the tao of relationship marketing: value customers at every step
DESCRIPTION
Atul Vohra, Vice President of Marketing for Dell Services, discusses the importance of fostering authentic relationships with customers and how to create meaningful customer interactions.TRANSCRIPT
The Tao of Relationship MarketingValue Customers at Every Step
Atul VohraVice President, Dell Services Marketing
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If a brand is the promise, the customer experience is that promise kept or broken.
Like any relationship, it needs to be nurtured
and not taken for granted.
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Start a Relationship• The customer experience
begins with the start of the relationship. It must be easy and full of promise with minimal commitment.
• Customers want to feel recognized, appreciated and in control.
• Consider how many times a customer has to provide his or her contact information?– If it is more than once, you've
already failed.
Things to Remember:• You must show the customer that
you know who they are and they matter.
• First impressions must be welcoming, open, easy and self-paced.
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Avoid the “Deli Effect”
• A company should keep decision-making as simple as possible and avoid the “deli effect.” – In a deli, customers can be faced with too many options.
• Yet at the same time, do not patronize the customer.
• Consider the financial services industry:– Financial institutions understand this dilemma and in response have
created cash management accounts and variable annuities.
“The consumer is not a moron, she is your wife.”- David Ogilvy, Advertiser
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Access the Relationship• Ensure seamless and consistent touch-points with
the customer.– The same level of quality should apply across all touch-
points
• Consider the travel industry’s online experience: – They market fantasy and make online transactions easy
and fast
– But what about offline interactions?
› In-person Airport Check-in
› Customer Service Call Centers
› Security
Don’t Forget Social Media:
• How are you leveraging social channels to facilitate interacting with and listening to customers?
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The New Standard: Are You Ready?• In-person engagements are the moment of truth, but far
less frequent as websites, automated phone systems, and social channels become more prevalent.
• Face-to-face communication is the most expensive form of contact but cements the customer bond. It should be the gold standard.
– Do you have the right people working in positions that match their strengths?
– Does your company create a fabulous experience that can be spread by word of mouth?
• Employees should feel empowered to go beyond protocol to enhance the experience.
– Are there approval barriers stopping them from solving customer experience issues?
– What is the discretionary customer experience budget available for front-line representatives?
The Tao of the Relationship:
• Improving the customer experience should be a way of life for the company.
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A brand is not contained in a single logo, ad, or even a
series of transactions. It is the relationship a customer
has with that organization.
Thank You