What are we all here for? Don’t panic, I’m not going to be pontificating about the meaning of life, although from a researcher’s perspective, that could have made for an interesting article. No, the question I’m actually referring to is, as we feverishly develop briefs, receive briefs and (hopefully) deliver on brief, are we playing nicely as an industry to really deliver value? And as market researchers, how are we poised to illustrate our relevancy in the marketing world?
So, what are we all here for? The answer (unlike the meaning of life one) is, of course, an obvious one. The client. Nothing more, nothing less. And in order for our client to develop a competitive advantage and create shareholder value, there needs to be a series of value-generating business activities, n’est-ce pas? And that’s of course where we all fit in.
But do we really consider ourselves as interlinked rings that need to collaborate to achieve this shared goal? My sense is no.
Perhaps it’s about keeping the almighty rand to oneself and feeling that including other players will dilute one’s share? Perhaps it’s about not wanting to share the thought platform with others in fear of clients turning their attention elsewhere. Whatever the reason, surely from a client’s perspective the question must be asked “Doesn’t this approach fundamentally de-value the chain?”
Our shared client needs to ensure that the effectiveness of our activities is such that the amount their customer is willing to pay for their offering exceeds the cost of our activities. So we know that our client has a choice: configure the chain to provide lower cost or greater differentiation. I haven’t seen many suppliers in this industry advertising their red-sticker service sale so I’m assuming that we’re all claiming to be offering differentiation to our clients’ businesses.
In order to determine the apex around which this differentiation revolves, I borrow from “the Don’s” advice that a competitive advantage is delivered through 1) the ability to learn more about customers faster than the competition and 2) the ability to turn that learning into action faster than the competition. (Thanks, Mr. Welch!)
And more than that, we have to do it as a team. In fact, no longer can a single company provide the required level of customer nirvana on its own. Daunting, isn’t it?
And finally I’m able to illustrate the role of a market researcher in this team – to be the supporters, inspirers and logicians in the quest for 1 and 2 above.
Let’s begin with the ability to learn more about customers faster:
Companies and their value-chain partners need to start recognising that customers are looking to be collaborators with them in the creation of personalised and delightful experiences. And we must also recognise that customer learning happens all the way up, down and across the value chain. But do we all learn about customers in a manner which enhances our ability to deliver value?
In our experience, the most appropriate way of learning about customers is, quite simply, in an holistic fashion. That is, comprehending the customer in the context of their entire relationship with the organisation, which essentially means three things: 1) customers need to be understood in terms of their heads, hearts and feet 2) understanding what customers thought of you yesterday is important, but their future intentions are even more critical and 3) experiences need to be measured within the framework of customers’ perceptions about things like brand, value and customer focus.
In essence, market researchers should be seen as the envoy of the customer – in their entirety as opposed to the decompartmentalised view that is often delivered.
Moving onto the ability to turn that learning into action faster than the competition:
It’s estimated that the amount of information in the world doubles every 18 months – so having the data is one thing, but really applying that knowledge is another. Across the chain, we need to evangalise customer information to ensure that it lives and breathes. The problem is, we found in our State of Marketing survey that our clients are struggling with this at an enterprise level, never mind throughout the entire value chain. So what are the key success factors for the industry?
There must be widespread support for an environment that gets the right information to the right person at the right time.
It means people must give up their proprietary mindsets. It also means tools, technologies, and techniques must focus on and work for the entire chain, not just one initiative or supplier.
What’s required to turn inaction into action is different for every organisation. What I’ve learned over the years, however, is variables such as flashy packaging and top-down pressure rarely make a long-term difference. Commanding customer information users to act on the information may work the first few times, but in order for the activity to survive and thrive, the decision maker has to believe in the information’s power and potential and recognise there’s some worthwhile payoff for acting on it.
Therefore, across the value chain, media placements, campaigns or promotions need to be held to the same high return on investment (ROI) standard as any other investments the company may be making. There needs to be a compelling link between the initiative, the effect it may have on improving customer perceptions of the client’s organisation and the financial consequences in terms of investment and likely outcomes of increased customer delightment.
In summary, the voice of the customer, to be heard, needs to be a fundamental part of this industry’s strategies. And more than that, we actually have to collaborate to ensure that that voice is truly listened to. Otherwise, get your red stickers out and start sticking!
Suzanne Broadley is an account director stakeholder at Markinor.