Going Old School

Posted on November 22, 2010 by Eric Engwall 1 Comment

In casual conversation it’s not uncommon to hear someone described as being “old school.” Most often it’s not an ageist insult, but a compliment – a label that conveys respect for someone who lives and acts according to traditional values. It’s a nod to simpler times when things were “done right,” like sending a handwritten thank-you note, holding the door for the person behind you, or using the turn signals on your vehicle (don’t get me started…).

Where in business can “going old school” set you apart in the minds of your customers? Where can doing something in a traditional way be not just an anachronism but a positive distinction from the rest? In the work we do with our clients there is one topic that seems to emerge, and that’s communication – particularly with customers.

We now have more electronic communication tools than most of us could have dreamed of only 20 years ago. The combination of mobile phones, e-mail, conference calling, Web meetings, and video blogs makes it easier than ever for us to keep in touch with customers – and for them to contact us at any time and from anywhere. Still, when we read the thousands of B2B voice-of-the-customer interviews that our clients conduct with their customers each year, communication consistently appears as an item for improvement. Despite all of the sophisticated means of connecting, it’s pretty clear that many customers still crave direct, face-to-face human interaction with their suppliers.

Even companies that sell products widely seen as simple commodities often hear from their customers that they want regular visits from their key suppliers. With all the cool tools – not to mention the information available on the Web – why do customers still want to sit eyeball to eyeball with salespeople, service representatives, and technical experts?

Here’s some of what customers say:

  • Keep me informed of trends in your market that might impact my plans for the future
  • Even better, share what you know about my markets and how my customers’ needs are evolving
  • Stay current with my company’s strategies, goals, and needs
  • Build and sustain higher, broader, and deeper relationships with key individuals in my organization
  • Demonstrate that my business is important to you – show me that you care

All of these can be accomplished, to some extent, at arm’s length. But customers generally want some level of direct human interaction to supplement the routine electronic communications we engage in every day.

Being in the business of helping our clients go old school with their customers is a point of pride for us. In an age when the quality of the customer experience is often expressed in the form of metrics from anonymous respondents displayed on dashboards, it’s gratifying to read comments like, “Thanks for coming here to get my feedback. It shows that you’re committed to understanding our needs and listening. I really appreciate the personal approach.” Sounds pretty old school to me.

Eric Engwall, Managing Partner
E.G. Insight

Best Practices, Customer Confidence, Customer Feedback, Point of View, Voice of the Customer

Every Client Is Different – and
Every Client Is The Same!

Posted on November 15, 2010 by Gary Gerds Comments Off

Twenty years. E.G. Insight recently celebrated its 20th year in the business of helping clients collect feedback from their most valuable customers. Throughout these 20 years there are some trends that continue to surface no matter what the client or industry. One of them involves the growing need for innovation.

Customers are thirsty for new and innovative ideas that will help them compete more effectively, serve their customers better, improve quality, reduce costs, improve speed to market, support the environment, and improve safety.

Innovation is always in the eye of the customer. Regardless of industry, it is safe to say our clients often believe they are very innovative and sometimes have the awards to prove it. At the same time, their customers sometimes say our clients either lack innovative ideas and creativity or lack the ability to communicate their innovations effectively.

Who is right? Our clients think they are innovative – their customers often disagree and want more. We think the answer often lies in the manner in which our clients communicate innovative ideas to their customers.

The answer. Unfortunately, the answer is there is no one correct answer. Every customer contact is different; some people learn by doing, others by seeing, still others by hearing. Ways of sharing information that work for some will not work for others. Different styles require different methods, so variety is key. Find and use multiple ways to communicate your innovative ideas. Technology road shows, customer visits to your sites to meet R&D people, targeted visits to customer locations, websites and webcasts, and customer forums are all effective methods our clients use to communicate innovation and create competitive advantage.

Gary Gerds, Managing Partner
E.G. Insight

Uncategorized

What Can a Coffee Cup Teach
You About Innovation?

Posted on November 9, 2010 by Eric Engwall Comments Off

Coffee CupSometimes lessons come from the most familiar and mundane places. With all due respect to the makers and marketers of disposable coffee cups and the lids that cover them, I never would have looked to those products as sources of learning.

That changed when I read Benjamin Wallace’s recent article in BusinessWeek. In it, the author lists some of the latest innovations in disposable coffee lid design. For most of us, the lid on our morning coffee is an afterthought.  Indeed, almost all of the 14 billion coffee lids sold in the US last year ended up in the trash, so it might not be the first place one looks for ingenuity. But to the folks at industry suppliers like the Solo Cup Company, who are coping with the closings of local coffee shops and the related trend toward consumers brewing more of their own joe at home, developing innovative products with higher margins is a key to growth.

Some of the innovations Wallace describes:

  • The Xpress Lid, which turns your paper cup into a small pot of French press coffee
  • A cover that doubles as a caddy for creamer and sugar
  • The Coollid, incorporating a reservoir that cools each sip of coffee prior to consumption

What’s in a lid? Well, a lid can mean a little, but it can also mean a lot. Each of these products solve problems that I instinctively knew I had, like hoping those little creamer cups don’t leak in my pocket when walking to my car, or burning my mouth on the first few sips from a cup. But aside from my “oh, that’s kinda cool” reaction, where’s the lesson in all this?

