In The News

Carriers that get to know their customers well -- by effectively leveraging collected data and by simply listening to what they say -- have a huge advantage in a tough insurance market.

By Anthony O'Donnell

Some summary

Several years ago, while selling software in the British telecom market, I met the CMO of a smallish network operator. He described the issues his business was facing, and when I asked him his churn rate, he replied, almost casually, that it was "about normal for our industry: 37 percent." He must have seen my jaw drop, as he quickly abandoned his blase tone. However, his brutal honesty gave a young salesperson stark insight into the industry's attitude toward its customer base.

In the Age of the Customer, customers demand attention.

Veruca Salt wanted her Oompa Loompa now. And, if you'll remember, she didn't want just any squirrel-she wanted a trained squirrel. At the time, it was perfectly understandable for Grandpa Joe to suggest, "What she wants is a good kick in the pants." Now, however, we've come into the age of the customer, and this customer-whether she's part of the "me generation" or not-expects her Oompa Loompa now, and her squirrel trained. She knows what she wants, and she intends to get it.
 

What Are Companies Doing to Close the Loop Between Customer Research, Customer Feedback and Customer Service?

Tim Phillips, in Research Magazine, April 2009