Book Brief: Customers.com

This business bestseller is subtitled "How to Create a Profitable Business Strategy for the Internet and Beyond," by the founder and CEO of a business and technology consulting firm. Her thesis is that a successful business "starts by focusing on your existing customers, figuring out what they want and need, and how you can make life easier for them. Then you can expand your efforts to reel in prospective customers." It's the end-user you need to focus on, she cautions, not just your client who may resell your product or service. Seybold outlines eight critical success factors, each illustrated with case studies and summarized with "lessons learned":

1. Target the right customers (American Airlines and National Semiconductor)
2. Own the customer's total experience (Hertz and Amazon.com)
3. Streamline business processes that impact the customer (Babson College and the National Science Foundation)
4. Provide a 360-degree view of the customer relationship (Bell Atlantic and Wells Fargo)
5. Let customers help themselves (Dell Computer and iPrint)
6. Help customers do their jobs (Boeing and PhotoDisc)
7. Deliver Personalized Service (Dow Jones and General Motors)

8. Foster Community (Cisco Systems and Tripod)

The book is an insightful consultant's view of what works and why.

You may purchase a copy at a discount through Amazon.com through this link.
http://amazon.com/exec/obidos/ISBN=0812930371/wilsoninternetseA/