Customer-Relationship Management

1. Customer-Relationship Management Of the people, by the people, and for the people A slide show by Jennifer Gill

2. Topics • Definitions • Complaint Resolution, Feedback, Guarantees, Corrective Action • Four R’s • Technology • Brainstorming • Chili’s Example • Summary

3. Definitions • “A view of the customer that asserts that he or she is a valuable asset to be managed.” –S. Thomas Foster • Deciding that “you want lifetime clients.” -Richard Buckingham

4. Definitions • “The long-term success of the organization and improved value for its shareholders lies to a very great extent in the company’s ability to develop and sustain genuine relationships with its customer.” -James G. Barnes

5. Four Tools • Complaint Resolution • Feedback • Guarantees • Corrective Action

6. Complaint Resolution • Three types of complaints: Regulatory, Employee, Customer • Compensation • Contrition • Ease of Resolution

7. Feedback • Customer Data • Customer Behavior • Data-gathering • Analyzing Data

8. Guarantees • Customer Rights • Guarantee Design: • Unconditional • Meaningful • Communicable • Painless to invoke

9. Corrective Action • The way a firm reacts to a problem so that the problem never reoccurs.

10. Barnes’ 4 R’s

11. Customer Retention • A low-cost way to increase revenue. Retention is cheaper than acquisition. • Must be voluntary. • Must lead to long-term relationships.

12. Relationships • Attempting to know the customer. • Commitment and Communication • “Clients should call you only once. After that, you should proactively call them.” –Richard Buckingham

13. Referrals • Powerful tool that results from customer satisfaction or dissatisfaction. • “Referral clients are already sold, before they even call you.” –Richard Buckingham

14. Recovery • Empower employees so that they may deal with mistakes as they occur.

15. Technology • Internet communication as a means of enhancing customer relationships. • Ease of use of the technology important.

16. Brainstorm • A customer enters a restaurant and receives bad service, bad food, and overall dissatisfaction. Use Foster’s tools or Barnes’ 4 R’s to resolve the problem.

17. Chili’s Vision • State College’s local Chili‘s deals with customer complaints using the following techniques: • Feedback: Talk to customer • Resolution: Pay for meal • Corrective Action: Managers meetings, cooks meetings, changes

18. Summary • Customer-Relationship Management is not easily defined. • Long-term relationships must be established which are based on trust and communication. • Each firm must decide on its own policy regarding customer relationship, however, the entire organization must be involved in the process.

19. Quotes • “You can learn a lot about our motorcycle company by understanding our customers. By valuing and responding to our customers, we have become the leader in the heavyweight motorcycle market.” –Harley-Davidson website • “The customers’ first choice in casual dining.” –Chili’s Vision

20. Works Cited • Barnes, James G. Secrets of Customer Relationship Management. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2001. • Buckingham, Richard. Customer Once, Client Forever. Washington, D.C.: The Kiplinger Washington Editors, Inc., 2001. • Foster, S. Thomas. Managing Quality: An Integrative Approach. Upper Saddle River: Prentice Hall, 2001. • www.harley-davidson.com • Henry, Todd. Interview on September 27,2001. • Massnick, Forler. The Customer is CEO. New York: American Management Association, 1997.