic downturns. Microsoft, HP, GE, and FedEx are just a few of the brands delivered in a recession. These companies didn't succeed by fulfilling an existing customer need; they created innovations that customers didn't know they needed yet. The same can be said of the people behind those innovations. They were thinking outside the box, experimenting and researching during a time when fear prevents deviation from the norm.

Continue reading "Time for a Shift" »

Posted by Jeremy Nedelka at 11:07 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Not so long ago, it used to be that digital marketers didn't really comprehend the value of one-to-one marketing. I can say that because, since 1998, I have been in the thick of digital marketing, working with some of the larger brands in the nation. Even as recent as a few years ago, the relationship was all about the website. Sure, digital marketers talked about personalization. We even reflected that we listened to users' feedback, using their preferences to slightly alter the website (i.e., "Hello, Bob!"). But that's not really one-to-one marketing, is it? That's a slight improvement on mass marketing at best.

Continue reading "Guest Blogger Jeff Hilimire: You Want Customer Engagement? Forget About Your Website" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 9:25 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Dragging recyclables to the curb is no fun, especially when the bin overflows with unwanted catalogs. As the 2009 holiday winds down, I look at my stacks of duplicate catalogs from the usual suspects--Pottery Barn, Eddie Bauer, L.L. Bean, Crate & Barrel, Victoria's Secret, and Wine Enthusiast--and wonder why this cycle of recycling still continues today, with data strategies so recognized.

Continue reading "Catalog Overload: End the Cycle of Recycling" »

Posted by Mila D'Antonio at 11:06 AM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

To me, CRM has always meant one thing:
CRM is the strategy an organization uses to create profitable relationships with its customers. And when I say profitable, I mean beneficial to both company and customer.

It doesn't matter what you call it--customer relationship management, customer managed relationships, total customer management--CRM is about partnership, and the enterprises that recognize that are the ones customers tend to gravitate toward. It's also about creating a compelling customer experience; one that boost wallet share, spurs referrals, and thwarts the competition.

The challenge for organizations that want to "do" CRM is defining profitable, partnership, customer experience, and sometimes even customer. But doing so is necessary to craft a CRM strategy that will foster a sustainable competitive advantage in today's hyper-evolving marketplace.

So how do you define...

Continue reading "Let Customers Be Your Guide to Success" »

Posted by Ginger Conlon at 9:41 AM | Permalink | Comments (6) | TrackBacks (0)

The conventional wisdom of e-commerce is that customers only care about the best price. As a result, many online retailers don't consider customer loyalty an attainable goal. But according to a recent Aberdeen report, online loyalty is possible.

Continue reading "Online Shoppers Care About More Than Price" »

Posted by Elizabeth Glagowski at 11:32 AM | Permalink | Comments (5) | TrackBacks (0)

Considering the many technologies out there to help companies with their customer relationship management efforts, sometimes I wonder if CRM is real, or just a pleasant, Santa-like myth. Consider this missed opportunity:

Continue reading "Yes, Virginia, There Is CRM. Or Is There?" »

Posted by Ginger Conlon at 7:43 AM | Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBacks (0)

I just published a research report called "Consumers Expect Poor Service Experiences." The research, which was based on surveying more than 4,200 U.S. consumers, looked at consumer expectations for getting an issue resolved in 10 different areas (apparel, bank account, hotel, auto insurance policy, TV service, credit card, wireless phone plan, Internet service, computer, and health insurance policy).

It turns out that consumers don't expect much from customer service. Here are some of the findings:

Continue reading "Forrester's Bruce Temkin: Consumers Expect Poor Customer Service" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 3:09 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Immersed in customer stories, I often scratch my head when I hear about the stupid things that companies do. You would think by now with all of the discussion about the importance of delivering a quality customer experience that companies could get the basics right, but they don't. Instead, I am constantly surprised how companies sabotage their own success. Here's one example I that I recently encountered:

Continue reading "The Stupid Things That Companies Do" »

Posted by Mila D'Antonio at 11:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBacks (0)

We all know the brands: Disney, the Ritz-Carlton, Zappos.com. Unless you live under a rock, you've probably done business with at least one of these famous companies. Sure, they're renowned for their customer service, and yes, they continue to make profits when other brands are going out of business, but do you know how they deliver those world-class customer experiences? They created a corporate culture that is all-encompassing, that filters through every level of the organization and underscores every aspect of their world-class delivery of outstanding customer experiences.

Continue reading "Guest Blogger Patricia Jackson: Disney, the Ritz-Carlton, and Zappos Do It--Why Shouldn't Your Company?" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 9:32 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

"Marketing needs a complete revamping," FreshDirect Chairman and CEO Richard S. Braddock told attendees during The Conference Board's 2009 Marketing Executive Conference. "Marketing as a discipline in woefully suboptimized in the digital age."

Although it's critically important to get close to customers today, few companies are marketing and managing with the intensity possible, Braddock said. They can't adapt to today's pace--largely due to cultural obstacles within their organizations. Companies need to completely revamp their approach, he said, and harness the real-time customer knowledge and opportunities for action that the Internet allows today. "You have to rethink your business proposition online," he said.

Continue reading "Marketing Must Keep Pace With Customers" »

Posted by Ginger Conlon at 10:34 AM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

I've been getting a bunch of inquiries about the best metrics to include on a dashboard, which vendors make the best partners, and how to set up for dashboard success. These inquiries come from firms that have already made it past the first hurdle, firms that already know they need a better way to organize the masses of data and information they have that illustrate where they're successful and where they could improve.

Continue reading "Forrester's Julie Katz: New Data on Dashboards" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 1:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Whether you're a large retailer or small business, the importance of good customer service cannot be underestimated. This is especially true in a business environment that is growing increasingly more competitive.

Continue reading "The Cost of Poor Customer Service" »

Posted by Mila D'Antonio at 10:37 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

It should come as no surprise that growth in a company is often directly related to how effectively leaders and managers delegate and are able hold people accountable. The more effective the "hand off" to others, the more aligned everyone becomes and are able to work together towards the same goal. The less effective the delegation, the more likely people are to find that they're out of sync with everyone else.

Here are some tips to make the "hand off" easier for you:

Continue reading "Guest Blogger Mark Goulston, MD: How to Delegate More Effectively and Hold People Accountable" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 10:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

If you have any free time today, chances are you're perusing the Cyber Monday deals instead of checking my blog. But for those of you who have stumbled on my blog, let's talk deals. And I don't mean pricing. Free shipping and price matching have become a Cyber Monday staple at online retailers. The real differentiation comes from those e-tailers providing customer service that goes above and beyond.

Continue reading "Customer Service Stands Out on Cyber Monday" »

Posted by Elizabeth Glagowski at 9:35 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Every year during this holiday, I pause and reflect about what I am thankful for in my life. This year I am grateful for my friends, family, my job..."Jon & Kate Plus 8" going off the air.

In the spirit of giving thanks, I compiled a list of 2009 customer strategy elements for which I'm thankful.

Continue reading "5 Customer Strategies for Which I'm Thankful" »

Posted by Mila D'Antonio at 10:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

You love your customers, right? Of course you do. After all, your customers are the basis for your company's success or failure. But maybe it's not just business. Maybe you have a real commitment to the happiness of your customers. You look at someone like Tony Hsieh at Zappos, whose mission is "delivering happiness" to his customers and employees, and say to yourself, "That's just like me!" Not so fast, tiger.

Continue reading "Guest Blogger William Cusick: Why Your Best Intentions Have Nothing to Do with Customer Perception" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 9:43 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

Every year bloggers, analysts, and other experts make predictions about what we'll see in the next year. Many of them end up way off the mark, but one 2009 prediction came to fruition in a big way. Social customer strategy is on the minds of almost every company these days, from marketing and sales to customer service and even brand building.

Continue reading "2009: The Year We All Got Social" »

Posted by Elizabeth Glagowski at 9:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Okay...let's all take a deep breath. Now exhale. And for just a moment, let's get this Twitter-mania out of our system.

Don't get me wrong...I appreciate Twitter. I use Twitter. Yes, I've even tweeted and re-tweeted several times about stuff that really isn't all that important. Yet, there's a growing realization that the true value of Twitter -- the value that will make it a valuable business tool, and what it means to us as marketing professionals -- has nothing to do about Twitter's ubiquitous question: "What are you doing?"

Continue reading "Guest Blogger John K. Thompson: Think of Twitter as a Real-Time Search Engine to Discover Its True Value" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 12:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

I'm in San Francisco this week at the annual Dreamforce conference run by Salesforce.com (my third visit, and it's much bigger this year than the last two). During today's keynote, CEO Marc Benioff announced Salesforce Chatter, a product that supplements the company's service, sales, platform, and customization tools.

Continue reading "Chattering about Salesforce.com" »

Posted by Jeremy Nedelka at 3:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I recently published a report called "Sixteen Voice of the Customer Recommendations." To uncover this advice, I analyzed the 40 nominations submitted for Forrester's Voice of the Customer (VoC) Award from earlier this year. I examined responses to the question: "What lessons have you learned that would be most valuable to other firms?"

The analysis uncovered these 16 recommendations across 5 categories:

Continue reading "Forrester's Bruce Temkin: 16 Voice of the Customer Recommendations" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 1:44 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

On Monday my colleague Elizabeth Glagowski blogged about a reader's negative experience with Subway. A reader shared with her how she recently emailed Subway to suggest that the company put the tuna sandwich back on the $5 menu. Instead of accepting the customer's feedback, passing it along to the product development team, and possibly learning from the customer who eats at Subway a few times every week, the customer service rep. instead sent her a surprising reply.

