G E N E R A L E L E C T R I C A P P L I A N C E S Prepared for: Prof. Edward Mazze

Prepared by: Jennifer Hall Date: March 20th, 2012

imagination at work  

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Table of Contents

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 3

ABOUT GENERAL ELECTRIC 4 COMPANY HISTORY 4 COMPANY BACKGROUND 4 COMPANY CULTURE 6

ASSESSMENT OF GE’S CURRENT CRM PROGRAM 7 SOCIAL CRM AND COMMUNICATION 8 GE APPLIANCES WEBSITE 9 CRM SOFTWARE 11 RADIAN6 11 CRIMSON HEXAGON FORSIGHT 14 COMPETITORS 14 WHIRLPOOL 14 MAYTAG 16 A CUSTOMER-CENTRIC CULTURE 17 STRATEGIC PAIN POINTS 18 CONSUMER TOUCH POINTS 19

RECOMMENDATIONS 20 AUTOMATE THE SALES PROCESS 20 REDUCE THE SALES CYCLE 21 INCREASE CUSTOMER SATISFACTION 21

RECOMMENDED CRM PLATFORMS 23

GREEN BEACON’S COMPASSPOINT SOLUTIONS 23 SALES MACHINE 24

CLIENTELE 26

EMPOWERING THE CUSTOMER 27 LOYALTY PROGRAMS 27 PRODUCT DESIGN CONTEST 27

PERFORMANCE METRICS 28

WORKS CITED 30

TEN POINTS 32

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Executive Summary:

General Electric is an American multinational conglomerate corporation with numerous

businesses ranging in fields such as technology infrastructure to home and business solutions.

This paper reflects upon the customer relationship management (CRM) system applied by GE

Appliances, a home appliance company. With a strong social media presence in outlets such as

Facebook and Twitter, GE Appliances has successfully moved into the realm of social CRM.

Aside from social media, the company has sufficiently executed CRM through their company

website as well.

The proceeding report discusses the company history, background and culture, along with

the current CRM strategy of GE and GE Appliances. From there, it proceeds into

recommendations for improving the CRM program and business practices. Such ideas pertain to

increasing automation, reducing the sales cycle, and improving customer satisfaction.

Following this, two CRM platforms, CompassPoint Solutions and Sales Machine, are

described and recommended to GE Appliances as well. The report closes with a discussion of

selected performance measurements defining the success of such CRM implementations.

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About General Electric: Company History: Thomas Edison was unlike many other Americans during the year of the nation’s

centennial, 1876. Rather than dwelling on the past, he took this time to look forward to the

possibilities that lay ahead. He opened a laboratory in Menlo, New Jersey, in which he produced

perhaps the greatest invention of the age-an incandescent electric lamp. By 1890, Edison

established the Edison General Electric Company, an organization that brought all of his

businesses together. During this time, the Thomson-Houston Company became a competing

electrical innovation company. Because it had become increasingly difficult for the two

companies to produce products relying on their own patents and technology, they merged in

1892, calling the new organization the General Electric Company (GE).1

From there, the company has grown immensely, with innovations in fields such as

lighting, transportation, industrial products, power transmission, and medical equipment.

Through the years, GE’s employees have built an exuberant portfolio of leading businesses. The

company has also developed significant financial strength and Controllership that allow it to

capitalize on numerous opportunities and innovations, while also building a set of common

values that helps it face numerous environments with confidence.

Company Background: GE is an American multinational conglomerate corporation incorporated in Schenectady,

New York and headquartered in Fairfield, Connecticut.2 In 2011, Fortune ranked the company

the 6th largest firm in the U.S., as well as the 14th most profitable. Other rankings that year

include #7 company for leaders (Fortune), #5 best global brand (Interbrand), #63 green

                                                                                                               1 "Thomas Edison & GE." GE Main Company Website. General Electric Company. 2012. 2  "GE Fact Sheet: Businesses, Locations, Awards, Leadership". GE company website. 2012.  

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company (Newsweek), #13 most admired company (Fortune), and #19 most innovative company

(Fast Company).3 In 2010, Forbes ranked GE as the world’s second largest company, based on a

formula that compares the total sales, profits, assets, and market value of several multinational

companies. The company has transformed into an organization with a powerful set of global

businesses in infrastructure; modern finance and media; delivering healthcare, finance,

information, and entertainment to developing demographics; and environmental technologies.

