The Customer Century : Lessons from World Class Companies in Integrated Communications (Routledge Corporate Communication Series) (Hardcover)

by Ander Gronstedt (Author) "They came from Alaska and Florida, some from as far away as Taiwan, to an assembly plant in the middle of the American South, on..." (more)
Key Phrases: corporate communications director, marketing communications director, breakthrough objectives, Customer Century, Federal Express, Production Century (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
"Grondstedt insightfully contrasts the difference between the old marketing/communication ideas appropriate to Production Century with the new integrated marketing and communication ideas appropriate to the coming Customer Century. And he illustrates, in excellent detail, the marketing/communication and management practices of leading 3-D companies, such as Xerox, HP, FedEx, and Saturn. Any manager could take away a dozen ideas from reading this book." -- Philip Kotler, Kellogg Graduate School of Management Northwestern University

"Gronstedt gives powerful, case study evidence that integrated marketing communication goes a lot deeper than having ads, publicity and promotion carry the same message points. It is a philosophy that permeates organizations from CEO to frontline workers. The quotations from corporate leaders alone are worth the price of the book." -- Pat Jackson, President, Jackson, Jackson and Wagner

"Gronstedt is putting the old guard of 'Production Century' managers on alert: Integrate communications with your most strategic customers and stakeholders or your business will become road kill in the new century. This invaluable primer for marketing, communication and general managers is bulging with case studies and hands-on advice for how to succeed in the Customer Century." -- Daniel Burrus, author of Technotrends

Gronstedt's Customer Century breaks new ground in the quest for a strategic approach to all corporate communications. The illustrative examples throughout his book give the reader a real sense of what is happening in companies worldwide as we move from the production century to the aptly named century of the customer. -- Paul A. Argenti, author of Corporate Communication and professor at Dartmouth's Tuck School
Gronstedt's book is easy and inspiring to read--if you read it and can't find ten good ideas that you will adopt in your organization, you ought to change your job! -- Lars Goran Johansson, Sr. Vice President of Corporate Communications, Electrolux
As an advocate of Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC), the two questions I'm most frequently asked are 'Who's doing this now?' and 'How do you get started?' Anders Gronstedt answers both questions in The Customer Century. He tells you exactly what to do to build more profitable customer relationships through IMC. -- Robert F. Lauterborn, professor at the University of North Carolina and coauthor of Integrated Marketing Communications
The Customer Century and its insights into customer-centered enterprises like Hewlett-Packard and FedEx show not only that integrated communication can be achieved, but that it absolutely must be achieved to make a real difference for your company. -- Don Peppers, partner, Peppers and Rogers Group, and co-author with Dr. Martha Rogers of The One to One Future and The One to One Manager
Gronstedt's book brilliantly captures how to jump-start the change processes for building customer value and successful brands. This thought-provoking treatise on the new strategic role of communication should be required reading for any executive striving to succeed in the Customer Century. -- Don Schultz, professor at Northwestern University and coauthor of Communicating Globally: An Integrated Marketing Approach
Gronstedt gives powerful, case study evidence that integrated marketing communication goes a lot deeper than having ads, publicity and promotion carry the same message points. It is a philosophy that permeates organizations from CEO to frontline workers. The quotations from corporate leaders alone are worth the price of the book. -- Pat Jackson, President, Jackson, Jackson and Wagner
Grondstedt insightfully contrasts the difference between the old marketing/communication ideas appropriate to Production Century with the new integrated marketing and communication ideas appropriate to the coming Customer Century. And he illustrates, in excellent detail, the marketing/communication and management practices of leading 3-D companies, such as Xerox, HP, FedEx, and Saturn. Any manager could take away a dozen ideas from reading this book. -- Philip Kotler, Kellogg Graduate School of Management Northwestern University
Through a series of case studies of 14 international companies, the author provides genuine insight into the philosophy and practices of companies that have adopted integrated marketing communications to enhance the profitability of their customer base. This work is well organized and easy to read. SR Kahn, U of Cincinnati in CHOICE.
Gronstedt is putting the old guard of 'Production Century' managers on alert: Integrate communications with your most strategic customers and stakeholders or your business will become road kill in the new century. This invaluable primer for marketing, communication and general managers is bulging with case studies and hands-on advice for how to succeed in the Customer Century. -- Daniel Burrus, author of Technotrends

