Over the past couple of weeks I have come across a number of articles proclaiming that “Microsoft is listening” and the majority of these relate to Robert Scoble and the new channel 9 wiki for IE. At first you may think that it is great to hear this, but then you hear “Microsoft” and it is only fair to have doubts. It’s easy to say that your company would like to work with your customers and it is a different thing to actually do it.
Whenever someone mentions a problem, or Scoble comes across an issue that someone has with Microsoft, he vehemently requests that he be given the chance to work with the individual. The issue is the problems that the customers encounter are on products that Scoble does not touch. In fact, Scoble develops none of the technologies at Microsoft — so placing him in the evangelist role requires that he work even harder to understand the technology. Does he pull it off? Well I think it will take him a little more time.
Scoble is the type of person who every day posts a large number of entries relating to Microsoft and other aspects of the technology world that interests him. He doesn’t hide why he talks about Microsoft since he is an employee for them and Longhorn evangelism is now his profession. Reaching out to his readers and asking them how he can help also shows there is a passion to make things better. Again though, he has a lot of work to do because he is working for the “Evil Empire”.
With such a large company quick fixes are not going to happen. So if I put in a request for a new feature in IE and the next release doesn’t come out for a number of years then I am going to feel as though I am not being listened to. I think Scoble would do well to track the changes that are implemented due to customer’s requests and make this information public. Many people become addicted to Open Source software because they see first hand how their request/bug fixes are handled.
You can talk till your face turns blue about how you wish to help out. About how you are extending a helping hand to make your company and its products better. However, until we see the results, how is our opinion going to change? Measuring the success of a evangelism blog is almost impossible so I can’t comment on whether or not Scoble’s style is successful. I do think though that showing us that Microsoft is listening would improve the chance of success. “Saying” will always be a completely different task than actually “doing”.
Placing a blog on your company site with comments and trackbacks does not show you are listening. It shows that you are willing to let your readers participate on your website. Listening to what your readers say and then showing them how their ideas are being implemented proves that you are listening. Blogs don’t take the work out of improving the image of your company. That part is still left up to you.
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Exactly. Excellent post. In my experience, this same situation occurred while I was developing sites for the computer gaming industry. Most gaming publishers have message boards and forums to allow their customers to interact and create a feeling of community. However, often times these areas only provide interaction between the customers themselves and rarely will you see a representative from the publisher, unless they are making an “official” announcement of some kind.
Where friction occurs is when technical problems start happening within the game. People start posting about these problems or submitting the bugs to tech support but no open response is usually given by the company as to recognizing the problem. Obviously most companies don’t want to respond to these issues because all they are thinking about is their finances and the negative impact making suching a statement about their product could have on the sales of it. What they often don’t realize is the negative impact they are creating by NOT responding to these problems.
More than anything, their customers just simply want to receive some sort of recognition that the company is aware of the problem and they are working on it. If they don’t receive this feedback, then they will only get more frustrated because they are feeling ignored. I often recommended that these publishers should be creating an area which relays which problems have been recognized, which are being worked upon, and which have been resolved. Such a simple section not only makes the customer feel better but also puts less of a load on the tech department. Think about it. If the problem has been posted as being recognized, then other customers won’t continually be submitting further bug reports, thus reducing the communications load on the tech people.
Back when I was developing these sites, the fear of their finances outweighted everything and these gaming publishers usually relayed very little about bugs in the game unless it was a “showstopper” that affected most if not all of the users of the game. Today, however, you are seeing some companies who recognize the advantages of relaying recognized problems to their customers (i.e. CCP, creators of EVE Online). These companies know that while a customers loyalty can takes years to develop, it can be easily lost in a second. These companies know that maintaining their customer satisfaction and loyalty often will outweight and overcome any technical difficulties that they may encounter. As long as they show their customers that they care about them and are listening to them, they can overcome most obstactles.
Exactly. Many companies are looking at making the money now as quickly as possible instead of thinking of a strategy that will help capture an audience for the long term. They see that the traditional forms of marketing are no longer helping to maintain their customer-base and many times are to blind to realize that keeping them is a simple act of letting them know they see their customers as people.
When I was younger I remember seeing suggestion boxes everywhere I went. Now you rarely do see them and if they are in place you have to search to find them. How great would it be to have a huge suggestion box at the entrance and send a personal postcard to each person who placed a suggestion. Think they wouldn’t be hooked?
Paul, I agree to you. Mostly, that is. I think it is a great first step for Microsoft to have Scoble and his blog. The best thing may be that it is not an official press-log (would that be a plog?). Honestly, I wouldn’t believe anything from an official MS-plog.
Companies which communicate properly with their customers are a great thing, but MS has a huge reputation to cope with. This is why Scoble can only be the first step for MS. They have to regain the trust of the professionals.
Other companies may have it much easier, but that is a point which Nollind (comment #1) explained really good already.
By the way: I like the idea of getting a postcard for every suggestion I enter.
Matthias, that’s why I mention that Scoble has a lot of work cut out for him since he is dealing with a perceived negative reputation for Microsoft. I know not everyone despises Microsoft and mostly its just the computer nuts, but still it’s a large customerbase to work against. I do agree that it is a good first step, but if this is the only step I don’t think it will be enough.
