 If you think surfing the Web is better suited to the home office than to the corner one, think again.
Consider this scenario. Your company recently launched a product, and the buzz surrounding the innovation has been rising steadily. Shortly after the launch, a hazardous defect was detected. You do the damage control drill—recalling the product, reaching out to the media, and gauging customer reactions through your call center and focus groups. You hope your collective response is enough to minimize damage, but you’ve overlooked one important thing: online consumer conversations. Damage was brewing in blogs and message boards as angry consumers dissected your product’s downfall and debated alternatives. If only you had been listening, your company could have responded proactively.
How companies better understand their
customers and markets
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The world of digital communications is burgeoning, and for any business to succeed, it must embed this kind of digital consumer conversation, along with more traditional customer information, into its operations. Millions of Internet-savvy
consumers are now able to (1) instantly
provide feedback via email and text
messages, (2) deeply discuss products and services on message boards, and (3) broadcast their opinions on blogs and social networking sites. This largely untapped chatter constitutes consumer conversation—reflecting the attitudes, behaviors, and intentions of consumers.1
The massive volume and rapid pace of online activity make getting a handle on this fertile ground problematic. Hiring the right people and finding the right tools to analyze business intelligence based on consumer conversation are critical. According to PwC’s Management Barometer, which regularly surveys senior executives on crucial business issues, 31 percent of respondents monitor their customers’ online behavior on a regular basis. Fifty-three percent say their companies use online devices to engage with their customers.2
A consumer electronics company realized the benefits of this approach when its new product was not selling as robustly as expected. Through analyzing online consumer conversations, the company discovered that many customers thought the product was incompatible with other brands. After the company changed its marketing campaign, the product went
on to become a top seller.
As this example demonstrates, companies that engage in digital conversation by analyzing and integrating the findings with other customer data, and, ultimately, by embedding this intelligence will be well positioned to drive business transformation and gain competitive advantage.
1 PricewaterhouseCoopers, How Consumer Conversation Will Transform Business, January 2008.
2 PricewaterhouseCoopers Management Barometer: Consumer Conversations, January 2008.. |
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