Tag Archives: Shared

What Are Good Metrics for a Service Company? Four Recommendations

Situation: A service company has been debating internally about which metrics they should use to evaluate company performance. This is important because it ties both to strategy, marketing, and bonus compensation. The CEO seeks advice based on the experience of others. What are good metrics for a service company?

Advice from the CEOs:

  • For a service company the key goal is delivery of a consistent quality product/service to the customer – as a company rather than as individual performers.
    • Instituting regular activities or meetings to infuse the company’s “special sauce” to projects will help assure consistent quality of service delivery.
  • To generate support and consensus within the company, ask employees what they would do to develop metrics to assure delivery of quality.
    • Have a clear view in mind of what the metrics should achieve – the result rather than the fully detailed process – before initiating this exercise and articulate this result as the desired objective.
    • Remain open to ideas from the group.
    • Use the exercise to establish a shared vision and to generate the best possible set of metrics to support the desired result.
  • Once both the metrics and a methodology for delivering the result have been selected – for example, weekly performance review meetings if this is the answer – then institutionalize these. It may be best to start with a “trial process” to refine details of the process.
    • An efficient regular process review meeting may save the company more than the 3 hours that it takes (preparation + travel + meeting) for this process.
    • If there are many “islands” of employees working at different company locations, consider organizing meetings into geographically convenient archipelagos.
    • Establish, within the service review process a “patented” company process that focuses on quality delivery. Publicize the existence of this process (not the details) when speaking with existing or potential clients. This is a key part of the company’s essential differentiation and “value add”.
  • Establish a definition of quality for the company.
    • Develop this as the company’s vision.
    • Develop the methodologies to consistently deliver this quality.
    • Long-term, drive this to professional training systems to consistently produce this quality.

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Can Social Marketing Leverage Your Competitive Position? Six Points

Situation: A company seeks to leverage the difference between information from traditional media and the richer information available through social media. Their objective, using publicly available information, is to identify individuals’ specific plans or preferences to better target their clients’ marketing dollars. Can social marketing leverage your competitive position?

Advice from the CEOs:

  • The principal value proposition is the ability to mine publicly available information from consumers through social media and make it useful to advertisers who want to reach those customers.
  • If the company’s technology allows access to shared data which can be used by many companies this is less expensive than clients’ trying to go it alone.
  • The most important differentiation will be the timeliness of data. Many firms collect data after the fact – for example after a key purchase is made. What advertisers desire is the ability to anticipate purchases. An example is a consumer’s plan to buy a house. This information is valuable to many companies. If data is mineable, it is valuable.
  • The essential question is how the client will make more money from data being near-real time. If the client can use the company’s data to enhance their marketing database, this adds value.
  • Consider partnering with the agencies that B2B and B2C companies hire to advertise their products. Even the largest consumer B2B and B2C companies work with outside ad agencies because these companies have better access to targeted customer lists than the companies.
  • Consider a subscription model, offering access to unique, current data to many customers. The differentiating value is the currency and timeliness of the data. A subscription model generates an ongoing revenue stream.

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How Do You Create a Win-Win Situation? Five Suggestions

Situation: A company collaborates with a large client to provide services to their mutual market. The company wants to offer similar services to secondary markets not currently of interest to the client. The challenge is that the client is very conservative; their current priorities are forcing long delays responding to the company’s requests, and the primary contacts within the client will not take any risks arguing the company’s case to their upper management. How can the company approach this situation to create a win-win situation with this client?

Advice from the CEOs:

  • Since the services provided combine the capabilities of the two companies, it is necessary to develop a strong case to show how the proposed extension of services will benefit the client. Without their agreement the service offering is compromised.
  • One option is to offer a no-risk revenue share or royalty arrangement to the client in exchange for their agreement to allow you to build the secondary markets.
  • A second option is to offer to sell a minority share of your company to the client in exchange for your ability to develop the secondary markets. The deal could include an option to make a larger investment in your company if your strategy plays out profitably.
  • A third option is to raise money and purchase rights to the client’s capabilities outright. It is worth exploring whether the client would be open to this.
  • Find an informal setting to ask the client’s CEO for advice on how you should proceed. Have your ducks in line to offer options if the CEO responds positively.

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