A new book by the kings of customer satisfaction surveys, JD Power & Associates, looks like an interesting read.
Satisfaction: How Every Great Company Listens to the Voice of the Customer probably has some lessons the ad industry could use as we try to make our clients value our services more, and help our clients become better companies all-around. From the Amazon description:
Satisfaction offers tactical advice for companies large or small, for product manufacturers, service providers, and retailers alike. It delivers not just a stockpile of customer research, but a road map to developing specific policies and processes. It also tells fascinating stories of companies that don’t just talk the talk, but walk the walk every day-and of other companies that ignored the voice of the customer, with dire consequences.
As company founder J. D. Power III writes in his introduction: “The consumer is no longer the passive recipient but has been transformed by the Internet and the availability of knowledge into a powerbroker for him or herself. Buyers in auto dealerships, patients in hospitals, travelers in hotels are now unwilling to compromise. They have high expectations and the data to back them up. The customer’s voice is louder and clearer than ever, and attention must be paid.”
You can read some excerpts here.