ARTICLE TEXT:
PROFITABLE
RELATIONSHIPS
Close
relationships come at a cost.
Really
knowing the perceptions, preferences, expectations and buying
habits of existing and prospective customers accord businesses
considerable benefits, advantages and rewards. Business
owners, managers and staff members expect increased revenue,
repeat purchases and recommendations in return.
Investments
in data base collection, retrieval, collation and analysis
require appreciable investment in time, money and resources.
The
information trails being exploited include reward programs,
company badged credit cards, priority/reward initiatives
and personalised direct marketing communications.
Information
is power, and to many, a bankable commodity.
HIGHER
EXPECTATIONS
The
latest consumer research into business practices reveals
that clients and customers are aware of and sensitive to
the “push” by companies to gain more information about themselves
and their expenditure patterns.
Significant
new, or perhaps previously unrecognised, findings reveal
that as relationships are established with businesses, brands,
services and service providers consumers develop higher
expectations about customer service standards and product/service
quality, they become less tolerant of suboptimal performance
delivery, tend to be more expressive and, given the closer
relationships, are more targeted (read: personal) in their
expressions, be they positive or negative.
Thus,
the widely held truism that customers are becoming more
discerning and demanding is set on solid foundations.
It
is a consequence of commonly applied business practices
which are a conspicuous manifestation of the “relationship
marketing” philosophy and era.
NO
HALF MEASURES
Sadly,
a significant percentage of small to medium sized businesses
commit to embracing the concepts of relationship marketing,
data base management, customer field farming and then decidedly
compromise the principles and frustrate customers by providing
insufficient funds, resources and times for the appropriate
supportive infrastructure.
Large
numbers of invaluable information banks on individual customers
remain inert and rapidly aging to obsolescence because of
under-resourcing .
Ideally,
internal or possibly external people should be assigned
to work and to capitalise on the potential business enhancements
for specific time spans and on specific dates to undertake
nominated activities. There is no room for “loose”
undocumented, subjective expectations.
Close
relations enable businesses, and fosters expectations among
clients and customers, to customised, personal communications
which provide unique and, possibly, excusive offers.
An
active, current and malleable database enables firms and
departments to fulfil the base desired performance standards
of not less than 6 communications within a 12 month period
(preferably, employing a spectrum of media including emails,
text messages, brochures, telephone calls and personal visits).
Moreover,
the essence of an active data base is currency. That is,
the information contained is relevant and pertinent.
Typically,
some 1.2% to 5% of a database phase into obsolescence each
calendar month. This necessitates constant monitoring
and effective management, with a total revision around every
9 months.
Clearly,
such administrative details cannot be effectively undertaken
by part time or casual employees or with a non-specific
allocation of time and resources.
Customer
relationship data bases dictate a disciplined approach.
That is one of the reasons why so many are ineffective,
contribute little to growth or enhance competitiveness and
are perceived by some business owners, managers and staff
members to be intolerable burdens.
MEETING
EXPECTATIONS
One
interesting aspect of good performing relationship marketing
data bases is that staff members are recipients of all communications
before such is received by existing, prospective and past
clients.
Low
tolerance customers and clients are incensed when responding
to customised communications they are confronted with an
uninformed, often detached staff member who exhibits the
characteristics of a person lacking product knowledge. It
is not a scenario on which positive, long term relationships
are founded and sustained.
So,
getting closer to customers does come with benefits and
advantages with the countervailing force of costs and obligations.
RELATIONSHIP
AUDITS
Important
information can and should be elicited from all team members
who directly interact with and service customers.
An
audit of just how well they know their customers and their
perceptions, preferences and buying habits can be enlightening,
confronting and in some instances disappointing.
Often
there is a considerable disconnect between the operation
of customer data bases and an evident lack of knowledge
about customers which permeates many entities.
The
ideas and aspirations of relationship marketing data bases
all to often falter because of the inadequate funding and
resource allocation. It is difficult to budget for
the non delivery of potential and opportunities.
Like
most things in life and business there is a need to recognise
the inextricable association between rights and obligations,
then to strike a balance between the two.
