Remedy to declining profits and share price

At last, Dell is listening to the customers. Sometimes, it takes continuous declining profits and share price to force a company to listen to its customers. It makes me wonder why it is not natural for companies to listen to the customers. Have they not heed Sam Walton's advice? He said "There is only one boss. The customer, and he can fire everybody in the company from the chairman on down, simply by spending his money somewhere else."

Recently, Dell launched several Web2.0 initiatives with the hope of reviving the company, i.e.

1. Self-awareness program

2. A site that lets anyone offer suggestions and vote other people's ideas up or down

3. A self-help site

4."Dear Michael" postcards with the computers he shipped. (A pre-Web2.0 feedback mechanism)

The self awareness program has a squad of 42 employees who spend their workdays engaging with the communities on Facebook, Twitter, and other social media. I wonder which profit-driven company would put 42 people on the payroll to surf and chat from 9am to 5pm.

The self-help site is my favourite because it allows people solve one another’s tech problems. Dell should take it further by allowing the users to rate the ‘helpers’. The 5-star ‘helpers’ become ambassadors of Dell. Every aspiring tech support geek would love to have a badge of honor.

Interestingly, here are the results of these initiatives :

"The latest quarterly figures from the University of Michigan's customer satisfaction index show that Dell is at the top of the rankings again for Windows PC makers, as rivals HP and Gateway sink. According to a study Dell commissioned from measurement firm Visible Technologies, negative sentiment toward the Dell brand has dropped from 48% in 2006 to 23% today. Even some of Dell's harshest critics are softening a bit after the company's recent online moves. Ben Popken, editor of the Consumerist blog, says, "They've been downgraded from evil to bumbling."

Can a Malaysian company emulate Dell? Boleh, tak?

Service us. Listen to us. And in return, I will pledge my loyalty!

Are you a good listener and a better "actor"?

Most companies proclaim in the mission statement that they listen to the customers. The toll free numbers, walk-in counters, dedicated email address, blogs are proof of its commitment towards listening to the customers.

However, not many listen and act on the feedback. Majority of the companies introduce products or services based on their years of working in the industry (I call it gut feel), casual opinions from focus gropus (participants are paid to talk right?) or by suit wearing consultants flow in for the job. Interestingly, Soothe Spa is one company that didn't use those approaches. Proabably because spa owner, London Elist doesn't have any gut feel or money to pay focus group participants or hire consultants. Instead, she uses a simple technology to her advantage. She listens and acts on the feeback.

"After an appointment Genbook sends an e-mail to the customer asking for feedback. One client wrote that Soothe's salon beds were too hard, so Elise added more padding. Another client said the rooms were too cold, so Elise adjusted the thermostat. And after one woman wrote that the wall paint in the salon's bathroom looked shabby, Elise enlisted a painter to give the walls a new coat that same week.

"Our clients are participating," says a giddy Elise. "It's what I always wanted."

This approach enables London Elist to invest in areas (padding, wall paint) that are most relevant to the customers. Sometimes, limited resources eg. money is a good thing.

I can't recall the last time a company I patronises send me an email.

Can a Malaysian company out there take up the challenge (and send me an email or a sms)? Boleh,tak?