Continue reading "Turn Up the Volume on Customer Listening" »

Posted by Mila D'Antonio at 10:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (8) | TrackBacks (0)

I've been having fun quoting Stephen Covey's Habit 5 from The Seven Habits of Highly Successful People in relation to Social CRM. If it's been a while since you read this classic, Habit 5 says, "Seek first to understand, then to be understood". It's a good piece of advice that many of us learned before we could read; for me, it's something that I have to relearn almost daily.

Habit 5 is real gold for Social CRM, but it is also rather counterintuitive. One of the first things we think about when we think of social-anything is how cheap and easy it is to communicate with friends and almost perfect strangers. In her book The Facebook Era Clara Shi points out that social media makes it possible to keep up with a raft of people and relationships that none of us would have time to keep up with under other circumstances.

Continue reading "Guest Blogger Denis Pombriant: Invert Your Thinking About Social CRM" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 9:18 AM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (1)

Last week I got an email from a reader who wanted to share an experience she had with Subway restaurants. Unfortunately what started out as a positive experience turned into a negative one, and Subway really missed the mark on two fronts: customer service and involving customers in the decision-making process.

Continue reading "Subway Misses the Mark on a Customer Relationship Opportunity" »

Posted by Elizabeth Glagowski at 10:24 AM | Permalink | Comments (6) | TrackBacks (0)

Earlier this week I attended The Conference Board's 2009 Marketing Executive Conference. The presentations offered plenty of food for thought. Here are a few nuggets:

Continue reading "Think About It" »

Posted by Ginger Conlon at 12:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBacks (0)

Last week I attended an event at the Yale School of Management focusing on Finding an Upside in the Downturn. Much of the public discussion around how to recover from the current economic crisis centers on cutting expenses, realigning staff, and increasing revenue through pricing. At this gathering, however, the speakers emphasized improving the customer experience, engaging with consumers through new channels, and creating a brand image.

Continue reading "An Academic Setting for a Pragmatic Exchange " »

Posted by Jeremy Nedelka at 12:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

It's nearing that time of year once again where millions of employees try to look busy at their desks, but in reality they're wasting company time by shopping for holiday gifts. Yes, Cyber Monday , the ceremonial kickoff to the online holiday shopping season, is on November, 30th.

Continue reading "Cyber Monday is Near. Is Your Live Chat Ready?" »

Posted by Mila D'Antonio at 10:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

I love Wegmans. In fact, I think I'm one of my local store's top 100 customers. At least that's what they told me when I picked up my thank-you gift certificate and gourmet olive oil last Christmas.

I use my Shopper's Club Card religiously, not just because I like saving on my rather substantial grocery bill (we eat well at Chez Les Boisson) and want to be sure to receive my gift certificate next holiday season. I also swipe because I am waiting to see what they do with all of the information that they're collecting. After all, they know how many pounds of imported cheese and picholine olives I buy in a year, how many cans of SpaghettiO's (with sliced franks, please) my kids consume, and how many cubic yards of scoopable litter my cat goes through. They can surmise that both of my kids are now out of diapers and that at least one member of my household stays at home during the work week. But aside from the yearly acknowledgement of my overall dollar investment, I've never figured out how or if they use the rest of the information they are gathering in a monumental database somewhere in upstate New York. Tesco anyone?

Continue reading "Guest Blogger Catrina Logan Boisson: Demonstrating the Value of Customer Data " »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 6:39 AM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

Many economists say the worst is over and we will soon begin a global economic recovery. It's hard to believe that now, but time will tell. And as the economy begins to recover, the steps nations will take mirror steps companies take to improve customer relationships and build long-term loyalty.

Continue reading "Customer Strategy's Impact on the Economic Recovery" »

Posted by Elizabeth Glagowski at 10:21 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Earlier this week, during his keynote at ad:tech, WPP CEO Sir Martin Sorrell presented four global business trends--and one marketing trend--executives should be watching:

Continue reading "4 Global Business Trends to Watch" »

Posted by Ginger Conlon at 10:07 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

What separates the winners and losers in social media? Why does one idea catch on while a similar one fails? Do the same principles that apply in other channels translate to social networks, blogging platforms, communities, and the like?

I don't have the answers to those questions, but I'm curious to find out what thoughts people have. Lately it seems Twitter and Facebook are the two dominant social platforms, but it wasn't so long ago that everyone was touting MySpace's 100 million members and the endless possibilities presented by SecondLife (anyone still own an island?). MySpace isn't dead yet, but many of its brethren are. What made Facebook and Twitter rise above the rest?

The answer probably involves some combination of timing, ease-of-use, usefulness in general, and building on the wave of early adopters to go mainstream. Certainly Everett Roger's diffusion of innovation theory and Geoffrey Moore's Crossing the Chasm could explain the randomness of which sites survived. If you're unfamiliar with either writer, I recommend at least a glance at Wikipedia to see if the topic piques your interest.

What do you think separates the social media leaders from the fallen? Which sites (defunct or currently operating) did/do you prefer, and why? Share your thoughts in the comments, join the discussion in our 1to1 Insiders LinkedIn group, or Tweet about it.

Posted by Jeremy Nedelka at 12:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

About 10 years ago, when Forrester was writing some of our early research on effective Web design, we noticed a pattern among leading companies. They told us they were finding it very helpful to use design personas -- models of customers based on qualitative research into real customers, but presented as vivid stories about individuals (not segment descriptions). These tools enabled them to stay focused on the needs of their most important customers when designing online experiences.

Since then, design personas have become fairly mainstream design tools in North American companies, and increasingly common in Europe and Japan -- not only for Web design, but across all channels. However, the quality of personas varies enormously from company to company. For example, I'm evaluating personas from UK interactive agencies at the moment, and although some are clearly well researched, engaging, helpful to designers, and believable, others seem to be mere stereotypes.

Continue reading "Forrester's Jonathan Browne: Assumption Personas (Handle With Care)" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 8:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

On October 22, I posted a blog titled, "The DMA Needs a Paradigm Shift," which garnered some passionate responses from readers about their frustration with the DMA needing to evolve.

Continue reading "Two New Companies Offer Innovative Solutions" »

Posted by Mila D'Antonio at 11:59 AM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

You can find the words outperform, outfox, outmaneuver, outspend, outthink in the dictionary because they describe deeply engrained habits of how we think and act. The source of sustainable competitive advantage in the 21st century, however, is such a new idea that the term has not yet entered Webster's or Oxford's. You will not find outbehave in the dictionary--not yet, anyway.

Continue reading "Guest Blogger Dov Seidman: How You Do What You Do Is the Real Competitive Advantage" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 8:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

A recent study of 101 C-level executives by Businessweek Research found that even in this down economy, long-term customer-based programs are overtaking short-term cost cutting measures as priorities for senior management.

Continue reading "The Customer Re-emerges as a Priority for the C-Suite" »

Posted by Elizabeth Glagowski at 9:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

"True marketing value lies not only in who you reach, but also in how they respond," Traci Gere told me this morning when we discussed trends and challenges in marketing measurement. "This is the 'so what' of reach. What did customers do with what they heard and learned?"

Continue reading "Taking a Measured Approach to Marketing" »

Posted by Ginger Conlon at 12:45 PM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

Any office is susceptible to an outbreak of swine flu due to the shared equipment, close quarters, and friendly contact. Fortunately, most offices can tell employees to work from home, stay home sick, or can often close down for a day or two until the illness passes. Contact centers often don't have that luxury, but they should be developing a plan in case H1N1 hits their employees.

Continue reading "Planning for Unplanned Disruptions" »

Posted by Jeremy Nedelka at 5:16 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

It's a matter of perspective: we are in a recession, or we have found ourselves within the longest and most unpredictable of sales cycles.

If you determine that we are in a recessionary environment, you cut way back, you bunker up and hunker down. You continue to ride it out, no matter how long "it" is going to take.

But if you acknowledge that business is being done -- albeit to a different rhythm than it was two years ago -- you reset to a "New Normal." The conditions of two years ago and the growth that led up to this challenging economy are gone forever. Good things will not come to those who wait for their return. On the other hand, good business will come to those who recalibrate marketing strategies and develop new models for the new normal.

Continue reading "Guest Blogger Tom Simons: Recalibrating Strategies for an "Accountability Economy"" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 3:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Until this past July, David Carroll was known in relatively small circles. As the lead singer of his band Sons of Maxwell, the Canadian traveled around the United States generally without incident. But in 2008 when United baggage employees threw his guitar from a plane and he spent the following nine months unsuccessfully getting retribution from United for his broken guitar, he ended up posting a video called "United Breaks Guitars" in July on YouTube poking fun at United's baggage handlers. Four months later, and with six million hits, United now uses the video to train its baggage employees.

Continue reading "Don't Fear Social Media" »

Posted by Mila D'Antonio at 12:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

In a world where users approach the Web with ever increasing expectations, a firm's Web site has become critical for building a company's relationship with its customers. Today, the Web site is often the first, and sometimes only, place customers interact with a company. Unfortunately, many sites offer lackluster experiences that leave an emotional void.

So how can companies create more engaging connections with their customers? That's the subject of a new Forrester Research report called "Emotional Experience Design."

Continue reading "Forrester's Ron Rogowski: Introducing Emotional Experience Design" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 12:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I'm at the Forrester Consumer Forum today in Chicago (#FCF09 on Twitter), and I'll be blogging and tweeting (@jnedelka) updates over the next couple days. I was in a presentation about Forrester's Technographics survey earlier today, and the research shows a correlation between mobile internet usage and the number of smartphone handsets available in a country.

