Customer Advisory Board

Regardless of the economic climate, it is always easier and cheaper to keep customers rather than go find new ones! If you are a “market-driven” company, then you will want regular feedback from your customers. One way to solicit input and have an on-going dialog from your customers is to have a Customer Advisory Board. A Customer Advisory Board is typically made up of “strategic” customers and/or partners and key members from your staff. You will want to have a set of customers that represents a broad segment of your market – different industries, segments/markets and user types. Establish a meeting on a regular basis (perhaps quarterly or twice a year – depending on your business). Ideally you want to be face-to-face. If that isn’t possible there are a number of technologies that you can use. Consider mixing it up –maybe face-to-face meetings twice a year and then video, conference calls, webinars, etc. for other dialogs.

Topics for your Customer Advisory Board can include product direction (new markets, products or features), getting feedback on marketing messages, documenting service/support requirements, or testing out new pricing and/or packaging ideas to name a few. Another key topic will be to continue to keep your pulse on your customers business and how the economic and political climate is impacting them. These can be some important early indicators for your business, especially to gage when they feel that they are heading out of the recession.

The Advisory Board will often have topics for you too! When I ran Customer Advisory Board’s, customers always came up with new ideas that hadn’t been thought of. The Customer Advisory Board is there to provide you with inputs, ideas and validation. Your customers will benefit as they often get to see/hear about what is coming next before everyone else and you are continuing to build a strong relationship with them by making them an integral part of your business. Make sure you have an agreed upon agenda prior to each meeting that states what you will cover and what you want to accomplish during the meeting so that everyone walks away with value. Your customer’s time is valuable (as is yours) so make sure there is something in it for them too (WIIFM – what’s in it for me).

When you are selling your product/service, you can tout that you value the inputs of your customers so much that you have a Customer Advisory Board to provide on-going feedback to the organization. Be prepared to be amazed at what you will learn from your customers, not to mention that they will be feeling your “love” knowing that you pay attention to them.