If they do go beyond just these blogs then I think they will prove their point that they are listening. Till then you have to sit back with a sense of skepticism in their actions.
This not only applies to Microsoft, but to all companies who might believe that a blog solves all problems.
Paul, you’re right. I hope (although being anti-MS) that MS realises what Scoble (and others) are doing for them.
However, this is not only about Microsoft, this is an example how a company can miss an oportunity. Until now, that is, although I don’t believe that they will provide a blog (with proper feedback and appropriate actions) soon. Such a blog is not a simple task at all. It is work, but one the customers will appreciate.
Well said.
Are we listening? Yes. In about 30 minutes we will announce that MSDN will open a new product feedback center.
What’s cool about that? You can report bugs.
Blech, that’s not cool, you are probably saying.
But, yes it is. If you report a bug, you can track its progress. And, you’ll see what the engineers themselves say back about it (and whether or not they’ve fixed it).
Yes, it might take a couple of years for bug fixes to get into products. But this is yet another step toward doing exactly what you asked for in your blog.
It’ll be at http://labs.msdn.microsoft.com/productfeedback
By the way, this is the first site that I’ve posted about this.
Wow, that was exactly what I was talking about. Nice to see Microsoft taking the necessary steps to please some customers. Thanks for hitting us up with the information Robert.
It’s nice to see Microsoft making small advances towards involving the community, however considering that the open source community has been involving people since the start, it might be a little too late to start caring.
I agree with Paul that blogs don’t necessarily mean you’re listening, but neither does giving people the opportunity to report bugs in your products. Anyone could say “engineer #692″ is working on your submission.
The reason the open source movement is so popular, is because you can modify the code yourself, get involved directly in the building of a product and actually feel like you’re “part” of the company.
Right now Microsoft is losing the “communication” battle, with Linux and Apple currently leading.
In the end I feel “do they really care about me or is it because they’re scared of the popularity of their competitors”, whereas with apple and linux i know they “care about me” or the “user”.
As Andrei pointed out, most companies will only do something if it is of any value to them – i.e. Increase in profits. Hence why the browsers wars seems to be rearing its ugly head again.
Communication and reputation is everything these days, but for some companies I feel it’s a little too late to start saving their reputation.
I can see that a company like Business Logs would be a brilliant investment for any start up company, who doesn’t want to make the same mistakes as others before them
Uh, if any company today truly starts caring about their customers, I wouldn’t be knocking them but praising them profusely. We need more companies to make this change. Better late then never is a better way to put it. Remember most companies are ingrained with the “old way” of working. For them to actually realize that the times are a changing and to actually make that change is an amazing feat in my opinion (especially for the larger companies).
True, but if in doing so it provides a better experience for their customers then I’m all for it. In other words, if companies are only increasing communications with their customers because they are seeing a financial benefit to it, then I’m all for it. Remember we are talking about relationships here. Both sides have to give and take for an effective relationship to last. That is why customers in the past were frustrated because they were giving too much and getting too little in return. If companies want to start creating a more balanced relationship with their customers to help maintain these relationships then it can only make the world a better place in my view.
BTW in case you’re wondering, I’m not a MS evangelist. I’ve actually just switch to Apple and I’m loving it. Still I think what Robert just mentioned is an excellent step in the right direction for Microsoft.
As I said, i’m happy that Microsoft are taking small steps to involve their customers and create a “community”.
My response was purely from a business perspective. Both Apple and Linux have involved their customers for years and years now. So from a business view Microsoft are a little late in catching up, which is obvious with the increase of interest in Apple and Linux.
From a users point of view: Microsoft are making a great step forward, even if they do eventually lose the market to their competitors. If they continue to mend relations with their customers, i’m sure they’ll be back at the top in no time at all.
Now, if we just get them to update IE before 2006… LOL
Until February, I worked in a Microsoft sales and marketing org that sold the Windows platform to telcos and ISPs. At a troubleshooting meeting late in 2003, I proposed we introduced once-monthly meetings where the org’s execs listen to a member of sales staff talking about what customers are saying, how they are responding to products and packages, what’s going on in their world.
Idea accepted with lukewarm tone on the proviso that sales staff not “moan” on behalf of themselves or customers.
In reality, nearly a year later, the idea has still not been implemented.
I used to stroll around our sales staff asking them if any of the org’s execs had talked to them or asked them how things were going lately. None ever said “yes”.
At the troubleshooting meeting I proposed we create a web-based “suggestion” box for staff in our org. Response was enormous resistance on the grounds that it would be “uncontrollable” and used negatively. In the end the idea was accepted on the basis that we constrain it so that execs don’t see negatives or have to see “small” ideas.
As far as I know, that hasn’t been implemented either.
IMO, two issues lie beneath both of these passive rejections. One is that the execs and marketing staff are not reviewed (and salary adjusted) on the basis of sales success. They were rewarded on the basis of coming up with great ideas and managing their implementation; not on being managed or swayed by other people’s (staff or customers’) ideas.
The second issue was that at MS – as in many other places – people work are accountable for solving agreed or at least known “tasks” all day long. Taking time out to do anything “unplanned” (like expand your understanding of the customer or to think creatively or to listen to the industry noise around you) is not immediately measurable in terms of the success it brings and therefore too risky to do.
Result: blocking opportunities to receive feedback becomes institutionalised, even if the block is unspoken.
Lee