The 5 Distinct Customer Relationship Strategies

company can do this is by considering where a person is in the product life cycle when he is sent a message. Such a company tries to figure out how it can contact the consumer in a way that won't feel to him like his time is being wasted, and that the company is actually concerned with satisfying him.

Wang uses a smartphone to illustrate how a company can target a customer with relevant offers. If, for instance, a person bought a smartphone at an electronics store, the company would calculate how long ago she purchased the phone and what updates or accessories she would likely be interested in buying based on that information. "The first day," Wang says, "[the message] would say, 'Hey, try out these new features.' On the second day, it would say, 'Hey, have you tried this?' And on the fourth day, it might say, 'Other people in your network have done x, y, and z—have you tried this out yet?'" All this is done, of course, with the ultimate goal of getting the buyer to come back when she needs a new smartphone.

Automobile manufacturer Honda stands out in this sphere. Honda realizes that car buyers have a hierarchy of values. "Some [drivers are] focused on safety...some are focused on performance. Some are focused on environmental impact, while some are focused on fuel efficiency from a pocketbook point of view," Frankland says. "Honda tries to leverage that information in a way that puts your interests in a higher communication with you," with the rationale being that "everyone is interested in some or all of these things, but there may be one or two that we've noticed that you respond to best, and therefore we're going to use that in our future communication with you."

Not being up to date is one problem companies may face when using this strategy. While it's important to have information, it's also vital to take into consideration how the data was obtained and if it's current. If a customer just happened to "like" your Facebook page, you can assume that he likes your company (or at least some of the content you've provided), but there are other things to consider. Among these are a person's changing tastes. If Sarah bought a guitar in 2010 but quit playing in 2012, it might not make sense to send her brochures for your next amp sale in 2015.

This strategy also presents a risk that companies doing this may well come off as creepy—demonstrating knowledge of too many personal details about their customers—and potentially scare customers away. If you know that a customer was born on a certain day or you have access to an image of that person online, that doesn't mean you should wish her a happy birthday or compliment her beautiful blue eyes.

Collaborative

Last on the list, and least recommended by Frankland, is the collaborative strategy. Frankland draws on the negotiation tactics he learned while earning a master's degree in peace studies to explain the rationale behind this method. What it comes down to is that both sides (the consumer and the company) should be able to leave a situation believing that they have won. Typically in business, the company would 

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