By branching out and working with Cho as well as keeping a firm focus on deeper interaction with the customer in mind when it comes to the brand, Banana Republic could very well be leading the way for retailers to begin carefully considering the influencers they decide to partner alongside.
FORBES: Oh Joy! Banana Republic Partners With Design Blogger Joy Cho For Latest "Love" Campaign
Lee's solution is to keep selling the integrated touchpad but to make it quickly and with more customer specs in mind.
Moreover, there are innumerable opportunities to weaken that relationship unless you organize all aspects of your organization with that customer relationship in mind.
FORBES: 5 Stupefying Statements from the CRM Call Center (and what to do about them)
When you think of top notch customer service, Zappos automatically pops into your mind (January hacking of customer information PR disaster aside).
FORBES: Delivering Happiness: Why At Zappos It's Your Birthday Every Day
By "customer" he means the stores and distributors that stock Rubbermaid stuff--never mind the real customer, the consumer, who might like ordering online just fine.
So step one in content marketing is pick the right map and that map is inside the mind of your ideal customer.
FORBES: 5 Customer-Focused Questions To Guide Your Content Marketing
"We live in an era of rapid change where pressures and challenges co-exist, but we must not forget our purpose and keep in mind the premise of 'Customer First', " Mr Lu said in a statement.
Defense companies may think that their customers are military services and intelligence agencies, but the real customer is a political system that can change its mind about priorities overnight.
FORBES: Defense Plans Will Change, So Don't Bank on Obama Blueprint
Likely what comes to mind are product ideas, unique processes, customer relationships, marketing plans and financial details.
It determines which segments to target, how best to position the company, what programs will build mind share, increase market share, overcome customer objections, and deliver quality leads to sales.
He said 2ndWave will initially shoot for Minnesota-based companies, but would consider companies in other parts of the U.S. Potential targets are established software companies providing business applications with strong revenue and a large customer base, but Heim has no specific targets in mind.
Never mind the fact that we had developed a global customer base and sales record that contradicted his estimation.
FORBES: Great Ideas Are Never Popular So Turn Naysayers Into Believers
That lends itself to two huge advantages: Our culture is collaborative, and we have the mind-set of integrating the voice of the customer.
FORBES: From Inside Out, Speed Your Company's Social Transformation
If you need a refresher: Netflix announced it would split the pricing of its DVD delivery and streaming services, basically doubling the cost of similar service, then flinched at customer outrage, renamed its DVD service and then changed its mind.
FORBES: Netflix Halts Its Own 'Arrested Development' With Revival Announcement
Sabatini was under fire for having launched, five years ago, a customer service initiative within the FAA. Curiously, the "customers" in mind were the airlines, rather than passengers.
And 82 percent of CEOs no matter where they were situated in the world anticipate making changes to their customer growth and retention strategies, with a sizable 31 percent saying they have major changes in mind.
With that in mind, you do need to consider not just hand-off points, but the view from customer.
FORBES: A Tale of Maintaining Congruency In Customer Service
From another perspective, however, there is one shocking, even mind-boggling, omission from the list: there is no mention of the client or the customer (or the stakeholder).
应用推荐