It’s a funny concept to talk about a company managing a relationship with a customer. It is not like we have a human connection with one another as the term “relationship” would imply. We don’t text each other silly messages and make plans for the weekend, but I would argue that the relationship between a company and a customer shares many of the same qualities of a human relationship - and is no less complicated to manage. Think of the company as the suitor and the customer as the eligible bachelorette.

The fairy tale begins: Most of the time, the company pursues us in some way (through acquisition efforts, SEM, ads and marketing, rather than buying us a drink at the local bar); Other times, we meet through friends and mutual acquaintances (via referrals rather than blind dates); Inevitably, the company spends an awful lot of time and money trying to get to know us (through surveys and profiling rather than flowers and chocolate); when we lose interest, the company sends us treats and incentives to encourage us to stay engaged (loyalty programs and promotions rather than expensive jewelry); if we leave, the company (should) do everything they can to get us back (lapsed/lost programs); In the end, if we like said company, we tell our friends; if we hate said company…we also tell our friends. Either way, the reputation of the company rests in our hands – just like in a human relationship. And now, with social networking, all of this can happen even quicker, which is great for companies who have healthy relationships but very bad for companies who do not.

That is why managing the customer relationship is so critical to the success of a business. The company many believe that they have what the client wants, but if they don’t treat them the right way, it’s a moot point. As an example, a few months back, my friend and I walked into a designer shoe store fully intending to spend our bonuses on a pair of shoes (name not to be revealed, but think red soles). We were ready to seal the deal. We were walking down the aisle with this company. We loved them (irrationally so). BUT, we got into the store and were treated miserably by the sales associate. The relationship ended. No shoes were purchased that day. They managed the relationship well up to that point, but it broke down at the most important moment, and for a customer relationship to be successful, the management process must be consistent and unyielding.

What I can say is that there is no one right way to manage customer relationships, however, if a company applies the same guiding principles to their customer relationships that they would to their human relationships and remembers to pay attention (track activities or lack thereof), react appropriately to different behaviors (lifecycle marketing) and do everything they can to keep their customers happy (relevant communications, loyalty programs, incentives), they will be much closer to “happily ever after”.

So, how do companies find their soul mates? That topic is for the second date…

I had the honor of having dinner with Charlene Li, co-author of Groundswell last Thursday night. I heard Charlene speak 3 weeks ago at a conference held by one of our customers; she had provided the audience her email address, and I wrote her a note. That’s how we ended up meeting face to face.

Charlene, and her co-author Josh Bernoff, had much to do with this blog and for the transparency we have as we approach the medical device market. We had been talking about blogging for over a year; but, Groundswell gave us the courage to embark on what some have construed to be a very risky strategy (see: “You’re doing what?”). There are many other things we have incorporated into our daily lives and operations that are discussed in the book; so, Charlene—THANK YOU!

The food was excellent; however, I hardly remember eating. Charlene indulged me for almost two hours allowing me to tell the Prolifiq story. It was fun to remember the last 8.5 years—both the good and the bad. What a gracious listener; at the conclusion of dinner, Charlene thanked me for MY time and then asked: “What can I do to help you?”

I said, “You can tell me what I am doing wrong.” Charlene leaned forward and said: “Well, with your legacy of rich media, I am quite surprised you don’t have any video in your blog.” Talk about the proverbial “duh” moment. Of course─why wouldn’t we use video in our blog? Very simply, because we are the barefoot cobbler’s kids; the toothless dentist, etc. Point made; point taken. We need to eat our own dog food. Charlene – look for video posts very soon.

If you are a Prolifiq customer, when I pull out my flip™ video camera and ask you to repeat something—give Charlene all of the credit.

I attended the inaugural meeting of the Portland Chapter of the Social Media Club Monday night at a downtown watering hole called The Agency. The expressed purpose of the meeting was to bring together THE people who will bring social media into the mainstream for Portland organizations – a very noble cause indeed.

There were just over 100 people in attendance – significantly more than the organizers had planned--a true testament to the interest in and awareness of social media and its potential/pending import to businesses and organizations. By a show of hands, the majority of attendees had heard of the event through Twitter and Facebook, with a distant third being an email newsletter PDXMindShare. This is NOT an insignificant data point.

This was definitely a gathering of the NEW MEDIA crowd in Portland—some looking to be involved and serve, some looking to self-promote, some looking for jobs, and some looking to be recognized (physically or intellectually). I give Chris Heuer, chairman and co-founder of the SMC, credit as he is obviously a smart guy. He laid out several key points regarding social media:

1) It provides a means and a venue to have a dialogue with customers/constituents
2) Organizations have to possess and develop:
a. Clear intent
b. Be transparent
c. Credibility
d. Authenticity
3) It’s about people and relationships – not transactions
4) Organizations must join and participate in “conversations”
5) Collaboration is not compromise.

All in all, I learned quite a bit about how the emerging technologies can impact companies and organizations alike.