For example, in Japan 70 percent of mobile users go online with their phone at least once a month, and 48 percent at least once a week. In the US, that number is only at 16 percent monthly but is rising steadily. As the US introduces more smartphones to market, Forrester expects that number to increase accordingly.

I've been following the new Droid phone closely, as well as the BlackBerry Storm2. I may finally relent and get a smartphone after years of avoiding the inevitable. Both are from Verizon, my carrier, and there have been rumors the next iPhone may come out on Verizon's 4G network in the near future. At least for me, Forrester's theory proves true; the more options, the more likely I am to use the mobile internet.

Posted by Jeremy Nedelka at 4:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Jim Davis, Senior Vice President and CMO of SAS, says that analytics has moved from a departmental approach owned by IT or marketing up into the executive suite. Executives now understand what analytics can do for their business.

He unveiled what he defines as the eight levels of analytics:

Continue reading "8 Levels of Analytics " »

Posted by Elizabeth Glagowski at 9:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Over the past decade I've seen a lot of changes in social media. Blogging, when it finally became more well-known, went from being the scourge of modern writing to being the future of most every news publication (and much more). Social networks shifted past the gee-whiz, kids-do-it of MySpace and into the 750,000-new-users-a-day of Facebook, and the crazy micro-world of Twitter. YouTube serves more than 13 billion videos a day (fewer and fewer of which are dogs on skateboards). And yet, we're only at the beginning, as individuals and organizations learn how to best use these tools for their own goals. Here are some loose predictions of what comes next in social media:

Continue reading "Guest Blogger Chris Brogan: The Next Wave in Social Media " »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 6:09 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Earlier this month I attended the ExactTarget user conference, where numerous email and integrated communications experts shared their perspectives on the industry. The conference started the day after the Wall Street Journal published a piece in which the author explained how email is being overtaken by social media and mobile communications. Needless to say, there weren't many people at the show who agreed with that hypothesis.

Continue reading "Long Live Email Marketing...for Now" »

Posted by Elizabeth Glagowski at 9:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I have a new personal email address, and I'm slowly migrating my email newsletter subscriptions and the like from the old to the new address. What surprised me during the process is this: Numerous companies--even some with progressive offerings like selecting your preferred frequency--don't offer a way to change your email address in their system. You have to unsubscribe, then resubscribe with your new address.

Continue reading "Don't You Want Me to Stay?" »

Posted by Ginger Conlon at 3:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBacks (0)

Jetting across the Pacific now, after a great week with some very smart CMO types in Sydney and Melbourne. The Aussies know that with just over 20 million people in the whole country, a company needs to make the most of every customer experience. Here's how one of them is doing it:

Continue reading "Tweeting in Real Real Time " »

Posted by Martha Rogers at 9:54 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

Information about us--our actions, our activities, our current "status," and the like--are increasingly public, shared...usually willingly...on sites such as Facebook and Twitter. However, a number of current trends and issues highlight that we, as customers, may want to take a more active role in managing those bits of social information (and much, much more). As more of our information moves into the Network, do we really know who is looking after it on our behalf?

Continue reading "Guest Blogger Christopher Carfi: Should Customers Control Their Own Information?" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 3:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

Last week, prior to DMA09, Julian Beresford, owner of Beresford Research and a member of our 1to1 Insider's Group on LinkedIn, posed a question: Is the DMA (Direct Marketing Association) still relevant? In an age where marketers are turning to social media to reach out to the customer and leverage the digital channels to dynamically communicate with clients, it's a valid question. After just returning from the annual conference in San Diego, I can answer him. The answer is "yes" and "no."

Continue reading "The DMA Needs a Paradigm Shift" »

Posted by Mila D'Antonio at 9:07 AM | Permalink | Comments (5) | TrackBacks (0)

A recent New York Times article raised serious issues about the viability of one-to-one marketing. Citing a survey of consumer attitudes commissioned by professors at the University of Pennsylvania and the University of California, Berkeley, the article reports that a clear majority of Americans (66%) reject the whole idea of tailored ads and personalized news, even without being told how their own interests are being tracked online.

But this survey is deeply flawed and its authors' conclusions are biased (they're professors, they should know better). This would be an irrelevant non-issue, not worth my time and trouble (or yours), except for the possibility that a survey like this could inflame public opinion enough to encourage some sort of ham-handed government regulation of online advertising and marketing. Other bloggers are already worried about this.

Continue reading "Do Consumers Really Want One-to-One Marketing?" »

Posted by Don Peppers at 2:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (6) | TrackBacks (0)

According to Amazon's former Chief Scientist, individuals will generate more data in 2009 than in the combined history of mankind. Think about the implications for your marketing and overall business. On the one hand, it is possible to know more about every prospect and customer, and to improve their customer experience based on what you know about them. On the other hand, it's very easy to drown in the exponentially growing stream of data. Customer Intelligence (CI) professionals sit at the nexus of this data explosion, while also dealing with tectonic shifts in customer behavior, and an increased demand for marketing accountability.

Continue reading "Forrester's Dave Frankland: The Intelligent Approach to Customer Intelligence" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 2:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

With all of today's financial pressures, everyone wants to show return on investment. The problem is, not everything has an easily measured ROI. More specifically, since ROI is actually a financial measure, sometimes--many times--what we really need to be satisfied with is simply measureable results. Consider my recent conference experience:

Continue reading "Guest Blogger Todd M. Hanson: Redefining ROI" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 10:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Have you ever seen those Calvin & Hobbes decals (usually on pick-up trucks) of Calvin, um, relieving himself, on a competitor's truck logo? While not the most mature of stickers, it shows that some people are fiercely loyal to their automakers. However, the epic collapse of the big three automakers -- the closing of dealerships, the shuttering or sale of popular brands -- may cause that loyalty to wane. Both automakers and dealers need to re-focus their efforts around customers if they want to sell any more Calvin stickers in the future.

Continue reading "Can Automakers Rebuild Customer Loyalty?" »

Posted by Elizabeth Glagowski at 10:20 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

If you're reading this blog, then the likelihood is quite high that your goal, and your company's goal, is to deliver a consistently outstanding customer experience. A heady goal considering that delivering even a consistently positive customer experience is challenging enough--frontline employees are often a wildcard due to varying levels of training, often misaligned compensation, or simply having a bad day; shipping or inventory issues may arise that make promised deliveries evaporate like morning mist; products may have an unexpected glitch (or a winning season that ends in the basement). The list goes on.

Continue reading "When Customers Make Their Own Bad Customer Experience" »

Posted by Ginger Conlon at 8:11 AM | Permalink | Comments (7) | TrackBacks (0)

Most new technology will have a certain segment of the population screaming about government or corporate takeover, running for a shack in the woods in fear. Such people, who live "off the grid," could soon be joined by many others if utility companies have their way. Not that paranoia about big brother will go mainstream, but that more people may literally choose to live off the power grid.

Continue reading "Privacy versus Savings and Convenience" »

Posted by Jeremy Nedelka at 3:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

If you haven't read my colleague Lisa Bradner's latest report, "Adaptive Brand Marketing," I strongly encourage you to do so. It is focused on the changing world of brand management, but its implications and principles go way beyond. Lisa points out that organizations are ill-equipped to handle the world of "always on" marketing in the digital age, and explains that, to remain relevant, marketing leaders will embrace Adaptive Brand Marketing. This is an approach in which marketers respond quickly to their environment to align consumer and brand goals and maximize return on brand equity.

Continue reading "Forrester's Dave Frankland: Intelligence Is Everything, and It Can Come From Anywhere" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 11:48 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

As cold and flu season is upon us, many of us will be reaching for tissue, or Kleenex as most Americans refer to them. Our universal use of this term dates back to the 1930's when Kimberly-Clark began marketing the slogan "Don't carry a cold in your pocket" and Kleenex's utilization as a disposable handkerchief took hold. Today, the term "Kleenex" has been genericized and many dictionaries include definitions for Kleenex in their publications.

Continue reading "Purell is the New Kleenex" »

Posted by Mila D'Antonio at 11:19 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

The other day I walked into a new-business presentation with seven or eight committee people; some I knew and some were total strangers, and my assignment was to convince them that we were the company they should hire to solve their marketing challenges. Bonding can be as important as demonstrating your strategic thinking. One of my favorite ad industry gurus called it "dating."

Continue reading "Guest Blogger Ralph Heath: Shake or Fist Bump? What's a Company to Do?" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 6:20 AM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

What will the future of marketing look like? Not like the past, that's for sure. Social media and consumer control aren't just fads. Marketers need to embrace this truth and contribute to the conversation, not try to own it. The best way to do that is to understand your customers, be relevant with your information and branding, and measure the results. These are the tenets of direct marketing, which will only grown in importance in the future.

Direct marketing experts share their predictions about the industry's future in the following video. Do you agree? Where are we headed?

Posted by Elizabeth Glagowski at 9:45 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

One concern some executives have today is how open their organization should be online with social networking or online communities. Michael Maoz, a vice president and distinguished analyst with Gartner, offers five suggestions and one caveat regarding how to be good at "openness."

Continue reading "Open for Business" »

Posted by Ginger Conlon at 11:33 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Social media has changed the way we discover, read, and share information and is changing the way businesses connect with customers, partners, peers, and even the competition. Blogs, wikis, discussion forums, and social networks allow anyone to broadcast information and ideas quickly and easily.

