Front Lines is a guest viewpoint section offering perspectives on current issues and events from people working on the front lines of Canada's technology industry
Next time you visit your local bookstore, check out the business section. There you will find shelves groaning under the weight of books that promise to help companies overcome the latest hurdles on the path to profitability. Some are fads destined to fade, but take a closer look and you'll notice that the books with real staying power — many dating back decades — deal with issues that transcend economic, political and social conditions. Standing front and centre among them are books on how to make customers happy and loyal.
Those in the technology industry know how challenging it can be to maintain a happy customer base. The rapid pace of innovation means companies must release new products or upgrades at lightning speed, while also ensuring value and ROI. This is a daunting task.
Unlike other industries, however, the technology sector has an incredible resource to help them in their quest to achieve the highest levels of customer satisfaction — namely, "user groups".
With roots dating back to the earliest days of mainframe computing, user groups are now so common that we tend to take them for granted. We simply assume that passionate users of our products will take the time and energy to meet with their peers, share tips and tricks, or simply to network — all on their own accord.
But consider for a moment just how unusual user groups really are. How many industries can boast of customers who are not only loyal to a particular product, but who actually go out of their way create volunteer organizations? Some of these groups are actually quite sophisticated and global in scope while their goal is simple - to learn more about the product. Take the case of a Saskatchewan software developer and user group member who, even though her company wouldn't fund her attendance at a Montreal developer conference last summer, decided to use personal vacation time to drive from Saskatoon to Montreal so she could attend and connect with her user group peers. Or consider the Vancouver user group member who, on his own time, built a Web site to help connect his peers with charities that need IT assistance.
This kind of enthusiasm can't be bottled or sold, nor can it be invented in a marketing department — but it is infectious. And businesses that are able to tap into this passion will rise above the competition.
Companies considering a community-building project, however, should remember to exercise restraint and take to heart the old saying that less is more.
Let someone else drive. Engaging with user groups in a way that seems overbearing or self-serving to users will do more harm than good. A better way to bridge that gap is to recruit grassroots ambassadors. These people can act as personal rallying points for users who would otherwise remain disengaged. More importantly, they help remove the vendor from the process so that they aren't seen as meddling. Ideally, ambassadors will know the product well, are already respected in the industry, and would be willing to engage with the community on your behalf to build even more goodwill. They can help lead seminars, or speak at industry events on a vendor's behalf. Taking advantage of their knowledge and connections can help businesses learn more about the customers they serve and, at the same time, provide the ambassadors with a great networking opportunity.