The company’s infrastructure businesses contribute to developing the energy, health,

transportation, and technology infrastructure of the 21st century. The goal of these businesses is

to provide the products and services that will help the ability of developing countries to compete

in the global market. They also help to upgrade these regions with more efficient infrastructure

technologies. On the other hand, GE’s financial businesses are aimed at enabling consumers,

businesses, and global markets to sustain a better future. One of these businesses is GE Capital,

which focuses primarily on the strategic partnerships and joint ventures that help the company

capitalize on market-specific opportunities. 4

EXHIBIT 1: below is a list of GE’s business groups, along with their sub-groups:5

Energy

Digital Energy Industrial Solutions Energy Oil and Gas Sensing and Inspection Water and Process Technologies

Technology

Infrastructure

Aviation Healthcare Transportation

Commercial Lending & Leasing

                                                                                                               3  "GE rankings". Ranking the Brands. 17 December 2011.  4 "Our Company." GE Main Company Website. General Electric Company. 2012. 5 "Products Z Services A-Z." GE Main Company Website. General Electric Company. 2012.  

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GE Capital

Consumer Financing Energy Financial Services GE Capital Aviation Services Real Estate Financing Worldwide GE Capital Locations

GE Home and Business

Solutions

Appliances Consumer Electronics Intelligent Platforms Lighting

Company Culture: Employees: GE views its employees as its greatest asset. The company employs over 300,000

people, with jobs ranging from biochemist to finance specialist to wind energy engineer. The

company takes pride in the passion each employee encompasses to improve the world with new

ideas and technologies. GE has also worked to build a diverse workforce, supporting

communities in over 140 countries. As a means of supporting workplace diversity, GE has

incorporated the use of forums to address various diversity factors. For example, an African

American Forum, which provides employees with mentors, seminars, networking, and career

discussion. This forum also contributes to the development of local African American

communities.6

Work Environment: GE believes that their employees work best in a sound work environment,

therefore they aim to support its leadership culture through systems and policies that foster open

communication, maintain employee and partner privacy, and ensure employee health and safety.

GE also has a detailed integrity policy, entitled The Spirit & The Letter, which expresses their

commitment to leading in workplace and marketplace integrity. The company also encourages

                                                                                                               6 "Our People." GE Main Company Website. General Electric Company. 2012.

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employees to maintain a balance between work and life, thus incorporating flexible work

arrangements and personal/family support resources.7

Volunteering: Volunteer work has been a part of GE for over a century, both through individual

and organizational efforts. GE Volunteers is part of the organization that coordinates company-

wide efforts by observing societal needs and communicating them to employees. The company

also utilizes “Global Community Days” to encourage employee acts as well. 8

GE Foundation: About 50 years ago, GE created the foundation this foundation to make grants

to non-profit organizations supporting charitable, scientific, literacy, and educational purposes.

One of the foundation’s initiatives is Developing Futures™ in Education, which provides multi-

year education grants to select US public school districts. Other initiatives include developing

health, international programs, disaster relief, and matching employee donations.9

Leadership and Learning: GE invests about $1 billion every year just on training and education

programs for its employees. The value of doing so is visible through the increasing leadership

capabilities of the employees, as well as in the value and opportunity generated for GE’s

customers and their communities. There are two leadership programs offered to employees,

including an entry-level program for recent college graduates, and an experienced program

geared towards professionals hoping to accelerate their career.10

Assessment of GE’s Current CRM Program

With many years of experience behind them, GE has developed a relatively sufficient

CRM program. However, because GE is composed of so many different departments (i.e.

                                                                                                               7 "Working Environment." GE Main Company Website. General Electric Company. 2012. 8 "Volunteerism." GE Main Company Website. General Electric Company. 2012.  9 "GE Foundation." GE Main Company Website. General Electric Company. 2012. 10 "Leadership & Learning." GE Main Company Website. General Electric Company. 2012.

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Exhibit 1), there are numerous CRM strategies in place. For the purpose of this paper, I will be

focusing primarily on GE Appliances.

Social CRM and Communication:

GE Appliances has successfully transitioned into the utilization of social CRM, as

opposed to alternative, outdated methods. This is crucial because the consumer’s use of the

Internet and social media is directly related to the relationship they have with a company. A third

of Americans feel both a stronger connection and better served by companies that they interact

with in a social media environment. Of the same group, 41% feel that companies should use

social media as a means to solicit feedback on products and services, while 43% also claim that it

should be used to address customer problems.11 GE Appliances has an active presence on many

major social media channels, including Facebook, Twitter, and Tumblr, all managed by a digital

marketing staff. Through this strong social media presence, GE Appliances has found that 69%

of their consumers used Facebook/Twitter as their first contact method. They also concluded that

67% of complaints were converted to satisfied customers. This satisfaction is a response of the

convenience, time efficiency, and service of the digital marketing team.

The GE Appliances Facebook page is probably their most commonly used social media

channel, and has been active since November 2, 2009. As a part of CRM, the digital marketing

staff proactively monitors and responds to online consumer conversations, questions, and issues.

With over 140,000 “fans,” GE Appliances also uses the page as a means of engaging in an

ongoing and open conversation with their consumers. Regardless of the content, the digital

marketing team almost always posts a response with a personal touch to whomever posted it.