Much of the early success in social media comes from B2C companies. Searching the phrase "social media case study" online returns several B2C examples, but very few from B2B companies. The dichotomy is striking, but one thing is clear: With the rapid growth and popularity of social media, B2B companies that choose to ignore the opportunity to connect with customers and prospects risk being overtaken by their competitors and losing market share.

Continue reading "Guest Blogger Steve McAbee: Social Media Is Too Powerful for B2B Companies to Ignore" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 4:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (5) | TrackBacks (0)

***Update (6:45PM): Returned home to a message from Lowe's saying the carpet is ready and I can pick it up....good ending to an otherwise negative story***

Today the brand that's in my doghouse is Lowe's. For whatever reason, every week I have a new customer service issue that isn't resolved properly. Maybe it's just because I write about the industry and I'm more sensitive, but my theory is that workers are less motivated nowadays to give good customer service because of the economy.

Continue reading "Don't Make Promises You Don't Intend to Keep" »

Posted by Jeremy Nedelka at 2:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

I'm now about four months into my "Twitter Experiment," and I can confirm that my initial skepticism was entirely misplaced. I have been intrigued, delighted, inspired, and educated by micro-blogging in ways I could never have guessed before. I remember vividly the day my ad agency had its first email system installed. By the next week, it seemed to me that the sheer velocity of thinking and transacting had radically increased. And I have the same feeling now about my own intellectual growth. I'm learning more, faster, and more conveniently than ever before.

Continue reading "Virtual Colleagues" »

Posted by Don Peppers at 4:29 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

We've been hearing the same thing for quite some time from executives: that customer experience is important. But only recently with the downturn of the economy, executives are showing that they're taking experience seriously.

At a customer experience roundtable last night hosted by Tealeaf and held at the Gramercy Park Tavern, executives from Tealeaf and Harris Interactive revealed the findings of a new study they jointly conducted this past summer. The 5th annual Survey of Online Consumer Behavior, which interviewed 2,188 U.S. adults, shows a decrease in the number of consumers who say they experience problems when conducting online transactions.

Continue reading "Online Consumer Behavior Improves, but Still Needs Work" »

Posted by Mila D'Antonio at 2:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

David Rubenstein, cofounder and managing director of The Carlyle Group, spoke at The World Business Forum today about the economic crisis. He offered these tips for succeeding in the future:

Continue reading "David Rubenstein Offers Advice for Future Success" »

Posted by Mila D'Antonio at 4:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Bill Conaty, 40-year HR veteran at GE, spoke at the World Business Forum about his "lessons learned" in leadership development.

Continue reading "Bill Conaty's "Lessons Learned" About Leadership" »

Posted by Mila D'Antonio at 10:53 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

You can follow me live today at the World Business Forum at twitter.com/miladantonio

Posted by Mila D'Antonio at 9:59 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I'm attending the World Business Forum today in New York City and will be blogging throughout the day about the various speakers, including T Boone Pickens and George Lucas, have to say about leadership, innovation, and the economy.

Bill George, author of The 7 Lessons for Leading in Crisis, is currently speaking about the current economic crisis and how many leaders focs on short-termism. Here, he offers his "7 lessons."

Continue reading "The World Business Forum Kicks Off Today" »

Posted by Mila D'Antonio at 9:39 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

You don't want to catch it. You certainly don't want to spread it. And if employees contract it, it can have a devastating effect on your company's bottom line.

What is it? It's resentment flu and it's epidemic in businesses across the country. Surprised? Even though your employees are still working, their first thoughts may not be on how lucky they are to have a job. With financial pressures on businesses higher than ever, taking good care of your employees can help keep them from catching a bad case of full-bore resentment -- and damaging your firm's customer experience as a result.

Continue reading "Guest Bloggers Marilyn Suttle and Lori Jo Vest: Inoculate Your Employees with Internal Customer Service" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 7:16 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

For marketing professionals, October means more than pumpkins and candy corn. It's the month of the DMA annual conference, one of the biggest marketing events of the year. As we prepare for the conference, 1to1 Media has focused many of our articles and resources on the topic of direct marketing. It's an industry in transition, but just as important as ever to marketing strategy.

Continue reading "October is Direct Marketing Month" »

Posted by Elizabeth Glagowski at 9:32 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Marketing has seen tremendous change over the past five to 10 years. Take a closer look at direct and digital marketing specifically and you'll see a clear shift. Marketers are beginning to combine the opportunities made possible by the principles and disciplines of direct marketing with the accountability and engagement that are possible with digital marketing. We call this shift iDirect - where the blurring of the lines between these disciplines is being used to garner greater customer engagement that leads to measurable and dramatic gains in ROI.

Continue reading "Guest Blogger Jeff Hilimire: Move Marketing Forward by Agreeing to Adapt" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 9:11 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I was researching a story this week for our 1to1 Weekly newsletter about how paid and organic search work together, trying to find studies that supported a blended approach to SEO/SEM (search engine optimization and search engine marketing). I was surprised by how little independent research has been done in this area, considering the rising cost of keywords and the recent focus on optimizing website content for search.

Continue reading "Big Question, Few Answers" »

Posted by Jeremy Nedelka at 12:23 PM | Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBacks (0)

While Ben Bernanke has been raising our hopes that the recession is "very likely over," we're noticing a change in the conversations that we're having with marketers and vendors alike. These conversations seem to reflect that the economy is getting stronger, purse strings are loosening, there's greater talk of RFPs and vendor evaluations -- this week alone, our team had inquiries about vendor selection with marketers in insurance, retail (and it's almost Q4!), travel, pharmaceutical, and telecom.

So, while we're delighted that the rebound might be real, we also hope that marketers pay attention to the lessons from a little over a year ago. Although it's easy to point the finger at the Wall Street rogues, plenty of firms took on too much risk or paid more attention to acquiring new customers than focusing on the ones they had.

Continue reading "Forrester's Dave Frankland: Are You Ready for the Economic Rebound?" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 12:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

At 1to1, we know the tremendous amount of time and money companies spend pursuing prospects, and on average only 20 to 40 percent of leads convert. In this economy, organizations need to implement lead management strategies and solutions with proven ROI, actionable analytics, real-time results, and scalability.

Continue reading "The B2B Lead Management Automation Market Faces Uphill Battle" »

Posted by Mila D'Antonio at 11:19 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

Beloved companies decide differently than everybody else. Acutely aware of how their every action impacts how customers feel and respond to them, they take the time to make purposeful decisions about the contacts they have with customers.

First and foremost, the beloved companies decided to believe. They believe their customers and they believe their employees. And they practice this first by suspending cynicism. Trust and belief are cornerstones of their relationships. By deciding to trust customers, they are freed from extra rules policies and layers of bureaucracy that create a barrier between them and their customers. And by deciding to believe that employees can and will do the right thing, second guessing, reviewing every action, and the diminishing ability of employees to think on their feet is replaced with shared energy, ideas, and a desire to stick around.

Continue reading "Guest Blogger Jeanne Bliss: Decide to Believe -- The First Decision of Beloved and Prosperous Companies" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 6:54 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

We here at 1to1 Media often discuss the importance of trust in the business-customer relationship. Companies that can create a trust-based relationship will see value over the long term. In financial services these days, however, it's a tricky situation. Consumers in general are wary of banks, insurance companies, and other financial services firms after living through bailouts, sub-prime chaos, and shuttered branches. Even the so-called "good guys" have been lumped into the bunch, and it's hard to overcome the untrustworthy reputation. But two recent articles from 1to1 Media offer financial services companies tips to overcome their negative situations.

Continue reading "Trust Is Worth $40 Billion" »

Posted by Elizabeth Glagowski at 10:03 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Even though customer experience is viewed as a seminal force that will eventually drive contact center ops, there are far too many opinions in the market on how to realize it. Should customer experience be measured as first contact resolution in the center, should it be measured through well-oiled service factors like handle and wait times, or do we really need to look deeper? I was in conversation with a veteran ops leader and we poked through a few perspectives.

Continue reading "Guest Blogger Badri Srinivasan: Seeing Through Your Customer's Looking Glass" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 4:30 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

Mobile devices today are always on and always on hand, so how does an organization get attention on its customers' smart phones? Gartner research vice president Gene Alvarez asked and answered that question during his presentation on e-commerce in a wireless world during the recent Gartner CRM Summit.

According to Alvarez, by 2012, 30 percent of smart phone users will browse the Web to shop, resulting in 3 percent of the smart phone population conducting e-commerce transactions using their phones. This doesn't mean downloading ringtones. Alvarez is referring to products purchased using a mobile device that previously would have been purchased using a personal computer. He also noted that there will be significant growth in mobile "pre-tailing," or researching and evaluating products online using a mobile device before purchasing through another channel.

Continue reading "Mobile E-Commerce in Your Hands" »

Posted by Ginger Conlon at 10:48 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The impact on customer experience from social media technologies is not un-measureable. Difficult to measure, yes, but not impossible. Recently we've finally seen data that supports using customer communities, blogs, and social networks to improve customer service and tie the improvements to bottom-line metrics. Now the question is becoming "do you measure social media ROI" rather than "can you measure social media ROI," and research suggests most companies don't.

Continue reading "Can't Measure, or Don't Measure?" »

Posted by Jeremy Nedelka at 11:55 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

I just got off the phone with a customer service representative from Delta, and couldn't help but shake my head in disbelief.

