Peppers & Rogers wrote:
At the recent Forrester Consumer Forum in New York, three Fortune 500 companies shared their approaches to becoming more customer-centric. All are different, but each has the same goal -- to connect with end-user consumers.
Target's bullseye: differentiation
Instead of competing in a niche market or on price, Target Vice Chairman Gerry Storch said his company's strategy is to lead the pack in "uniqueness perceived by customers." That is done by integrating the customer experience across all channels.
Storch also emphasized the importance of customer data to improve its unique customer experience. "We built one of the largest databases in the world to track guest behavior both online and in the store," he said. It's used to populate direct mail programs, including promotions custom published to each customer based on past shopping habits. "Our guest focus is toward individual, targeted, and consensual communications," he said. "Newspaper and TV aren't cutting it."
Whirlpool enlists everyone
Whirlpool's customer-centric strategy means making a top-down, enterprise wide commitment to consumer-driven innovation. In fact, the company even mentions consumer-driven innovation in its annual report, said Marise Kumar, VP of business strategy and core competencies.
To do that, Kumar said she needs to make sure that "our brand lens matches with our processes." The firm promotes its customer bill of rights, which guarantees that customers deserve professionalism, a representative that will take ownership of the customer experience, and a fair resolution process if a problem arises, for example.
HP switches focus away from products
For Vyomesh Joshi of Hewlett-Packard, customer centricity requires a simple focus change from products to customers.
He used HP's Lightscribe printable CD discs as an example. Customers told the company they didn't want to print separate labels or write on their CDs, so HP designed a new product that will use one laser to burn information to a disc and then print a label on it. This idea came from an engineer who thought first about solving a customer need.
The key take-out for me:
- Converting customer information to experience is critical
- Co-opting employees and giving them a reason to act is important
- Innovation is central to enhancing customer expectation and experience