Streetwise Relationship Marketing on the Internet [Englisch] [Taschenbuch]

Streetwise is devoted exclusively to business topics. From writing business plans, to financing, to building Web site traffic, these books provide everything ambitious business professionals need. Business happens in the real world, not the classroom. Streetwise recognises this and delivers the goods - fast. No fluff. No wasted time. Just cutting-edge information managers and small business entrepreneurs need to run their business successfully.

Streetwise is devoted exclusively to business topics. From writing business plans, to financing, to building Web site traffic, these books provide everything ambitious business professionals need. Business happens in the real world, not the classroom. Streetwise recognises this and delivers the goods - fast. No fluff. No wasted time. Just cutting-edge information managers and small business entrepreneurs need to run their business successfully.

A realistic alternative to overly-complex personalization
Although 1 to 1 marketing and personalization schemes are currently in vogue, studies have shown that overly complex personalization schemes are inappropriate for most web sites.

The reasons for the failure of complex personalization are both technical and personal.

First, it takes a great deal of complex programming to make elaborate personalization schemes work. This translates into high development costs and expensive delays. Studies have shown that, even after the infrastructure is in place, elaborate schemes are often neglected because of the effort needed to implement them.

Second, past behavior doesn't always acccurately predict future behavior and customers can often easily see through insincere personalization schemes. Insincere personalization drops to the level of a "Have a nice day" delivered at the drive-up window of your favorite fast food joint.

As an alternative to impractically complicated personalization schemes, in The Streetwise Guide to relationship Marketing on the Internet I propose a simple, easily-implemented 5-stage Customer Development Cycle. The five stages include:

1. Awareness 2. Comparison 3. Transaction 4. Reinforcement 5. Advocacy

The goal is to provide different information to customers at each of the five stages.

The Streetwise Guide to Relationship Marketing on the Internet also describes the need to create an on-going synergy between e-mail and web site.

E-mail is used to "drive" customers from level to level of the Customer Development Cycle.

Numerous case studies are included to bring the 5-stage Customer Development Cycle to life in The Streetwise Guide to Relationship Marketing on the Internet. The goal is also to provide readers with a framework for identifying and delivering the information customers and prospects need at each level of the Customer Development Cycle.

In addition, my web site, www.NewEntrepreneur.com contains downloadable .PDF and Word .DOC files for the worksheets included in The Streetwise Guide to Relationship Marketing on the Internet. The purpose of these worksheets is to make it as easy as possible to put the book's lessons to work.

These are exciting times. For over thirty years, I've been advocating customer retention rather than customer acquisition (which is inevitably more expensive).

For the first time, thanks to the Web and e-mail, customer retention is now feasible for firms of all types.