Customer advocacy is a specialized form of

customer service Customer service is the assistance and advice provided by a company to those people who buy or use its products or services. Each industry requires different levels of customer service, but in the end, the idea of a well-performed service is that ...

in which companies focus on what is deemed to be best for the customer. It is a change in a company's culture that is supported by customer-focused customer service and

marketing Marketing is the process of exploring, creating, and delivering value to meet the needs of a target market in terms of goods and services; potentially including selection of a target audience; selection of certain attributes or themes to emph ...

techniques.

Customer advocacy business model

A customer advocacy policy encompasses all aspects of customer contact, including products, services, sales and complaints. Some examples of a customer advocacy approach are suggesting a product even if the

profit margin Profit margin is a measure of profitability. It is calculated by finding the profit as a percentage of the revenue. \text = = There are 3 types of profit margins: gross profit margin, operating profit margin and net profit margin. * Gross Pro ...

is less for the company, setting service call appointments based on the customer's (not the company's) preferred hours, or recommending a competitor's product because it is better at meeting the customer's needs. However, there are times when, if a customer is happy with the service, they will pay more for the service as a 'per se' talent fee.

Role of the customer advocate

Customer advocates are facilitators between customers and the company. They are trained in cross-functional roles and empowered to provide customers with assistance in all areas of the business. The role of the customer advocate is three-fold: *To be the main contact for the customer in handling a question or problem, and to keep the customer updated with timely and frequent information about progress towards resolving the issue. *To facilitate a resolution by bringing together the appropriate department heads. *To implement a procedure that ensures the problem does not occur again, or recommends products or services to better meet customers' needs.

Measuring customer advocacy

Customer advocacy can be integrated into a company's strategic goals and measured through

customer satisfaction Customer satisfaction (often abbreviated as CSAT) is a term frequently used in marketing. It is a measure of how products and services supplied by a company meet or surpass customer expectation. Customer satisfaction is defined as "the number of ...

, retention, and

profitability In economics, profit is the difference between the revenue that an economic entity has received from its outputs and the total cost of its inputs. It is equal to total revenue minus total cost, including both explicit and implicit costs. It i ...

. A popular proxy for customer advocacy is the

Net Promoter Net promoter score (NPS) is a widely used market research metric that is based on a single survey question asking respondents to rate the likelihood that they would recommend a company, product, or a service to a friend or colleague. The NPS is a ...

Score. Customer advocacy programs are often measured by the value or revenue they influence for an organization. Common ways customer advocates can help drive revenue include making referrals, acting as customer references, and through upsell or cross-sell of additional products. The return-on-investment (ROI) of an advocacy program can be calculated by looking at the overall investment or program spend compared to revenue influenced by the program.

References

* * * * *{{cite book , title = Advocate Marketing: Strategies for Building Buzz, Leveraging Customer Satisfaction and Creating Relationships published by Pearson - author: Barbara Thomas , year = 2016 Business models Types of marketing