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SKIP & CONTINUE TO SITE McGraw-Hill to publish THE CUSTOMER RULES, Britt Beemer’s Insights on Marketing Excellence McGraw-Hill, one of the world's foremost business information companies, will add THE CUSTOMER RULES, a new book by C. Britt Beemer, CEO of America's Research Group (ARG) and best-selling author, Robert L. Shook, to its comprehensive portfolio of business books that are essential reading for today's executives. Based on extensive marketing research conducted by ARG and interviews with senior managers of leading companies, the book reveals the mindset of today's customers and what companies must do to meet their needs. THE CUSTOMER RULES will be released in September 2008. "It’s the customer who determines the ultimate success of a company," say the authors. They go on to demonstrate through examples of successful companies that "all marketing decisions must be focused on serving the customer." The authors conducted extensive interviews with senior managers at leading companies such as: Johnson & Johnson, Four Seasons, Edward Jones, Lexus, Harrah's, Cabela's, Chubb, NetJets, Pulte Homes, RE/MAX and Mary Kay. All of these companies are marketing-driven organizations where taking care of customers is not idle lip service—it is an attitude deeply embedded in the corporate culture. The individuals interviewed are cited throughout the book. During difficult periods such as today’s economy is experiencing, many companies cut back on customer services. "This is the wrong approach," Beemer insists, "You don’t increase market share by reducing your overhead." In Chapter 1, Everyone’s Job, of THE CUSTOMER RULES, it is explained that every job description must articulate how one’s job relates to the customer. Here, during extensive ARG interviews, employees were asked such questions as: "Has your supervisor ever talked about how your job serves the customer?" "Describe how you think your work relates to the customer." "How often (if ever) do you interface with customers?" One ARG study revealed that only 21% of all American employees are able to recite their company's mission statement. The mission of truly great marketing organizations: win lifetime customers. For instance, Chapter 5, The Total Customer Experience, Before, During, and After the Sale, underscores how these companies anticipate the needs of the customer prior to a first contact, and they treat him royally during and after the sale. Chapter 10, Different Tiers of Customers discusses how the consumer is not the only customer; others include franchisees, dealers, etc. And in Chapter 13, The Value of a Customer, the authors assess repeat business and the worth of a lifetime customer. In today's highly competitive marketplace, THE CUSTOMER RULES provides new insight that will make for must-reading throughout corporate America. This is Beemer and Shook's third collaboration, following "It Takes a Prophet to Make a Profit" and "Predatory Marketing." McGraw-Hill Companies is a leading global information services provider meeting worldwide needs in the financial services, education and business information markets. CONTINUE TO SITE |