Blackwell and Stephan apply their considerable experience in buying behavior to the reality of the last several years and find most e-commerce endeavors wanting. Their message is simple: focus on providing a smooth, trouble free experience end to end and you will be far ahead of the pack. Sounds simple, and it isn't. Implementing this concept takes serious capital and serious experience.
This book is a good read for B2C companies online and offline. Its treatment of B2B is thin, and not really worth digging out. It already feels a bit dated, but it is still an absolute "must read" for retailers.
Review #2
Tells why the e-commerce business thrill is over
Roger Blackwell's Customers Rule! tells why the e-commerce business thrill is over, and how adaptable business structures may take advantage of these changes in customer buying habits. The Internet has proven to be not a revolutionary retail changer but an adjunct to traditional retail marketing approaches, and this explains how companies may profit from changes, using case history analyses to pinpoint blended strategies which work.
Review #3
Customers ( continue to ) Rule!
The title, though provocative and tantalizing, is accurate.Authors Blackwell and Stephan are unabashed celebrities of the art and science of consumer behavior. It is no surprise whatsoever that the arguments and conclusions in the book are academically sound, intuitively resonant and empirically valid. It is no coincidence, either, that the style is personal, engaging and authoritative without being authoritarian. The resarch shows; practical current examples are used to cut through media hype and Wall Street analysts' obsession with trendy, flashy technology. Jump on the train, they say: the next e-business train leaving the station- all of them will take you to profits and increased market caps. WRONG! The book asks the difficult questions: Does the e-business integrate with the bricks and mortar reality of creating value for the customer? Does it make for a delightful experience? Does it make the customer want to keep coming back again and again? All this is necessary, but not sufficient. Does your e-business strategy create profit? Can this profit stream be sustained? Does it complement your current channels of supply chain management and does it lead you towards trhe new world of demand chain management? Does your strategy differentiate you from your competition? Can you sustain your advantage? The authors are technology savvy, but not mesmerized by it. The book offers insights into what strategies will work and which ones will fail and why. I recommend this book to MBA students everywhere. It is a survival handbook. Business persons will find the book practical and relevant.It will save them a lot of grief. The authors have their feet planted firmly in reality. They remind us: " e-business is no substitute for knowing what works in business and why." I learnt from this book and am giving copies to my colleague business profesors.