I called to cancel a reservation and was completely put off by the fact that there is a $150 "penalty" to change my ticket. That's a story within itself. The reason I was surprised was this: Even though I was clearly annoyed by the absurd penalty, the agent made not one, but two cross-sell offers. Two!

Continue reading "Come On, Managers, Drop the Poorly Timed Cross-Sell" »

Posted by Ginger Conlon at 11:37 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The customer experience team at Forrester is currently updating our Web site review methodology, which will get us to Version 8. I'll write more about that in a subsequent post but I wanted to get it on the table (or in the blogosphere - pick your metaphor) by way of explaining why we've been looking at which version of what browser to use as our default for conducting research.

In trying to answer that question we had one of our Researchers - Rich Gans - talk to people at Mozilla, Microsoft, Apple, and Google to get insight into where they're going with their browser offerings and how they advise site developers to deal with the current landscape.

What he found out was fascinating (to me anyway) and I hope for you, too. For example, Microsoft has gotten religious about standards compliance. And we're talking official standards here, not de facto standards they create and put out into the marketplace.

Continue reading "Forrester's Harley Manning: The Browser Wars Are Back! You Can't Run or Hide So Here's What To Do" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 12:20 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Marketers may be facing shrinking budgets, but a new study shows greater accountability best practices and closer collaboration between marketing and finance despite having less resources.

Continue reading "Marketers Report Greater Accountability " »

Posted by Mila D'Antonio at 10:10 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

During hard times it's even more important to keep your customers. Markets have shrunk and competition for remaining customers is becoming more intense. But, it's possible to add customers during hard economic times if you are very good and consistent in what you do.

I have always believed that the secret to keeping and adding customers goes beyond having the best product and service. There is nothing more compelling than sharing your customers' fundamental beliefs and values - and authentically demonstrating those values in your products, service, and operations. In my most recent book, INPSIRE! Why Customers Come Back, I write about two companies that do just that: Stoneyfield Yogurt and Honest Tea.

Continue reading "Guest Blogger Jim Champy: Developing Values-Based Relationships" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 9:15 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Customers are gaining more control of the relationship with almost all businesses they frequent. Even a stoic and reserved industry like banking has relaxed its stringent operations in favor of meeting customer needs. Umpqua Bank in the Northwest U.S. took the idea to new heights by redesigning almost every aspect of the branch to serve multiple needs of its customers.

Continue reading "Banks Redefine the Customer Experience" »

Posted by Elizabeth Glagowski at 9:36 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

CRM is becoming a dead topic, asserts RightNow Technologies CMO Jason Mittelstaedt. "The moniker and category are dated and tired," he said when we spoke about customer strategy trends during the Gartner CRM Summit. Customer experience and social media are two growing areas executives are and should be focused on today. "Customer experience is the higher calling," Mittelstaedt said.

According to Mittelstaedt, the big challenge is the question of customer experience ownership: Should it be one person or a group? The answer: It depends on the industry and a company's organizational structure. In B2C often the CEO is the strongest champion of customer experience. In B2B often "the COO is mostly commonly chartered to deliver on customer experience, and has the resources to deliver on it," he said. "Also, it tends to be that customer service and marketing report to the COO." He also noted that the CIO is involved more and more as a key enabler of the customer experience.

Continue reading "Customer Experience Is the New CRM" »

Posted by Ginger Conlon at 12:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

"Do you know who your customer advocates are and how much their recommendations are worth to your organization?"

Lithium CMO Sanjay Dholakia posed that question rhetorically when we were discussing social media trends during the Gartner CRM Summit. "The wall is coming down between on and offline," he said, citing as an example Barnes & Noble, whose retail sales of specific books increase when customers discuss those books it its online community.

He also noted that companies should track the value of customers resolving other customers' issues online. Every issue satisfactorily resolved deflects a call, chat, or email to customer support. That translates to hard dollars saved.

Continue reading "Will Customer Communities Become Table Stakes?" »

Posted by Ginger Conlon at 12:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (5) | TrackBacks (0)

Despite recent coverage of major organizations backing away from social media, avoiding it like the plague, there is some hope. The Air Force, not necessarily the first group you'd think of when it comes to online innovation (although many other types of innovation do come to mind), is fully embracing social networks, Twitter, and other online tools to build its brand and connect with servicemen, servicewomen, and citizens.

Continue reading "Branding the Military with Social Media" »

Posted by Jeremy Nedelka at 2:53 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

In a new Forrester Research report called Service Seekers Are More Loyal Than Price Seekers (based on a survey of about 4,600 US consumers), we analyze the loyalty of four consumer segments that I've previously discussed.

The report examines the loyalty of these segments across 12 industries: airlines, banks, wireless providers, credit card providers, hotels, insurance firms, Internet service providers, investment firms, health plans, PC manufacturers, retailers, and TV service providers. Across all industries and consumer segments, I analyzed three areas of loyalty: willingness to buy more products, reluctance to switch from current providers, and likelihood to recommend providers to friends and colleagues.

Continue reading "Forrester's Bruce Temkin: Customer Service Attracts Loyal Customers" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 12:26 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

The CMO Council and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce launched an initiative yesterday that not only makes sound business sense, but it's also socially beneficial.

The Pause to Support a Cause campaign aims to create a global community of millions of research-ready and receptive panelists to participate in online surveys and market research. It's expected to direct as much as 10 percent of the $18.9 billion spent on market research worldwide to thousands of non profits.

Continue reading "Tapping Into an Engaged Research Group While Adding Altruistic Appeal " »

Posted by Mila D'Antonio at 10:21 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

What do you do when your business process has turned escalation into SOP?

With my son's sixth birthday around the corner, I recently found myself headed to the local "big box" book retailer for a copy of Roald Dahl's Charlie and the Great Glass Elevator. We'd enjoyed reading Charlie and the Chocolate Factory aloud over vacation, and I knew he was looking forward to the next installment. The book was easily located and I proceeded to check-out. Purchase in hand, I then settled in for a latte at the in-store cafe.

Continue reading "Guest Blogger Catrina Logan Boisson: A Case of Employee (Un)Empowerment" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 9:59 AM | Permalink | Comments (5) | TrackBacks (0)

A year ago today, financial services firm Lehman Bros. collapsed, triggering a 500-point drop in the stock market, the toppling of other businesses considered "too big to fail," and signaling the start of the worst recession in modern times. Now, a year later, have businesses learned that short-term gain and isolated profit motives aren't sustainable?

Continue reading "The Collapse of Lehman Bros., One Year Later" »

Posted by Elizabeth Glagowski at 9:25 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

How do you win customers' attention and loyalty? Know them and be relevant.

That was the straightforward advice Acxiom's Chris Marriott gave earlier this week during its Global Marketing Performance Series event on social media marketing. "Leverage the information you have about customers to personalize communications," he said.

Marriott, vice president and general manager for Acxiom's Digital Marketing Services' Eastern Region, also advised attendees to:

• Build strategies around customers (not just products or services)
  
• Find more people who look/act like current best customers
  
• Know where customers spend their time, especially online
  
• Recognize customers and treat them like an old friend

Continue reading "Know Thy Customer" »

Posted by Ginger Conlon at 10:26 AM | Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBacks (0)

With no recommendation engine, graphical improvements, or image search, Craigslist is a website stuck in the past. And while business best practices often include heavy investment in sales, marketing, and customer service, Craigslist eschews these functions--yet continues to grow its revenues. What makes Craigslist a "classifieds killer" and how is it able grow its business with little attention to the customer experience?

Continue reading "Guest blogger Paul Barsch: CRM Isn't Welcome at Craigslist" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 5:16 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I admire Wikipedia for trying to create a common knowledge database that everyone could access and participate in, but ultimately the site learned what politicians and sociologists realized long ago: when left to their own devices, people can't be trusted.

Continue reading "Is Wikipedia a Failed Social Experiment?" »

Posted by Jeremy Nedelka at 1:46 PM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

Email marketing is an easy yet powerful tool in bringing home a huge volume of traffic to your website, and email opens doors to many marketing opportunities. But a new study shows that companies are not taking full advantage of their email campaigns.

Continue reading "Make the Most of Email Marketing" »

Posted by Mila D'Antonio at 10:21 AM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

Warning: Default decisions and actions, although seductive when chosen and not always easy to recognize, can be lethal to your success.

First, perhaps it's best to define default. It occurs when you have chosen--operative word, chosen--not to make a decision or take an action that would help you move forward in achieving what you want in business, in your career, or in your personal life.

Many companies lose market viability because of a default mind-set that results in default behavior. Individuals lose out on career and personal relationships, due to default behaviors. So, how do you recognize this lethal-to-your-success choice of behavior? Here are some examples:

Continue reading "Guest Blogger Arlene Johnson: Choosing Default Can Take You Down" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 9:29 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I know, most people hate hype. In a post-bubble economy, hype it's a four letter word. But I love it.

I'm no advocate of projecting unrealistic expectations on every new, shiny thing. But, hype can be used for good.

Hype is a marketer's dream. It takes advantage of our human inclination toward curiosity about the new and unusual. Hype can give a brand enough exposure to sustain it until it can stand on its merits, build a reputation, and move toward majority adoption.

Continue reading "Guest Blogger Jeff Scurlock: I ❤ Hype" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 7:43 AM | Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBacks (0)

Companies today are challenged with how to make operations efficient while delivering value to the customer. The answer to both of these customer management questions hinges upon effective collection, analysis, and deployment of your organization's customer feedback.