However, I was quite amused by several incongruities of the whole event. First: why does the Social Media club need to have a physical meeting? I thought the media was supposed to allow us to establish communications and connections without the need for physical meetings. Second: I was highly amused that the Portland digerati spent 45 minutes futzing with the cables (as Harry Newton says: “It’s always the cables!”) in an effort to be able to project Chris’s PowerPoint presentation – which incidentally never happened. And lastly, a comment for Chris: when establishing a “dialogue” – remember it is a two way conversation. I’d hate to see you accused of practicing “do as I say, not as I do.”

I’m old enough to remember the early days and excitement of 3-D movies and those funky-looking paper glasses handed out at the theater. I’m thinking maybe the original “Thirteen Ghosts” directed by William Castle in 1960, in which you could only see the ghosts on screen with the 3-D glasses, and were warned with an on-screen prompt and music.

Fast-forward almost 50 years to Super Bowl XLIII in High Definition on a 50” LCD flat panel with a group of friends from my same era. The special half-time gimmick is a Disney movie trailer broadcast with special effects that you need those same funky-looking paper glasses (albeit now with corporate sponsor logos printed) to view. Two of the guys remembered to pick up plenty of the free glasses for everyone.

Our host’s twenty-something daughter (both huge Steelers fans), who was out at another party with some friends viewing the game, came running in to the house at the beginning of the second quarter, and plopped down in a prime sofa spot to watch the rest of the game. She proclaims, “That other party was so lame – most of them were rooting for the Cardinals and they didn’t have any 3-D glasses like you guys”.

I may be just working too hard on the conversion to our new SaaS-based accounting system, but it made me think of Prolifiq, and our customers. We provide marketing and sales professionals with an easy way to put their best foot forward in communicating with customers, allow them to separate the signal from the noise, and really see how their messages (read “special effects”) are resonating with the audience, one-on-one. It’s like using 3-D glasses to see things you can’t see without them, and have some fun while you’re at it. The audience reactions may sound more like “I get it” or “I’m interested – tell me more”, instead of the “ooohs” and “aaahs” or scary shrieks in the theater seats, but you get the idea.

Make sure your next party isn’t lame – get the 3-D glasses.

Malcolm Gladwell in Outliers explores how events and circumstances have shaped all people, especially successful ones.

As part of our monthly book club, I asked the team to retrace their steps back as far as they can remember. What I am asking them to look for is the "pivot points" in their lives so they can understand the decisions they've made, why, and who were the influencers on those decisions. My thinking is that if they understand how and why they have made decisions in the past, they will be better equipped to make them in the future. Obviously, this is a very personal journey of discovery and conjures up memories ... some delightful, and possibly some painful ones.

My journey of discovery led me to conclude that I owe my life to my mentors, starting with my very first: my mother. In addition to the basics of life, she instilled in me a strong work ethic and my basic principles of business were learned through her tutelage. I was asked by my coworkers about my mentors, and I was able to rattle off over 30. I currently engage with 7 who are shaping various aspects of my life.

This got me thinking; who are the mentors from whom to choose? The answer: All of us. In a "pay it forward" way, we all have skills and insights we can share with those around us. This is a service we are obligated to do in life, and the rewards of doing so are immeasurable.

I'd love to hear your stories of mentorship and menteeship. Who are you helping and who is helping you?

This morning, IBM/Lotus formally announced the commercial availability of LotusLive -- formerly known as "Bluehouse" -- IBM's cloud-based collaboration and social networking application.

In conjunction with this announcement, Prolifiq announced the commercial launch of the Prolifiq--LotusLive integrated solution with medical device manufacturer InSet Technologies. (see Prolifiq press release)

InSet Technologies is the first customer shipment of this joint Prolifiq/IBM solution and is transforming how the company does business. Maureen Shaffer is a visionary marketer; Lotus is interviewing her onstage on Tuesday morning so that she can share her experience with the 8000 attendees of Lotusphere.

Maureen has established a truly virtual work environment and has woven social networking into the culture and operations of the company. Maureen believes this joint implementation saves 20% of each of her employees' time.

This deployment is the result of a 17 month engagement with Lotus. Prolifiq was invited into this relationship just as Lotus was beginning to plan its partner and integration strategy. As a result, Prolifiq helped craft, and was the first ISV to develop against, the web services APIs of LotusLive.

When we first contemplated the project, we were intimidated--IBM has roughly 400,000 employees and does over $100 billion in revenue--what could they possibly gain by working with Prolifiq? I asked them exactly that question when we first met.

Robert, LotusLive Chief Architect, said it was quite simple: Prolifiq has 7+ years of cloud computing experience, and IBM could learn from us how to integrate and deploy hybrid-SaaS solutions.

Prolifiq gains visibility within the Lotus ecosystem and gains new customers. While our official color palette is red, black, white and grey--this week, we're bleeding yellow.