From reading countless voice of the customer interviews we know that when asked about the subject of innovation, B2B customers often struggle to articulate the solutions they want from their suppliers. Asking customers to define their own solutions yields ideas that are often limited by their own visions of what’s practical or possible. As a result, the responses often fail to create the insight and inspiration to look for a better way. If the folks at SmartCup would’ve asked what improvements I’d most like to see in a coffee lid, I guarantee you I would not have come up with a disposable French press as a solution.

When looking to meet your customers’ needs through innovation:

  • Observe them in their natural surroundings
  • Document their problems and frustrations
  • Rather than ask what innovations or product fixes customers want, encourage them to describe their experiences – both frustrations and joys – when using your products
  • Invite customers to explain how they use your products and what “workarounds” they’ve come up with to make using the products easier
  • Use the information you’ve gathered to engage in some “what if we could….?” thinking with your colleagues to generate new ideas and potential solutions

Until recently, I’m fairly certain that I wouldn’t have looked to the lowly lid as a fix to my coffee woes, much less as a source of innovative thinking.  Lately, though, I’ve been using my morning coffee cup as a reminder to think differently about my own business. Try it – maybe it will work for you, too.

Eric Engwall, Managing Partner
E.G. Insight

Point of View

Listening with an Ear For Innovation

Posted on August 27, 2010 by Rhonda Sunnarborg Comments Off

In Alan Murray’s latest Wall Street Journal article, he mentions that when the Journal’s CEO Council was asked to name the most influential business book, many members cited Clayton Christensen’s The Innovator’s Dilemma. What does Christensen say about innovation that is so compelling? Murray summarizes:

“That book documents how market-leading companies have missed game-changing transformations in industry after industry—computers (mainframes to PCs), telephony (landline to mobile), photography (film to digital), stock markets (floor to online)—not because of ‘bad’ management, but because they followed the dictates of ‘good’ management.

They listened closely to their customers. They carefully studied market trends. They allocated capital to the innovations that promised the largest returns. And in the process, they missed disruptive innovations that opened up new customers and markets for lower-margin, blockbuster products.”

How is it possible to listen closely to customers and still miss the game-changing trends? How can you get an understanding of market changes and be the first to capitalize on cutting-edge opportunities?

  • Ask the right questions. A waiter buzzing by your table, asking “How is your salad?” is unlikely to get responses about the long wait, the impossible parking, or snooty staff. The same can be true of your customer feedback efforts. Narrow questions lead to narrow answers. Asking broader, open-ended questions will give your customers the room to comment on what’s important to them and what may be missing in your current solution equation.

  • Talk to customers and prospects. Start with the 20% of customers who bring in 80% of your business. Since they are heavily reliant upon your products/services and your relationship, they have a lot to say. Plus, they have insight into how their marketplace is changing and what threatens their market share and margin—insights into what new markets may be emerging. (After obtaining this critical feedback, then move out to second/third–tier customers and prospects.)

  • Ask in the right way. Valued customers open up to other people—not a computer screen or piece of paper. Our experience shows that a face-to-face conversation is optimum. It’s the best way to read reactions, probe, and clarify—the best way to achieve understanding. (Save surveys for your second and third–tier customers.)

  • Understand that all feedback is not created equally. As Vince Lombardi said, “Nothing is as unfair as the equal treatment of unequals.” Some people will have greater insights than others due to their experience, their area of focus, and their personal investment in the business relationship. If you listen carefully, you can pick out the golden game-changing comment, even if it isn’t often repeated by others.

Seeing around the next corner can be tricky. Leverage your customer relationships by obtaining critical feedback to drive toward unexpected and profitable innovation.

Rhonda Sunnarborg, Senior Consultant
E.G. Insight
www.eginsight.com

Best Practices, Business-to-Business Sales, Customer Confidence, Customer Feedback, Customer Trust, Point of View, Voice of the Customer

Who Are Your Competitors?

Posted on August 24, 2010 by Rhonda Sunnarborg Comments Off

Did anybody else read the latest Fast Company article about Blockbuster? In it Kevin Lewis, the head of Blockbuster’s digital strategy, makes the following comment about their competition in the phone app market:

“By the way, my biggest competitors in this space are not Amazon, Apple, and Netflix. My biggest competitor is:  What the heck is this thing, and how does it work?”

Touché. Setting aside the often-complicated world of smartphones and the galaxies of available apps, one thing is true – in any business:  your customer gets to decide who your competitors are.

That’s arresting. We may think we know who we’re up against, but do we really? Your biggest competitor may be do-it-yourselfers or a standard-setting company outside of your industry, like FedEx. Companies that seem light-years away from your company may be creating new expectations for your customers – expectations about service, innovation, and value.

We see this all the time. Since E.G. Insight’s in-depth customer interviews include questions about the competition, we know who customers cite. Yes, sometimes it is the obvious choice, like the largest competitor in a particular industry. Other times, it is a company that has raised the bar through personal experience, like Southwest Airlines or Google.

We all think we know who our competitors are, but do we really know?  Why not ask?

Rhonda Sunnarborg, Senior Consultant
E.G. Insight

Best Practices, Business-to-Business Sales, Customer Confidence, Customer Feedback, Customer Trust, Point of View