Continue reading "Are You Voice-of-the-Customer Challenged?" »

Posted by Mila D'Antonio at 7:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

This Monday I had a series of calls with marketers evaluating campaign management solutions. After the economic slowdown I am starting to see a steady renewal of interest in marketing technologies. The questions ranged from: "How is campaign management different from marketing automation?" to "How much do the various modules cost to implement?" to "What's the on-demand market look like?". But by far the most commonly asked question was about the integration of outbound (batch) and inbound (real-time in the context of the interaction) marketing programs.

Given the renewed emphasis on retention, customer value management, and customer experience, this isn't a surprising question. But many marketers seem to be confused by what the integration of these channels really means. I thought it would be useful to share with you what I shared with them. The integration of outbound and inbound channels means marketers should:

Continue reading "Forrester's Suresh Vittal: Integrating Inbound and Outbound Marketing Campaigns" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 1:18 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

In Management Rewired, Charles S. Jacobs tells us that brain science has confirmed what many of us have long suspected: We each live in a reality of our own making. As Jacobs points out, this isn't just a philosophical issue; it impacts the way we do business. Arrogantly (or innocently) assume that your customers experience the world in the same way that you do, and you'll find your actions unlikely to produce the results you expect.

We all talk about seeing things through our customer's eyes. But Jacobs' researchers would argue that even the most enlightened and open-minded marketer can't help but bring their own perception of reality to the strategy table. And the pressures of business in a bad economy can make it that much more difficult to see the long-term impact of potentially myopic decision-making.

Continue reading "Guest Blogger Catrina Logan Boisson: Your Customer's Perception Is Not Your Reality" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 9:54 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

If you've read an article on 1to1media.com recently, you may have used the "share" button that allows you to re-post the story on sites such as Digg, LinkedIn, Mixx, Reddit, and Twitter. This sharing feature, and its accompanied list of social media websites, is common in today's online world. Nearly all news sites, and many e-commerce sites, give customers the option to share content with friends. In the past few months, though, I've noticed that on more and more sites this list has dwindled from a dozen (typical a year ago) to a handful. In particular, two have appeared side-by-side most frequently.

Continue reading "The Social Media Cream Rises to the Top" »

Posted by Jeremy Nedelka at 7:54 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Microsoft has never had a customer-focused reputation. Like a bull in a china shop, it uses its market share to ram new programs and operating systems into the marketplace. No more was this more evident than with Microsoft Vista, the operating system no one seems to like. Microsoft forced its hardware partners and enterprise customers to install it, even though most were perfectly happy with XP.

Now, as Windows 7 prepares for its launch, Microsoft is taking steps to address customer concerns and preferences ahead of time, a new strategy for the software company. But will it work?

Continue reading "Can Microsoft Prevent Another Vista Debacle With Windows 7?" »

Posted by Elizabeth Glagowski at 9:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Many pundits agree that the B2B and B2C customer experiences have a great deal in common. After all, ultimately, a person is buying something--whether for himself or his company--so has a vested interest in that product or service meeting expectations.

With few exceptions (like financial services) the commonalities diverge when it comes to long-term customer relationships. Sure, some B2C consumers want "relationships" with their favorite brands. They want special offers, unique experiences, in-depth information, and the like. They want their value to be recognized. B2B customers expect that, as well. But they also expect that when a vendor sells them a complex product or service, that provider will stick around long enough to help ensure their (at least initial, if not long-term) success with it.

Continue reading "Defining the Customer-Centric B2B Enterprise" »

Posted by Ginger Conlon at 10:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (11) | TrackBacks (0)

Starting next month, AT&T has instituted a new policy requiring all smartphone (BlackBerry, iPhone, etc...) subscribers to purchase a monthly data plan (for $30). While the vast majority of these customers would subscribe to a data plan anyway, there are some people out there who buy the phone for show, because of its 'cool factor' and don't use all of its features.

Continue reading "Is Smartphone Plan Change a Smart Move?" »

Posted by Jeremy Nedelka at 11:21 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

People who volunteer in their community give one of life's most precious gifts -- their time.

Once a year employees at 1to1 Media give their time by spending the day volunteering at a local children's community center. Yesterday we painted, scrubbed, and organized the building's classrooms so that the children can return to clean rooms in the fall.

Continue reading "Do You Have a Volunteer Recognition Strategy?" »

Posted by Mila D'Antonio at 10:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Sounds simple right? Most marketers would say that they use some notion of value when they target customers. I think there's more to this topic. First, most marketers use likelihood of response as a predictor far more often than value. A recent conversation with Tim Suther of Acxiom got me thinking about targeting techniques. Here's my take: Generally most marketers have three approaches to onsite targeting:

Continue reading "Forrester's Suresh Vittal: Applying Customer Value to Online Targeting Strategy" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 10:01 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

As the social Web continues to gain traction, with millions of individuals now making individual contributions, one thing that frustrates businesses is the problem of making sense of all this noise. Because that's all it is, unless you can detect patterns in these billions of individual posts, tweets, text messages, and comments. It is a giant, flowing river of information, but it's impossible to get any sense of a river's current by examining it one drop at a time.

Continue reading "Sentiment Analysis: See the Forest by Aggregating the Trees" »

Posted by Don Peppers at 9:31 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Both business and consumers have bad assumptions about the service process. When the two perspectives collide we get the current train wreck of customer service. When companies and consumers change their assumptions, the experience is dramatically improved. Here are six assumptions that most business wrongly hold and three misperceptions that consumers have:

Continue reading "Guest Blogger John A. Goodman: Lost in Translation -- Conflicting Assumptions That Business And Consumers Make About Each Other" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 6:01 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Last week I spoke to a registered user to our site who was not receiving our email newsletter, 1to1 Weekly. After some searching, we realized that her account was linked to an old email address. And when I say old, I mean old. It was an "erols.com" address, which is a company that died along with the dial-up modem. This is one example of how data can get away from you pretty easily, even at a company that proactively stays on top of it.

Continue reading "Digging Out From All That Data" »

Posted by Elizabeth Glagowski at 9:33 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

The rise of social media has brought with it a new class of customers/entrepreneurs: mommy bloggers. They began writing about their children, relationships, and shopping trips, but soon evolved into a word-of-mouth marketing machine. Earlier this year I wrote about just how powerful the mom market had become, due in large part to the throng of bloggers reviewing products, writing about their experiences as customers, and taking down brands they felt were dishonest or unsafe. It seems some of that power went to their heads, and now they're coming back down to Earth.

Continue reading "Will Conflicts of Interest Sink Blogging?" »

Posted by Jeremy Nedelka at 7:51 AM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

This week Pittsburgh became the first city to launch a 311 "iBurgh" application for smart phones so citizens can catalog complaints by snapping photos of nuisances like graffiti and then send the photos to city hall.

Continue reading "Do You Have an Application for That?" »

Posted by Mila D'Antonio at 10:47 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

So you might be wondering: When most companies have barely put their toe in the "social media waters," how could deploying a customer service social media initiative have become a business transformation tool? I have to say, it stunned me. But the data is there. Some of you who know me know I used to be a scientist--the whole white lab coat and all. So I am akin to data. I like trends and patterns. But when I started my social media research I didn't expect any of that. In fact, I wasn't sure what to expect. But that's the cool thing about doing research: the surprises.

Continue reading "Forrester's Natalie Petouhoff: Got "Transformation?"" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 10:13 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

We got an interesting piece of mail recently. The return "address" was just the logo of an upscale catalog retailer of women's clothing. "Check Enclosed" was printed prominently above our address. Opening the mailer revealed a check for $10. On the back, a lot of text above the endorsement line informed us that, by cashing the check, we were agreeing to a 30-day trial of a roadside assistance service, and that a $15.99 monthly fee would be automatically charged to the credit card that the retailer had on file unless we cancelled before the end of the trial period.

Elsewhere in the mailer, we read "_____ values your relationship and from time to time will introduce you to valuable services. So ___ asked an unaffiliated company, ____, to offer you discount and savings services." Based on a description of this "valuable" roadside assistance service, it offers much less than AAA at a much higher price. A quick Web search on the provider of these services turned up a number of complaints. In some cases, the complainants claimed that their credit cards had been charged even though they did not cash the check.

Continue reading "Guest Blogger David Bakken: How Far Can You Stretch a Customer Relationship?" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 8:05 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

I recently had the pleasure of interviewing three CRM experts about social CRM for a 1to1 Media video. Paul Greenberg, Brent Leary, and Bill Band shared their views on what social CRM's role is in a larger customer strategy, and how companies can avoid the pitfalls that were common during the first go-round of CRM implementations. Companies and customers have changed, and social CRM should now be an integral part of a company's customer strategy.

Continue reading "How Does Social CRM Fit Into Your Business?" »

Posted by Elizabeth Glagowski at 9:53 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

We all know the classic John Wanamaker quote, "Half the money I spend on advertising is wasted; the trouble is, I don't know which half." Unfortunately, not much has changed.

According to Tim Suther, senior vice president of multichannel marketing service for Acxiom, about $112 billion of advertising spending is considered wasted each year in the United States alone. That equates to about 47 percent of the total advertising dollars spent, Suther said during his presentation last week at Acxiom's Global Marketing Performance event in New York. What's more, only 22 percent of Americans trust advertising.

Continue reading "Stop Wasting Marketing Dollars" »

Posted by Ginger Conlon at 10:18 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I felt like Ed Montague earlier this week (non-baseball fans please Google his name). For the third time in less than 3 months I was dealing with Wachovia customer service, and they swung and missed yet again. They were a checked-swing away from losing me as a customer, but fortunately some good may have come out of it. I'll backtrack a bit to explain.

