December 16, 2009
Is customer reference management an untapped discipline like public relations might once have been? Was there a time when organizations didn’t proactively look for media opportunities or form strategies for maximizing their impact?
Take a look the definition of public relations from Wikipedia.
Public relations (PR) is the practice of managing the flow of information between an organization and its publics…Because public relations places exposure in credible third-party outlets, it offers a third-party legitimacy that advertising does not have.
I would argue that customer reference management is very much the same except the end points are between customer and the community: which may be prospects, investors, analysts or media themselves.
Certainly the credibility of third-party has the same effect. Yet surprisingly, organizations are just beginning to give focus and attention to manage this flow.
Today positive and negative information flows in ways like never before. It seems remiss not to look for ways to maximize opportunities, amplify and channel constructive messages, and invest in strategies and programs towards those ends. I wonder what Bernays would have to say on the subject.
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Posted by Joshua Horwitz
December 10, 2009
We would like to take a minute to invite you to attend the next meeting of the Boston Customer Reference Professionals. These meetings are super informative and a great way to connect with other professionals in the reference community.
The next Boston Customer Reference quarterly meeting will be held at The MathWorks located in Natick, MA on February 5th from 12:30-3:30.
The topics of discussion will be “Running a Global Reference Program”, and “Permission for leveraging reference activities from a contractual perspective”.
If you are interested in attending please contact Kara Manfredi at karamanfredi@deltek.com. If you are not located in the Boston area and still would like to attend please let Kara know as there are several members located outside of MA. Kara will provide dial in and webex details.
Happy Holidays !
2 Comments | Customer References, What's happening | Tagged: customer reference management, Customer Reference Portal, Events, Reference Program | Permalink
Posted by Joshua Horwitz
December 1, 2009
If you are interested in best practices for building references, you might want to check out this recorded webinar on Customer Reference Recruitment Strategies. It was prepared based on feedback from some of our clients that have the formula down.
I’ll give you the key points here, but definitely check out the webinar itself for the full picture!
1. Build your strategy. Define what you are looking for and how you are going to get there. Don’t just wait for it to happen. Use survey techniques and some simple math to understand what you need and how much of it based on the audiences you intend to serve.
2. Communicate. Reach out to the different groups within your company that work with customers. Let them know what you are doing and why. Anticipate their concerns with information about why customers won’t be overused. Set expectations clearly and hold to those promises at all cost.
3. Make it easy. Ensure that your process is easy! Don’t ask too much of your participants at any one time. Use clearly defined forms and an organized way to keep track, this way nobody has to guess what to do and nothing falls through the cracks. Stick to your guns when people try to take short cuts, guiding them back to your process. Reinforcement of good behavior is key!
4. Ring the bell. Most important, celebrate your successes! Bring that visibility to executives and don’t be afraid of internal marketing. Use metrics to show results, branding to create an identity and campaigns to increase awareness. The more buzz you can create, the more it drives people to want to be a part of it.
The webinar is about 20 minutes and goes into a lot more depth. Enjoy!
Leave a Comment » | Customer References, Program Tips | Tagged: customer reference program, Recruit | Permalink
Posted by Joshua Horwitz