Gronstedts Customer Century breaks new ground in the quest for a strategic approach to all corporate communications. The illustrative examples throughout his book give the reader a real sense of what is happening in companies worldwide as we move from the production century to the aptly named century of the customer. -- Paul A. Argenti, author of Corporate Communication and professor at Dartmouths Tuck School
Gronstedts book is easy and inspiring to read--if you read it and cant find ten good ideas that you will adopt in your organization, you ought to change your job! -- Lars Goran Johansson, Sr. Vice President of Corporate Communications, Electrolux
As an advocate of Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC), the two questions Im most frequently asked are Whos doing this now? and How do you get started? Anders Gronstedt answers both questions in The Customer Century. He tells you exactly what to do to build more profitable customer relationships through IMC. -- Robert F. Lauterborn, professor at the University of North Carolina and coauthor of Integrated Marketing Communications
The Customer Century and its insights into customer-centered enterprises like Hewlett-Packard and FedEx show not only that integrated communication can be achieved, but that it absolutely must be achieved to make a real difference for your company. -- Don Peppers, partner, Peppers and Rogers Group, and co-author with Dr. Martha Rogers of The One to One Future and The One to One Manager
Gronstedts book brilliantly captures how to jump-start the change processes for building customer value and successful brands. This thought-provoking treatise on the new strategic role of communication should be required reading for any executive striving to succeed in the Customer Century. -- Don Schultz, professor at Northwestern University and coauthor of Communicating Globally: An Integrated Marketing Approach
Gronstedt gives powerful, case study evidence that integrated marketing communication goes a lot deeper than having ads, publicity and promotion carry the same message points. It is a philosophy that permeates organizations from CEO to frontline workers. The quotations from corporate leaders alone are worth the price of the book. -- Pat Jackson, President, Jackson, Jackson and Wagner
Grondstedt insightfully contrasts the difference between the old marketing/communication ideas appropriate to Production Century with the new integrated marketing and communication ideas appropriate to the coming Customer Century. And he illustrates, in excellent detail, the marketing/communication and management practices of leading 3-D companies, such as Xerox, HP, FedEx, and Saturn. Any manager could take away a dozen ideas from reading this book. -- Philip Kotler, Kellogg Graduate School of Management Northwestern University
Through a series of case studies of 14 international companies, the author provides genuine insight into the philosophy and practices of companies that have adopted integrated marketing communications to enhance the profitability of their customer base. This work is well organized and easy to read. SR Kahn, U of Cincinnati in CHOICE.
Gronstedt is putting the old guard of Production Century managers on alert: Integrate communications with your most strategic customers and stakeholders or your business will become road kill in the new century. This invaluable primer for marketing, communication and general managers is bulging with case studies and hands-on advice for how to succeed in the Customer Century. -- Daniel Burrus, author of Technotrends

Product Description
Say goodbye to the production century. Savvy and all-powerful consumers are at the helm. Based on hundreds of hours of in-depth interviews with senior marketing and corporate communications managers from top companies such as Federal Express, Hewlett-Packard, Ericsson, Philips, and Xerox, Gronstedt provides the keys to thriving in the upcoming "customer century." Companies must learn to integrate communications three dimensionally: externally with key customers, vertically between senior management and front-line workers, and horizontally across departments. Packed with hands-on advice, this book is a roadmap to success in the Customer Century.
Explains a hot, new management strategy
Includes practical tips and strategies

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Routledge; 1 edition (January 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0415921996
• ISBN-13: 978-0415921992
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6.2 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #662,644 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Lots of good ideas from world-class companies, December 25, 2000

By	Winter Wright (Shanghai China) - See all my reviews

I work as a consultant for a PR agency, so I'm supposed to know what is "best practice" in the realm of communications. This book compiles real-world examples from a dozen European and U.S.-based companies that seem to be getting it right: FedEx, Hewlett-Packard, GM Saturn, ABB, and others.

My principal interest in the book was in finding a source of good ideas that I can adapt for use by clients, and I was not disappointed. Anyone in a communications role, whether in-house or outsourced, can benefit by taking some of these ideas and adapting them to the particular needs of their own organization.

The book is especially helpful in getting around a dilemma frequently faced by consultants (internal or external) who are called upon to produce so-called creative ideas, i.e., if you propose something that's really provocative and different---outside the box, as they say---the first thing your client often wants to know is, "Where has this worked before?" Of course, if what you've proposed is truly creative and original, it may not have been tried before---a perfect reason for the client to shoot it down.

By drawing liberally from the ideas set forth in this book, you can come up with good creative PR and internal communications programs that have actually been put into practice by well-known companies. For example, when Saturn had to recall some of its cars to fix a defect, it basically turned the event into a party: car owners were invited to a Thai barbecue while mechanics spent 30 minutes fixing their Saturns. They even got a free car wash to boot. This example is a perfect illustration of a basic truth of PR, i.e., that crisis communications is not simply about damage control. Handled properly, a crisis can be an opportunity to get your customer to see your brand in a whole new light.

Another nice feature of the book is that much of it focuses on internal communication. Gronstedt uses a three-part model (he's a former academic, so he likes models, but don't worry: there's only one, and his writing is lively and clear) to describe communications, and one part consists of External relations, including media relations. But the other two parts are Vertical and Horizontal communications, both of which take place within the organization ("vertical" referring to communications that go up and down the chain of command and "horizontal" meaning communications that cut across different functions or business groups). This emphasis on internal communications gives an enlightened perspective that gets away from the one-way, press agentry model of PR that relies predominantly on placing stories about your company in the newspaper.

So read the book, mark the ideas and best practices of these world-class companies, and then adapt them for your own use. It's a great resource for anyone responsible for organizational communications.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Convincing case for integrated communication, March 22, 2000

By	Göran Thorstenson (Stockholm, Sweden) - See all my reviews

I don't know of any other book that makes such a convincing case for integrated communication as "The Customer Century". Almost every thesis from the author is illustrated with examples from the real world of real companies. The messages of this book underline that creating individual relations with stakeholders (such as customers, shareholders, employees or journalists) won't be possible without using the Internet. And at the same time, using the web will only be successful in the long run, when it's part of an integrated communication strategy. I would most certainly recommend this book to colleagues, clients and our employees.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating insights and useful framework, March 22, 2000

By	Frank D. Durham (United States) - See all my reviews

This is the most comprehensive book I've come across on how to strategically managing communications at every point of contact with customer and stakeholders. Gronstedt has written a practical book that provides fascinating insights into the inner workings of companies like Saturn, HP and FedEx. The examples are woven together into a "3D" model of integrated communications, which is a very useful framework for analyzing organizational communications. I'm really looking forward to sharing this book with my the communication classes at the University of Iowa.