Customer wows can beat economic woes
[Fiona Ross] Adopting a customer-centric approach can be a winning business model in tough economic times. 20 Aug 2008 13:13

The customer loyalty myth
[Erika Morphy] Do loyal customers translate into steady sales or profits? Intuitively, the answer should be yes - and indeed, customer loyalty is a significant metric by which companies rate their performance. However, there a few problems with the concept of customer loyalty and a corporate strategy to develop it, according to Esteban Kolsky, practice leader with eVergence. 20 Aug 2008 11:03

Outdoor signage contract to benefit Tshwane retailers
The Tshwane Street Furniture Consortium, comprising Primedia Outdoor and Street Pole Ads, has inked a R69-million, ten-year contract with the Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality to provide new directional street name signs. 19 Aug 2008 12:45

Advertising essential in tough economic times
[Solly Mokgehle] Cut back, trim down, reduce, reduce, REDUCE! In tough economic times, we are bombarded with a barrage of messages about how we should be examining our expenses, cutting back on everything but the essentials and saving money to survive. 19 Aug 2008 09:12

Email marketing lies, lies, lies
[Loren McDonald] I want to expose three lies that email marketers either tell or have told to them by people who should know better. 15 Aug 2008 06:33

North American market for hosted outbound IVR services to more than double by 2013
[Aphrodite Brinsmead] A new report by independent market analyst Datamonitor reveals the North American market for hosted outbound integrated voice response (IVR) services is set to more than double from an estimated $213 million in 2008 to $524 million by 2013. 14 Aug 2008 06:11

The case for sales force transformation
[Peter Gilbert] It is becoming increasingly difficult for companies to differentiate themselves by what they sell. If they are unwilling to differentiate themselves by how they sell, then they will, by default, end up differentiating themselves by how much they sell it for. 13 Aug 2008 09:03

Unified communications: Lifeblood of the contact centre
[Steve Lawrence] What is unified communications (UC) and why do you need it? UC is not unified messaging, and it isn't a unified desktop. But both of these technology solutions help to support a unified communications architecture. In fact, according to Aberdeen, a Harte-Hanks Company, UC is the convergence of such technologies as instant messaging, e-mail, voice over Internet protocol (VoIP), presence and e-commerce in or near real-time. 11 Aug 2008 10:49

Retail-marketing company buys plastics factory
Todwil Retail Solutions, a privately owned Cape-based retail-marketing company recently acquired Cape Tech Plastics, a specialist injection moulding company, for an undisclosed sum. 7 Aug 2008 13:51

Sustainability and CRM
[Denis Pombriant] The notion of sustainability as it relates to CRM is worth some thought. CRM is used to accelerate the closing of a deal. But when you accelerate a close, especially with some sort of incentive like a discount, what you're really doing is stealing from the future, and that's not sustainable. 7 Aug 2008 12:20

Treinen to tell of Target's appeal
[ActivRetail] Betsy Treinen, the Director of Strategy and Client Services at Catalyst Studios, has confirmed her attendance as a guest speaker at the Retail Advertising Conference, RAC Lite, next week. Her eight-year hold of the Target brand relationship saw the bulls eye soar from being barely-on-the-map, to one of the most recognisable icons in the United States. 6 Aug 2008 11:59

Message for electronics retailers: Customer service sells
[Jayne O'Donnell] For all that they have in common, major electronics retailers such as Best Buy, Circuit City, Wal-Mart and Target differ in one important - even critical - way. Circuit City, in particular, has cut customer service in order to cut costs, and it has seen sales dive. Best Buy has amped up its customer service, and the chain is flourishing. 6 Aug 2008 11:27

Marketing is under threat
[Prof Roger Sinclair] Marketing is under threat. First it was tobacco, now it is alcohol and food, next it will be motor vehicles, carbonated beverages and fast food restaurants. It is not the damage that these products are capable of that worries me; it is the attack on marketing as the cause that should concern the industry. 6 Aug 2008 10:17