Continue reading "Preventing Small Issues from Escalating" »

Posted by Jeremy Nedelka at 12:19 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

There's no doubt about it: Social media is having a significant impact in the workplace--good or bad. Last week some NFL teams restricted players from using social sites in an effort to block broadcasting of league memos. And the Few, the Proud, the Marines were also stopped last week from using social media to prevent critical information from being viewed by adversaries.

While still a fixture in corporations based on the benefits of enhancing relationships with customers, new evidence shows that corporations are raising concerns regarding employee use of social media.

Continue reading "Do You Have a Social Media Policy?" »

Posted by Mila D'Antonio at 11:08 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Rolling sustainability into business development isn't just a marketing ploy. In the CRM arena it's an effective way to communicate with more customers and prospects at a lower cost. Last summer, when a gallon of regular peaked above four dollars per gallon, Beagle Research published a white paper on sustainability and CRM. I am happy to report that there are many signs in CRM and elsewhere of industries taking the first steps toward more sustainable business.

Continue reading "Guest Blogger Denis Pombriant: Lights, Camera, CRM!" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 9:03 AM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

Consumers today are sick and tired of marketing; they feel that most marketing is irrelevant to them. This is the reality that marketers are faced with today, said Forrester Research principal analyst Dave Frankland during a presentation earlier this week at Acxiom's Global Marketing Performance event in New York.

Frankland went on to describe how dire the situation is for marketers: Consumers think they receive too many marketing communications, he said, adding that relevancy is a major issue. According to research from Forrester, a mere 5 percent of consumers "strongly agree" that advertising is relevant to their needs; only 3 percent "strongly agree" that email is relevant; 2 percent feel that way about direct mail. What's more, 55 percent of consumers say companies "should let me decide how they contact me."

Continue reading "When It Comes to Marketing, Data Is the New Black" »

Posted by Ginger Conlon at 6:05 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

My 3 ½ year old son loves the Pixar movie Cars. Ok, I admit it, I love it too. It's a feel-good story with lots of lessons, great animation and, of course, cars.

Few are the movies that one can watch over and over and not get bored. The first time I saw the movie I took in the story and chuckled over a few predictable lines like Sally's offer of a "free Lincoln Continental breakfast" if visitors decide to stay at her Cozy Cone motel. But with each successive time I've watched the film I've noticed something new. Whether it's the flies that are tiny cars with wings or the "Fettuccini Alfredo" brand whitewalls on display in Luigi's (I noticed this one more recently), there's always a pleasant surprise. In fact, until we bought my son his own (rival bad guy) Chick Hicks car, I hadn't noticed that Chick's main sponsor is the very fitting HTB - Hostile Takeover Bank (and I'd seen the movie at least five times at that point).

I'll be honest, I've seen Cars about a dozen times and I've yet to find any place in the movie where there could be more cars or more references to cars. The cars theme is so infused into every single detail of the movie that I'm hard pressed to find a flaw.

What does any of this have to with customer experience?

Continue reading "Forrester's Ron Rogowski: Brand Experience Lessons From Pixar" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 12:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

What could customer service representatives learn from calling other companies' customer service departments? A lot. CNBC recently did a story about loan-modification officers who spent frustrating hours on the phone with banks' call centers, fighting with agents who were overworked or just didn't care enough to help them find answers. I guarantee the loan-modification officers were a lot nicer on the phone when their customers called them after experiencing that call center hell first-hand.

Continue reading "CSR's Should Spend Time Dialing in Customers' Shoes" »

Posted by Jeremy Nedelka at 7:40 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Companies have been concerned with data quality in their organizations for some time, but a recent report makes it abundantly clear that the problem isn't going away. In fact, companies still find it a major challenge to maintain accurate data.

Pitney Bowes Business Insight, a provider of data quality and location intelligence solutions, and Silver Creek Systems, a provider of automated data mastering, yesterday announced the findings of a co-sponsored report "The State of Data Quality Today."

Continue reading "Poor Data: Companies' Dirty Little Secret" »

Posted by Mila D'Antonio at 12:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Social CRM has been one of the most talked about topics in the CRM and social media industries. Yet many companies are still are struggling with basic CRM challenges. While they work to effectively define their strategy an 800-pound gorilla has slipped into the room.

This 800-pound gorilla--the social customer--does not take away the need for an effective CRM 1.0 strategy. But organizations must address customers' social CRM expectations using an sCRM approach that compliments their CRM strategy. Throw social media tools at the gorilla without any strategic direction or process and it will turn on you.

Continue reading "Guest Blogger Michael W. Thomas: CRM and the 800-Pound Gorilla" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 10:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBacks (0)

While I was at last week's Customer UNinterrupted conference in San Francisco, I had a chance to have dinner with a few of our 1to1 Customer Champions and Customer Award winners. Representing financial services, wireless telecom and retail, the three executives I dined with had great perspective and shared many customer challenges.

Continue reading "Executives Do Some Old-Fashioned Social Networking" »

Posted by Elizabeth Glagowski at 9:37 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Understanding customers delivers a competitive advantage.

The more you know about your customers, the more you can provide them with products, services, content, and communications specific and relevant to them--consequently increasing all the good stuff: revenue, profitability, loyalty, recommendations, and the like. What's more, the more you know about your customers that your competitors don't know, and the more you use that information to deliver all those relevant, useful products, services, content, and communications that your competitors can't because they don't have that same information, the more likely your customers are to stick with you than start all over with a competitor.

So, then, when it comes to sharing data across the organization--a requirement for the kind of deep customer insight that helps to creates a sustainable competitive advantage--why can't we all just get along? Two words: organizational alignment. Or, more appropriately, organizational misalignment.

Continue reading "Why Can't We All Just Get Along?" »

Posted by Ginger Conlon at 8:27 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Imagine my surprise when I saw 2008 1to1 Customer Champion Chris Zane on my television screen the other day! He and his Zane's Cycles store are featured in the new American Express Open Forum small business commercial. Way to go Chris!

Continue reading "1to1 Customer Champion Goes Hollywood" »

Posted by Elizabeth Glagowski at 2:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

If anything can derail social media's rise, it's a lack of authenticity. The power of social sites is the ability to connect people, but often those connections are anonymous. Many sites only require an authentic email address to create a profile; any information entered after that isn't verified. That's the way it should be; you shouldn't have to provide a social security number or a photo ID to post content online, but when people abuse the system it hurts everyone. That's just what a company did in a high-profile case before it was brought down by the NY Attorney General.

Continue reading "No Customer Behind Some Customer Reviews" »

Posted by Jeremy Nedelka at 12:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Something rather amazing happened this week in the Web Analytics realm that was enabled by social media. A longstanding conversation regarding all things Web analytics has been playing out in Twitter under the hashtag #wa. [If confused by this already, you may want to drop off here.]

Recently, Washington state has jumped on the Twitter bandwagon and was creating "noise" on #wa. Thus, a number of Tweets ensued to shift the conversation from #wa to something we Web Analytics wonks could call our own.

Continue reading "Forrester's John Lovett: What Makes a Standard?" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 2:06 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

These days it seems as though retailers across all industries are relying heavily on price promotions to ramp up business and retain existing customers.

I've seen offers from $399 roundtrip airfare and hotel to Ireland, to my cell phone service provider offering a month of free service.

Continue reading "Giving Away the Store" »

Posted by Mila D'Antonio at 12:02 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I'm staring at a blank document on my computer screen, asking myself, "What is verbal branding?" Then it occurs to me: as I type, I'm expressing a perspective in carefully selected words and phrases and sentences. I'm paying attention to grammar here and willfully ignoring it there. I'm stringing thoughts together. I'm creating a rhythm. I'm defining a voice--and a personality behind that voice.

But to answer my original question, we need to take a step back.

A brand is, on the simplest level, a name given to a product or service. Merriam-Webster offers this somewhat larger, more prosaic explanation: "[a brand is] a class of goods identified by name as the product of a single firm or manufacturer." But those of us in the branding business think of it as all the things--tangible and intangible--that create your experience of a company or product or service. That experience leaves you with an impression. And your impression, once formed and reinforced, is the brand.

But where does the verbal part come in?

Continue reading "Guest Blogger Tom Parrette: You Are What You Say (or Don't)" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 10:25 PM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

This morning I went running in Pasadena, re-doing the very lovely 5-mile route I did on Wednesday, but I set off at my training pace this time. Now I'm a fairly fast middle-distance runner, and I've been running all my life. High school and college cross country teams, too. But on this run, around two miles into it, some kid passed me. Damn. NO ONE passes me on a run. I pass other people on my runs. Other people don't pass me.

Competitiveness. Part of our nature as human beings is that we are always comparing ourselves to others. More important than simply being good, all of us want to be better than others. On one level, this is a very valuable trait for our species, because it drives technological and economic progress. But on another level, it can be destructive, as well. Most major religions counsel against envy and jealousy. But envy still happens. It's hard wired in the human brain. And it's better for us to recognize it and deal with it, than to pretend it has no impact on human behavior.

Continue reading " Competitiveness. A Story, A Lesson, and A Joke." »

Posted by Don Peppers at 12:03 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Ah, buzzwords. We all use them. We all love to hate them.

What got me thinking about buzzwords (again) was an article I came across on "viralsourcing," which BusinessWeek writer Ben Kunz defines as a combination of crowdsourcing and viral marketing. So, in essence, a buzzword based on yet another buzzword. Sigh.

