Bob Thompson

I know, that "2.0" thing has been overdone. It's been used to signify the next generation of the Internet (Web 2.0), collaboration (Enterprise 2.0) and much more.

When it comes to Voice of Customer (VoC), however, I'd like to take a different tack this time. It's true that VoC efforts have changed in recent years from being mainly about surveys to incorporating more types of feedback (behavioral, social, etc.). See the 6 feedback dimensions in this diagram I created a couple of years ago.

But that's not really what "next-generation" VoC is about. No, VoC 2.0 is about actually getting business value from customer feedback.

In our most recent CX Forum webinar, this issue was brought to light early on by Claire Sporton of Confirmit in this...

Last year a ClickFox survey found Apple scored highest in brand loyalty.

This year, a similar survey found Apple once again in the top spot. More than one in four (28%) voted Apple as the top brand consumer can't live without. None of the other top 5 (Starbucks, Google, Microsoft and Amazon) cracked 4%.

Asked why they picked that brand, consumers picked these as the top 3 "crucial" factors: brand quality (60%), ease of use (46%) and features (40%). However, these overall results are probably skewed by Apple's dominance as a favorite brand.

OK, so what? These results look much like other loyalty/brand surveys. I discussed the survey with ClickFox VP of Marketing Jeff Gossman, who said these findings stood out:

A few years ago, my family experienced frequent power outages at our home during bad storms. One time, the power to a sump pump cut out when we needed it most. Result: $5,000 of water damage. Needless to say, that day I had some choice words for our electricity provider, Pacific Gas & Electric.

Unfortunately, if a utility doesn't do its job, U.S. consumers can't pick up the phone and easily switch to another supplier. The U.S. energy market is essentially a bunch of regional monopolies, with regulations imposed by federal and state government to make sure customers are not mistreated.

Intense competition is the best incentive to innovate and provide great customer experiences. So you can understand why utilities are not top of mind when I think of customer-centric success stories. I searched PG&E's 2012 annual report...

In the mid-1980s during my time at IBM, I remember an "empowerment" initiative that swept through the company. We attended training programs and learned that to be empowered meant we had to take more responsibility and be accountable for the results. Over the next couple of years the strategy unfolded, as IBM pushed more authority to lower levels of the organization. Eventually I headed up a "business unit" with P&L responsibility and had more authority to make decisions on discretionary spending.

Looking back, it's not clear to me that these changes had any real impact on our business results. Still, I felt good that IBM gave me a bit more authority. That's an example of what academic researchers call "psychological empowerment"—giving employees a sense of control in how they do their jobs. This can lead to higher levels of job satisfaction which can boost productivity and increase retention.