The Seven Myths of Customer Management - by John Abram & Paul Hawkes (Hardcover)

Book Synopsis

Die Kunden - sie sind der größte Aktivposten eines Unternehmens und die Hauptquelle für langfristige Wertschöpfung in einem Unternehmen. Doch anders als andere Aktivposten, verändern sich die Kunden permanent. Deshalb muss man besonders sorgsam mit ihnen umgehen, wenn man die Erträge, die sie dem Unternehmen bescheren, maximieren will.

"The Seven Myths of Customer Management" sagt Ihnen, wie erfolgreiches Customer Management aussieht.

Die Autoren kritisieren, dass dem Thema Kundenzufriedenheit und der Vorrangstellung des Kunden eine viel zu große Bedeutung beigemessen wurde, und zwar auf Kosten kompromissloser Kommerzialisierung.

Die meisten Unternehmen hätten bei ihrer übertriebenen Kundenorientiertheit vergessen, dass die oberste Geschäftsregel heisst, Geld zu verdienen.

Dieses pragmatische Buch räumt auf mit dem weit verbreiteten "Der Kunde ist König"-Klischee und zerstört die sieben Mythen des Customer Management, wie z.B. 'Die Kundenbindung ist der Schlüssel zu erhöhter Rentabilität' oder 'Kundenzufriedenheit führt zu Kundentreue' oder aber 'Wiederholungskäufe sind dasselbe wie Kundentreue'.

Es stellt einen Aktionsplan auf, der Schritt-für-Schritt erklärt, wie man Kundenorientierung und kommerzielle Ziele miteinander in Einklang bringt.

Ziel des Buches ist es, dass Unternehmen lernen, kundenorientiert zu sein, aber nicht kundengesteuert.

From the Back Cover

The Seven Myths of Customer Management is about developing customer focus. It is not about being 'nice' to customers; it is about creating a sustainable and profitable business. This book argues that far too much has been made of customer satisfaction and the primacy of the consumer, far too little about balancing customer orientation with sharp-edged commercialism.

Written in a lively and readable style, The Seven Myths of Customer Management uses anecdotes and charts to illustrate practical and pragmatic advice on how to become more customer focused--the essential balance between the twin evils of customer- or company orientation.

The book begins by dispelling seven myths that have achieved almost folkloric status.

It then moves on to discuss how to achieve true customer understanding, calculate their value and manage them profitably--in the real world! It shows how to align the whole organisation behind common, customer-focused commercial goals; and highlights the reasons why so many companies are failing to achieve their latent customer value. Finally, it provides a step-by-step action plan describing how to put the pieces together, including what needs to be done, when and why.

The Seven Myths of Customer Management is for anybody who deals with customers or is responsible for corporate profitability. It is for everybody who is inquisitive and wonders whether there is a different and more successful path...

Review Quotes

"...is a stimulating canter through some marketing mantras, dismantling them fairly and frankly before suggesting alternatives..." (Marketing, 16 October 2003)

"... iconoclastic..." (Admap, February 04)

"...The myths put CRM into perspective, explaining what to use and what to discard." (Brand Strategy, September 2006)

About the Author

John Abram began his career selling industrial textiles to major customers in industries as diverse as mining, water treatment and pollution control. He was promoted to head the firm's business development functions in the UK, where he was responsible for introducing one of the earliest examples of automated customer management systems used in the UK.

He was recruited by American Express in 1978 and appointed Marketing Manager, with responsibility for Cardmember recruitment and retention, as well as cross-sales of complementary products and services.

In 1981, backed by a leading publishing firm, he started his own business promoting a range of products and services to entrepreneurs and business managers. In 1984, he bought out his original backers and took the business on to become a significant innovator in the promotion of investment products by phone and post, being the first in the country to sell personal pension plans direct to consumers.

Paul Hawkes joined American Express Card Division in 1975 and subsequently became Marketing Manager for the merchant network in the UK and Ireland. In 1979, he moved to Time-Life Books and was promoted to become European Marketing Vice President, responsible for mail order and retail marketing and sales, new product development and co-publishing relationships across 14 countries within Europe and Africa.

He was a director of the British Direct Marketing Association and a Council Member of both the Association of Mail Order Publishers and the Mail Order Publishers' Authority; and is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Marketing. He is now a director of the Virtual Partnership Ltd.

John and Paul co-founded Abram, Hawkes plc in January 1987, the UK's foremost consultancy specialising in marketing and customer management; or, more simply, advising and assisting organisations on how to grow revenues and build customer profitability. They sold the company at the beginning of 2000 to Valoris, a major European consulting firm.