OK, I get it. Buzzwords and buzz phrases are an easy way to capture the essence of a thing in one or two words (and, admittedly, I use my share of them). For example, for eons companies have collected feedback from customers and prospects and used that insight to inform their business decisions; today we call that crowdsourcing. Sure, crowdsourcing captures the essence of group feedback that an enterprise takes action on, but it sounds so, well, pretentious.

Continue reading "Marketing Buzzwords: Love 'Em or Loath 'Em" »

Posted by Ginger Conlon at 10:32 AM | Permalink | Comments (25) | TrackBacks (0)

I'm in Pasadena for the three days of Fortune Magazine's "Brainstormtech" conference, featuring speakers from many different companies, usually making their presentations in an interview or talk-show format that also involves a Fortune reporter or editor. On the whole, I found this to be a very effective format for putting across insights and information.

My role here, however, is not to give a speech - which is why I end up attending most conferences I attend. Instead, I've been retained by one of Brainstormtech's sponsors, Pitney Bowes, to sit in the audience and report on it on their various "connection center" blogs, and to Tweet on it for everyone who can't be here themselves, at #brainstormtech.

Continue reading "A Twitterthon at Brainstormtech" »

Posted by Don Peppers at 8:20 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

First other countries were taking manufacturing jobs, then computers began replacing white-collar jobs; now could volunteers be the reason you're unemployed? Don't laugh, it's possible. LinkedIn recently asked translators who use its website if they'd be interested in translating pages into other languages for the site's international audience. The survey it sent the translators listed possible compensation, but none of the choices were monetary. LinkedIn's response when the translators were outraged was essentially "there's someone out there who will do this just for the prestige, just like people edit Wikipedia for free." Still think there's not a group of people out there willing to do your job for free?

Continue reading "Can Your Job Be Crowd-Sourced?" »

Posted by Jeremy Nedelka at 12:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

I've had a number of interesting debates on who should lead the customer social media interaction in the last few weeks. In part, this question comes up because a great deal of social media was initiated in the Marketing department via listening or brand sentiment programs. What we do know is that all departments benefit -- marketing, sales, service, product dev, engineering from the voice of the customer information that results from deploying social media.

And while I know that not everyone will agree, after studying all the various departments that could lead social media, I'm still convinced customer service should lead the customer social media interaction. The reason is that while a sales social media strategy might help sell more products or services or a listening platform might help branding and marketing create more convertible leads, those departments are only interested in their objectives - i.e., more sales or more leads... And that is as it should be.

Continue reading "Forrester's Natalie Petouhoff: Who Should Lead the Customer Social Media Interaction?" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 12:38 PM | Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBacks (0)

Dear Yellow Pages,

I came home from work last night to find that your company is still delivering unsolicited directories on my door step. As someone who hasn't had a land line or used a phone book since 2000, these books are useless to me. Like I do every year, I walk directly to the recycling bin and toss them.

Continue reading " An Open Letter to Yellow Pages" »

Posted by Mila D'Antonio at 10:44 AM | Permalink | Comments (8) | TrackBacks (0)

Industry analysts share an important trait with crows: We are often attracted to shiny things. Novelty both keeps our jobs interesting and allows us to stay ahead of the curve. That view of the world may perpetually give us a role in helping to future-proof enterprises, but it also makes it easy to lose sight of the day-to-day experience of consumers and the companies that serve them.

Of late, analysts and other pundits have focused a huge amount of attention on where the ongoing social media upheaval will lead and how it will transform the customer-company dynamic. This is a topic well worth all the effort being expended--but what of the challenges confronting enterprises because of technology decisions they have already made? There is one theme I have been hitting on in discussions with both enterprises and technology vendors over the past six months that I think requires more collective thought and attention: transforming from a multichannel world into a cross-channel world.

Continue reading "Guest Blogger Ian Jacobs: Thinking Through the Cross-Channel Customer Experience" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 8:53 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

To stand out in the competitive marketplace, marketers need to to use every advantage they can. In the busy mall food court, Cinnabon knows this very well. Its strategy is to use "aroma-based marketing" to lure hungry consumer to its bakery.

Continue reading "From Aromatherapy to Aroma Marketing" »

Posted by Elizabeth Glagowski at 9:50 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Did you see Sacha Baron Cohen's new movie "Bruno" yet? If not, you can probably save your money. That's the judgment of John Horn, movie critic and journalist for the LA Times, speaking on NPR's All Things Considered. Why? Because this movie may already have been killed by negative WOM.

Continue reading "Death by WOM" »

Posted by Don Peppers at 5:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

If you read my blog posts with any regularity, you know that I'm not shy about outing companies for their poor customer experiences. So in a case of quid quo pro I feel obligated to share a missed opportunity.

Continue reading "Remembering to Eat Your Own Dog Food" »

Posted by Ginger Conlon at 10:49 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I constantly hear from B2B executives that it's a challenge to develop strong relationships between the B2B sales staff and clients. But it doesn't have to be.

Continue reading "Peppers Unplugged: Elevate B2B Sales " »

Posted by Don Peppers at 5:22 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

Last month, in a post titled "Social Media ROI?" I alluded to analyst reports that would define the metrics used to value social media interactions. The most anticipated one, from Natalie Petouhoff from Forrester, was released earlier this month. I'm working on a story that will feature her and many others talking about how to measure interactions on social networks, blogs, and the like (due out in September in the Fall issue of 1to1 Magazine.

Continue reading "Social Media ROI Revealed" »

Posted by Jeremy Nedelka at 11:32 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Google recently created quite a stir when it introduced its new operating system (OS), Chrome OS. Here's how Google describes its new OS:

Speed, simplicity and security are the key aspects of Google Chrome OS. We're designing the OS to be fast and lightweight, to start up and get you onto the web in a few seconds.

My take: Will Chrome OS destroy Microsoft? No. Will Chrome shake up the PC market? Yes; especially when it comes to customer experience. Here are a few lessons that Microsoft and others can learn from Google's announcement:

Continue reading "Forrester's Bruce Temkin: Google Chrome OS Sets Off Customer Experience War" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 3:08 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

Many of the marketers who want to capture the power of social media struggle with how best to do so. According to Lon Safko, these marketers need to rethink their approach.

"They're not looking at it holistically," says Safko, author of The Social Media Bible. "They're looking at it as individual tools. Instead they should consider social media as a new tool set that they should integrate with their traditional marketing efforts. Then create a holistic strategy."

Continue reading "Rethinking Social Media" »

Posted by Ginger Conlon at 10:27 AM | Permalink | Comments (6) | TrackBacks (0)

In this time of economic instability, companies are being super cautious with their funds. The marketing organization's belt has become especially tight, with marketers only investing in activities they know will work and show value. It's understandable, but in today's competitive marketplace relying too much on traditional practices may hurt in the long run.

Continue reading "Marketers Need to Experiment Now More Than Ever" »

Posted by Elizabeth Glagowski at 9:36 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

We've been hearing about both for many years, but so far everyone is still left wondering when the technology will hit the mainstream. Unlike the flying car, cell phone payment systems already exist in many parts of the world; they just haven't caught on in the U.S. So when will this elusive advancement catch on, allowing you to carry only one device and ditch the plastic?

Continue reading "Cell Phone Credit Card Like the Flying Car?" »

Posted by Jeremy Nedelka at 1:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

Think you know what your customers want? Think again.

In a new book All Customers Are Irrational, author William J. Cusick contends that customers are completely irrational, with 95 percent of the decision-making process occurring in the irrational subconscious. As a result, Cusick maintains that customers don't make clear-headed logical choices, which makes predicting what they do in the future impossible.

Continue reading "Tapping Into Your Customers' Irrational Subconscious" »

Posted by Mila D'Antonio at 10:38 AM | Permalink | Comments (3) | TrackBacks (0)

Every time I speak at a conference, at least one person approaches me with a version of the classic, "What should the average handle time be for calls from banking customers in the Midwest?" The person asking is seeking a magic bullet number to prove to his boss that his customer service operation is beating the best practices out there. Often my response is, "You are asking the wrong question."

What you should ask is what your measurements say about you. And, more important, what do your measurements say to your customers, and how do they determine the future and profitability of your business.

Continue reading "Guest Blogger Lior Arussy: What Do Your Measurements Say About You?" »

Posted by Guest Blogger at 9:30 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

Yesterday the Yankees won for the 10th time in 12 games. It's an impressive run, and many Yankee fans are excited that they are almost caught up to the Red Sox. But once again the customer experience at Yankee Stadium let me down, and I'm not sure I want to return until the stadium staff changes its policies.

Continue reading "More Customer Troubles at Yankee Stadium" »

Posted by Elizabeth Glagowski at 9:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (0) | TrackBacks (0)

I was at a Verizon store today for service on my phone, which stopped working yesterday. Normally from what I hear the associates there are fairly helpful (they've been average at best the few times I've been there), but today that definitely wasn't the case.

Continue reading "How Not to Treat a Customer" »

Posted by Jeremy Nedelka at 3:42 PM | Permalink | Comments (2) | TrackBacks (0)

For the entire month of June, I drove a rental car while my own vehicle was getting repaired. I rented from Enterprise Rent-A-Car and wrote about my initial experience in this blog.

Continue reading "Completely Satisfied" »

Posted by Mila D'Antonio at 11:23 AM | Permalink | Comments (1) | TrackBacks (0)

I attended the Forrester Customer Experience forum in NYC on June 22 and was particularly impressed by the speech keynote speaker Wayne Peacock of USAA gave. Peacock is the executive vice president of Enterprise Bus