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Lasting Impressions:
Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn't do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover. - Mark Twain

The amount and quality of feedback from the columns on the pursuit of genuine feedback that often looks like a cry for help has been inspiring and insightful.

One reader wrote: "The only way to get useful customer feedback is to instill in the customer a feeling that he will be heard and listened to. This takes a personal touch which I am not sure can be accomplished through a survey or electronically. Getting quality feedback takes a larger investment than most people are willing to make."

It seems many organizations rush to establish customer feedback infrastructures simply to demonstrate a commitment to customer input but forget to take the step to make sure the investment has the proper payoff. Another reader wrote: "I think the effectiveness of feedback forms or the effectiveness of asking a few questions at the time of check-out are over-rated. The need for feedback basically emanates from the fact that we are not able to put ourselves in our customer's shoes and not able to look at things from their perspective. I do agree that a formal feedback process can achieve some limited objective. But, looking at your performance, the repeat business you are generating, putting yourself in your customer's shoes and keeping your eyes and ears open - will give far more insights into the customer's satisfaction levels."

That's my take. What's your take?

Gary Lemke, Publisher

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News:    Suitecloud Brings Together Netsuite And Salesforce Clouds
NetSuite announced a series of partner applications that bring together two large business application computing clouds. "SuiteCloud Connect for Salesforce.com" connects the NetSuite and salesforce.com cloud platforms, enabling salesforce.com customers to integrate their Customer Relationship Management (CRM) processes with the on-demand Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) and Ecommerce functionality. With SuiteCloud Connect for Salesforce.com, businesses can now integrate between salesforce.com and NetSuite, which includes a lead-to-cash process, customer visibility for sales, and the elimination of manual processes across business units. (NetSuite )

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It's never a good sign when respected experts use analogies to scary roller coasters and failing track teams to discuss the state of sales performance entering 2009. Yet in the recently released "2009 Sales Performance Optimization (SPO) Study" from CSO Insights, that's exactly what happens. The good news is that the seemingly dire state described by the report can be taken as a sign of impending economic recovery. The bad news is that said recovery won't appear in most sales figures this year. The report uses the Disney theme park ride Space Mountain to indicate what last year was like for sales professionals.(DestinationCRM )

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News:    Globe Telecom Chooses SupportSoft for eSupport
Globe Broadband, a subsidiary of Globe Telecom has selected SupportSoft's Subscriber Agent to power their new customer support platform "Click Fix." SupportSoft's Subscriber Agent, which gives Globe Broadband users an easier Internet experience, enables them to diagnose and resolve problems related to their Internet connection -- without having to seek assistance from the help desk. SupportSoft Subscriber Agent works as a desktop client and can be uploaded onto the customer's personal computer with his or her permission. The software runs transparently in the background -- whether the customer is online or offline -- and kicks into repair action whenever certain system events arise, for instance, error messages and registry changes.(SupportSoft )

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