This is also done in a very timely manner, typically only minutes after the initial post. Feedback

                                                                                                               11 Cone Communications. “Cone Finds That Americans Expect Companies to Have a Presence in Social Media.” 25 Sept., 2008.  

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like this is a very effective CRM strategy. First, including the consumer’s name in each post

makes the comment personal, like a conversation strictly between them and the company. It is

also evident that the responses are not automated because the staff member always includes his

or her name in the reply, and address specific aspects of the initial comment.12

EXHIBIT 2: examples of recent Facebook conversations between GE and customers. 13

Should a customer prefer not to post their concerns to the Facebook “wall” for everyone to see,

they also have the option of sending a direct message to the marketing team, where it is handled

just like an email.

GE Appliances also uses Facebook to express innovative ideas and as a way to

promote things that are going on with the company.

Every day the digital marketing staff posts articles,

recipes, facts, and other things interesting GE. All of

these posts are used to generate conversation with

consumers, which certainly works. Engaging in such

conversation makes consumers feel valued. Constant efforts to reach out and attract the

Facebook fans is an excellent part of the CRM program as well.

                                                                                                               12  Narasaki, Rich. “Social Engagement Opportunities.” PowerPoint. GE Digital Marketing Report. 15 Nov. 2011.    13  GE. [Feb. 2012]. Facebook Page. Retrieved from <http://www.facebook.com/geappliances?sk=wall&filter=2>.

EXHIBIT 3

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GE Appliances has a similar presence on Twitter as well. Consumers and advocates can

tweet the company directly (@GE_Appliances), or mention them using “hash tags”

(#GEappliances). However, using hash tags is a

less direct approach because GE doesn’t receive

notifications for them. With that in mind, it is

evident that there is an efficient CRM program

in place, because GE still replies to relevant

tweets. Like Facebook, GE Appliances will

generate conversation with their followers as

well, seen in Exhibit 4.14

The GE Appliances Website:

Aside from social media channels, GE practices sufficient social CRM through the

company websites as well. All of GE’s websites have a “Contact Us” section that is very easy to

find. Listed here is a relative phone number, as well as an alternative email address, should the

consumer prefer that over the site’s in tact comment box. The GE Appliances website

has a flashy “FEEDBACK” button on every page as well, which attracts more

consumers to it. The feedback forms are very simple, which is beneficial as well. GE Appliances

responds in a very timely manner, however, sometimes the appropriate representative is

unavailable. In these situations, the consumer will receive an email notifying that GE has

received the message, and is in the process of delivering the best response. From the “Products”

page, consumers can access other customers’ ratings and reviews of any appliance, simply by

searching by the model number.

                                                                                                               14 GE. [Feb. 2012]. In Twitter Page. Retrieved from <  https://twitter.com/#!/generalelectric >.

EXHIBIT 4

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The GE Appliances website also features what they like to call the “GE Appliances

Community.” This is essentially a forum that allows consumers to discuss things together. In

some cases, a consumer will post questions, and in others they provide helpful tips. The same

section of the website contains numerous ideas, pictures, and articles about kitchen design and

remodeling, as well as recipes and tips.

Lastly, GE Appliances has introduced a mobile app for smart phones. The app can be

used to get information on the full product line, including ENERGY STAR qualified appliances

and stainless steel options. The app is also used to send updates about current rebates, recalls,

and promotions. Aside from the app, consumers are able to browse a mobile GE Appliances

website as well.

CRM Software:

Radian6:

Radian6 is a CRM software used by GE Appliances. This software specializes in social

media monitoring and enhancement. In other words, it’s a means of monitoring social media

conversations, while also providing insight on how to improve current social media practices.

One software platform is the Radian6 Dashboard, which is used to listen to, monitor, and

report on all conversations surrounding the brand across the web. Through a powerful search

platform, the company is able to scour the Internet for specific topics and mentions. Advanced

configuration options can also be used to filter information by language, region, or media type,

or organize keywords into groups to monitor competitors and industry terms distinctly from the

brand. The dashboard also provides pictorial representations of the raw data in various chart

forms, specific to any segment, which shows the overall perceptions generated through online

conversations.

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Radian6 Insights is the next step in their CRM platform, and essentially combines the

coverage and depth from Radian6 with other third-party data partners. This provides much more

detailed data such as the author’s gender, age group, and geolocation. Insights is also used to

read into the intentions and the emotions behind consumer posts. Access to such social insights is

used to help GE Appliances with prioritizing customer service and providing valuable product

feedback.

