(A summary from a recent WSJ article by Martin Roth and Richard Ettenson)
Advanced economies have a particular way of dealing with downturns, which often include hunkering down and waiting it out. However, lessons can be had from emerging markets where economic uncertainty is the only certainty. So, what can we learn? Here are some quick lessons.
An office products company in South America offers good service in good markets, and great service when the economy sours. For example, they might make more follow-up calls after servicing a product. And, they might make calls on customers without trying to sell them anything, but rather focus on issues of importance to the customer that might be helpful in solving customer problems at a later date. Imagine that â€" a sales call without an attempt at a sale. I can see how that customer might engage in more conversations with that vendor than with other vendors. If they have conversations that truly benefit the customer and not just themselves, they will build customer loyalty.
Two telecom companies (one in South Africa, the other in India), are beating Western companies by offering tremendously flexible mobile phone usage plans. For example, they allow people to buy minutes over their handsets, on the Internet, through ATMs, and through specialized kiosks. The point here is that companies have to be willing to change their offerings quickly and often (see Responding Competitively during a Recession) to address market changes. And these companies are winning business with these flexible approaches.
Another suggestion comes from the mobile phone industry. A telecom provider in the Dominican Republic outsmarted its competitors by looking beyond typical measurements of success such as ARPU and churn rate. They conducted scenario planning including key macroeconomic factors such as inflation, unemployment, exchange rate fluctuations and others. This scenario planning process enabled them to move quickly with new offerings when the market moved in a particular direction - and win new business from their competitors.
What are you doing to learn from companies that have thrived in turbulent economies?
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