A relational approach into MARKETING

Three different business cases. Three different examples that possibly define the strategic marketing orientation of today and tomorrow in financial services industry. All of three below indicated examples want customers' "share of wallet" asking for trust, loyalty and commitment.In other words these three firms desire to build a relational approach with their clientele. I could not agreee more in such a business / marketing approach!! Santander promises to be "simple, personal and fair" in brand revamp. By the way, this is a great advert! . HSBC invites customers to "create their bank" AND Barclays promises a "relentless customer focus" to rebuild trust.

Customer's purchasing power

The traditional image of organizations and their markets with two distinctly defined actors, the buyer and the seller, dissolves into a complex network
Gummesson (1995)

Let's consider some facts in the business world and use the example of smart phones to rationalize our discussion.
1. Big customers are getting bigger posing a threat for organizations that have to constantly improvise and produce faster solutions to the customers' needs - see the developing story of RIM.
Research in Motion is the company behind the BlackBerry product line. Research In Motion (RIM), a global leader in wireless innovation, revolutionized the mobile industry with the introduction of the BlackBerry® solution in 1999. The BlackBerry product line includes the BlackBerry® PlayBook™ tablet, the award-winning BlackBerry smartphone, software for businesses and accessories. BlackBerry products and services are used by millions of customers around the world to stay connected to the people and content that matter most throughout their day. The management of RIM prepares now to launch the much delayed BlackBerry 10 operating system in the hope of making up ground lost to Apple and their iphone line and eventually Samsung and its brand new Galaxy S 111 line.

The launch of the BB10 operating system, seen as integral to the company’s ability to regain some of the market share it has lost to its rivals, has been pushed back until the start of next year, while falling sales have led to double-digit revenue drops.BlackBerry has an 11% smartphone market share in the UK, according to Ipsos Mori data for April. Apple’s iPhone is the most popular smartphone in the UK, with a 19% share, while 15% of smartphone owners have an Android device.

2. Customers are rationalising their product / services supplier base simply because "the winner takes it all"

3. Customers have become more product / services sophisticated due to media and communication patterns. Most arguably, any new product - brand information travels extremely fast and customers know safely more now about their future purchases

4. Customers prefer tailor-made solutions asking for differentiation. Who is the supplier and through which distribution channels who will be able to provide this sense, this feeling of differentiation?
5. The cost of serving customers is no doubt increasing - we now need now more and better equipped points of sale, close to the customer
6. In this sense, suppliers and customers are developing new ways of working together - thus a need for developing relational sales-reps

However, it is also true, that suppliers are still interested principally in volume generation. Whilst suppliers are somehow interested in the potential for ‘added value’, most still do not measure account profitability.
How organiztions react to the increasing customer power? 
Do we feel that the solution reflects on plain transactional marketing or shift progressively towards a relational approach focusing on the Total Value that a Customer generates for an organization?
In my opinion, management of a customer focused firm should never forget the good - old marketing recipe total customer value parameters:

TOTAL VALUE OF CUSTOMER =

[CUSTOMER LIFE TIME VALUE + RELATIONSHIP BENEFITS] X ECONOMIC RISK

In differentiating a total product / service offer compared to competition, line management has an opportunity to maximize offers to customers (e.g. the relationship benefit focus). No doubt, the relationship benefit may be at risk if the relationship goes badly. Maybe, the relationship benefit be obtained anyway, even without the relationship. However, the relationship focus increases the probability of benefit for all parts involved during the buyer - seller transaction process.

According to Pigues and Alderman (2010) there are six reasons why companies lose:
1) We do not understand the customer's perspective
2) There is not enough quantitative rigor
3) Data collected never finds its way into planning or execution
4) We rely on individual surveys versus a continuous process
5) The organization is not aligned or involved
6) There is no systematic playbook

Entrepreneurs Need Creative Thinking After the Idea

Most aspiring entrepreneurs believe their initial idea and inspiration requires the most important creative thinking. Experienced entrepreneurs will tell you that the initial idea is the easy part, and it’s the later implementation, and the competitive business marketing that are the real creative challenges.

Entrepreneurs Need to Brand Themselves First

Starting a business is usually the result of a personal dream or need. what does it mean to “brand yourself?” Branding yourself means making yourself visible, and communicating via all avenues your personal value and what your stand for, with total clarity and consistency. It’s especially important to highlight your uniqueness in some easy to remember way, so people will think of you and what you do, in case they need your product or service.

TNT TV channel in Belgium Drama commercial

To launch the high quality TV channel TNT in Belgium marketers placed a big red push button on an average Flemish square of an average Flemish town.
A sign with the text "Push to add drama" invited people to use the button.

AND THEY DID.

See what happened in the video and judge for yourselves the power of marketing...