From DiWiki.com

customers2.0

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There’s no doubt that the way companies manage customers needs to change. Just because customers choose one medium to reach out to a company doesn’t mean that their comments and concerns are confined to that medium. A customer on the phone with an issue likely will comment about that issue on a social network within a few hours. And before you know it, an isolated incident is a full-blown controversy.

Unfortunately, most businesses are not equipped with the proper level of intelligence about their customers to get in front of those issues before the next crisis erupts.

One of the bigger challenges facing business managers today is the number of customer touch points they have to manage and monitor. Besides worry about what might be happening in, for example, a store or on the phone, there are now thousands of conversations taking place on social networks that can affect the business.

Developing and maintaining profitable, long-term customer relationships is essential, because keeping an existing customer costs a company approximately one-tenth as much as acquiring a new one.

Social technologies enable consumers to talk and businesses to listen. But to create maximum business impact, organizations must figure out how to integrate, analyze and act on this new wealth of insight.

Ross Dawson,a globally recognised futurist, strategy advisor, says :

"We are now at the opening phases of what is a global talent economy. Talent is now everywhere and far more available. We’re seeing professionals increasingly working independently rather than necessarily in large corporations; we are seeing retired people who are interesting in continuing to be engaged and entrusted to projects. And clearly we have access to people around the world. So we are moving from a world where the talent was all inside big organisations to a very fluid world where the talent is available globally. And there is now a whole host of tools and platforms to be able to access all of this talent in a wide variety of ways."

Dell’s IdeaStorm is a well-documented success, enabling customers to have input into the innovation process.

And if it is a crowdsourcing platform that brings customers into the process, it can also deliver additional benefits.

"In one sense it means that real customer desires can be expressed in ways that could not be before. Any number of emails, telephone calls or letters asking for something would never result in anything. But if you have the tools to actually get a clear idea of what your customers want and you can tap that, it can be a far more effective way of responding to customer needs," says Dawson.

"Evidence has proved that, for instance, Dell does take into account the ideas that are submitted and floats them to the top. A classic was where it released a Linux-based laptop through the weight of demand from IdeaStorm. If organisations use these tools well, they are absolutely far closer to their customers than they ever could have been before these tools existed. They are able to really meet the needs of those customers which can be clearly expressed and understood and responded to."

How are you managing customer intelligence from multichannel conversations (what kinds of tools and platforms are you using, what pros and cons)?

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Sources

http://www.mycustomer.com/topic/customer-intelligence/ross-dawson-six-tools-start-your-crowdsourcing-strategy/109914

http://www.itbusinessedge.com/cm/blogs/vizard/unifying-customer-intelligence/?cs=43557

http://www.religence.com/why.htm

More

http://www.marketingweek.co.uk/sectors/industry/multichannel-conversations-put-positive-spin-on-brands/3018480.article

http://www.destinationcrm.com/articles/Web-Exclusives/Viewpoints/Multichannel-Is-Not-Enough-6-Steps-to-Engaging-Customer-Communications---68484.aspx