You have huge amounts of data...so why are you starved of knowledge?

Despite spending hours on the 'phone or onlinethrough computers has become so depersonalised
your customers are just not connecting with you,as to be dangerous to the very well being of yor
resulting in angry customers hanging up and goingbrands and business.
elsewhere.And, sad to say, any new channel of
We are becoming more and more divided bycommunication simply increases managements'
technology. Your customers' dread interactiveopportunity to repeat mistakes. For example if
voice-response, the on-hold music that doublesyou send an email, your call centre will not have
the annoyance of queuing, the codes andseen it!
passwords, are all barriers to effectiveAs we said earlier, all resulting from a complete
communication.misunderstanding of that word "communication".
The rage among your customers has reach anSo let us examine that word 'communication' a
intensity which is now causing great damage tolittle more closely. A dictionary definition of
your relationships with your customrs. We arecommunication is as follows:
now dehumanizing our customer relationshipsCommunication. n.1. Transmitting 2. A giving or
even more than conventional advertising ever did,exchange of information, etc by talk, writing b)
the very objective of which was to do the exactthe information so given 3. A means of
opposite!communication 4. The science of transmitting
Your customers appear to be invisible to youinformation.
except as computer generated stereotypes, whileThe interesting fact is the expression 'the
your organisation is viewed as remote andexchange of information'.
unreachable causing stress and suspicion ratherCommunication is not a one-way flow of
than customer satisfaction.information. Talking at or to someone does not
According to a recent study by databaseimply successful communication. This only occurs
software specialist Data Vantage, fully 89% ofwhen the receiver actually receives the message,
service providers are failing to deliver thewhich the sender intended to send. Message
seamless service your customers want.rejection,misinterpretation and misunderstanding
Causing damage to your brands, customers toare the opposite of effective communication .
defect, thus putting more pressure on sales.This basic model assumes that the sender is
It would appear that most customer informationactive, whilst the receiver is inactive or passive
in to days service organisations, expensivelyand the message is comprehended properly. In
acquired, is wasted, and what does get throughthis case if the message is creatively prepared
to Management is contaminated, diluted orand sent through the right medium and if it cuts
otherwise unusable.through all the other noise, and then if it is
All this results in huge amounts of waste.decoded correctly the message has done its job!
Companies are drowing in data however, theyIn closing please allow me to stress that we are,
are, oddly enough, starved of knowledge!despite appearances, creating more problems than
All resulting from a complete misunderstanding ofwe realise, all this new technology is doing is
that little word "communication".alienating your customers more than ever before.
It would appear, understandably I hasten to add,With all the other problems, clutter, meaningless
that one of the main reasons this frustration andnoise, mistrust, it is now vital that we rethink our
anger occurs, is when one of your customersposition on all commercial communication. The fact
calls your 'phone centre to complain about a billis that you, the Client, can literally halve your
and then they receive a threatening remindercolossal marketing budgets and armed with a true
through the post a week later!interpretation and understanding of the word
In reality you and your customers are being'communication' and be more cost effective...on all
divided by technology. your relationship,conductedcounts!