You're a leading provider of a product or service in your field. You're regarded as such, and you want it to stay that way. It's an important part of your brand. You've got User Groups whom you consult every so often and you're getting useful feedback. You're utilising the web too - with demos and training and support online.
How do you stay ahead in times of economic uncertainty and with increased efforts by your competitors threatening your position?
Simple. Invite everyone to contribute. The benefits stretch far beyond 'just' more regular feedback from more users. Customers, partners, targets and employees all have something useful to tell you.
By creating communities - in the shape of a forum/discussion site - you'll reinforce your ‘thought leadership’, gain advance market research, foster innovation amongst the community which can feed straight into your roadmap, speed time to market, increase your audience's exposure to other products and improve customer service and support by (and this is a really good bit) getting your users to generate a really useful knowledge base. Its also a great way to elevate your brand visibility and increase brand loyalty.
So, facilitate interaction through discussion and add a 'Social Network'. Then consider hosting events (live and using the likes of Webex). And don't forget the other Web 2.0 tools, especially updating by blogging and RSS. Then continue the process of getting closer to your users by personalising your messaging through broadcast emails tailored to their profiles.
What about within your organisation? The above affects Development, Sales, Marketing, Operations, IT, Training and Support. All of whom can gain immediate reaction to ideas and new developments, and can monitor and measure responses, react and respond quickly and directly, and report on success. And every employee should be encouraged to join in too.
However you choose to formulate your online communities, you'll gain a competitive advantage, instead of missing the opportunity at a cost to the business you can only guess at.
Posted by:
Peter Greatorex, Managing Director, Page Nine Ltd. www.page9.co.uk
How do you stay ahead in times of economic uncertainty and with increased efforts by your competitors threatening your position?
Simple. Invite everyone to contribute. The benefits stretch far beyond 'just' more regular feedback from more users. Customers, partners, targets and employees all have something useful to tell you.
By creating communities - in the shape of a forum/discussion site - you'll reinforce your ‘thought leadership’, gain advance market research, foster innovation amongst the community which can feed straight into your roadmap, speed time to market, increase your audience's exposure to other products and improve customer service and support by (and this is a really good bit) getting your users to generate a really useful knowledge base. Its also a great way to elevate your brand visibility and increase brand loyalty.
So, facilitate interaction through discussion and add a 'Social Network'. Then consider hosting events (live and using the likes of Webex). And don't forget the other Web 2.0 tools, especially updating by blogging and RSS. Then continue the process of getting closer to your users by personalising your messaging through broadcast emails tailored to their profiles.
What about within your organisation? The above affects Development, Sales, Marketing, Operations, IT, Training and Support. All of whom can gain immediate reaction to ideas and new developments, and can monitor and measure responses, react and respond quickly and directly, and report on success. And every employee should be encouraged to join in too.
However you choose to formulate your online communities, you'll gain a competitive advantage, instead of missing the opportunity at a cost to the business you can only guess at.
Posted by:
Peter Greatorex, Managing Director, Page Nine Ltd. www.page9.co.uk