The Radian6 Engagement Console is a desktop application that also helps GE Appliances

excel through social CRM, and is probably the most useful. Through the use of this console, the

customer service team is able to answer questions and inquiries while sharing this information

with the sales staff or product development team. It also helps the staff monitor social media

conversations and allows them to work together to ensure that customers receive not just a

response, but also the appropriate response. The overall features of this application are explained

in EXHIBIT 5.15

Feature Description

The Complete Social Web

Create feeds for your complete Radian6 profiles, or filter by media type to keep an eye on your most important social channels. Launch searches within feeds, filter by keyword, and focus on relevant discussions. Discover conversations that are happening in a date range, or in real-time.

Seamless Workflow

Classify and tag posts, adjust sentiment, and route them to individual team members for follow up and engagement. Team members can pull up a stack of their tasks to act on the posts assigned to them, then respond to Tweets, posts, threads, or blog

                                                                                                               15  “Engagement Console.” What We Sell. Radian6 Company Website. 2012.  

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comments within the platform.

Reporting and Analysis

Radian6 feeds provide a snapshot view of post volumes on profiles. Click straight to your Radian6 dashboard, do analysis on social media metrics, segment data, and generate reports to connect the dots for social media measurement and ROI.

Twitter Integration

Build Twitter feeds right next to the Radian6 searches. Reply, retweet, direct message, block and report spam within the platform from multiple Twitter accounts, browse Twitter profiles, follow new contacts, and shorten URLs automatically.

Facebook Integration Monitor GE Appliances’ Facebook wall posts, status updates, new comments and “likes”. See the news feed for Facebook friends and control your Facebook pages as an Administrator within the Engagement Console.

Salesforce Chatter Support

Stay in the loop inside the organization without ever having to leave the Engagement Console. Chatter is an enterprise collaboration tool that allows users to communicate and share data in a secure and private environment.

Complete Activity and Conversation History

See the conversation threads, in real time, as users respond. Keep the conversation history on record, and preserve the audit trail of interactions, responses, and notes to see the 360-degree view of the activity around a specific post.

Social Profiles

See a user’s full profile to discover more about their online presence. The user can check out their conversation history and notes for that person and add identifying source tags to give context to any ongoing interactions.

Extensions Gallery

A collection of utilities, third party integrations and macros that are designed to allow users to customize the Engagement Console to meet the specific social media monitoring and engagement needs of their team.

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The timely and personal feedback throughout all of GE Appliances’ social media channels

makes it very clear that they utilize this console.

Crimson Hexagon ForSight:

Crimson Hexagon ForSight is a CRM platform similar to Radian6 in that it monitors and

analyzes social media. They compare in that they both track social media conversations all

across the social web. Hexagon also makes it easy to customize these searches and categorizes

data into relevant groups and topics. Both programs also contain aspects similar to Google

Analytics.

However, the ForSight platform does differ in that it identifies the most prominent and

prolific authors related to the topics and themes that are being measured. For instance, this would

identify the person who tweets GE Appliances with the most complaints about customer service.

Through this platform, the user is able to instantly access the author’s full Twitter profile,

including how many tweets they have made, followers they have, and who they are following.

What’s interesting is that the program formulates how much influence this particular author has,

which can be very useful to GE. Should the data define the author as someone with a lot of

influence over other consumers, it is important that the company does whatever it can to reverse

his or her opinion. 16

Competitors:

Whirlpool:

Whirlpool is a home appliance producer very similar to GE Appliances. Like GE

Appliances, they produce a line of home appliances including cooking, cooling, dishwashing,

                                                                                                               16  “Crimson Hexagon Data Visualizations.” Crimson Hexagon Website. 2012.  http://www.crimsonhexagon.com/products/>  

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cleaning, and washing and drying. Although GE has a much more extensive product line, they

each produce very similar major appliances, such as ovens and refrigerators.

Like GE Appliances, Whirlpool has an active presence on social media channels such as

Facebook and Twitter. With that, it is clear that these channels aren’t as prominent in

Whirlpool’s CRM program. The company also uses their Facebook page to post interesting ideas

and such, however, the response to customers is

very minimal. There is a steady stream of

complaints and questions throughout the page,

however, they all receive a very generic

response. Although Whirlpool addresses the consumer by name, these comments are very

impersonal, and in some cases, somewhat rude. Exhibit 617 is the response to a customer

complaint. This is a very useless response because it hardly addresses the issue at all. With that

in mind, the employee doesn’t include the email in which he is talking directing her to, which is

poor communication. This aspect of the company’s CRM

program is also struggling in terms of workflow. As seen

in Exhibit 7, there are occasions where Whirlpool will

send redundant comments that make it clear that there is a

lack of internal communication. Through the use of better

CRM software, this could have easily been avoided.

The company’s presence on Twitter is very similar as well, with continuous posts from the

company, but minimal conversation between them and the consumers. Dealing with customers

through social media is certainly a step forward in the CRM process, however Whirlpool still has

plenty of room to improve.                                                                                                                17  Whirlpool. [Mar. 2012]. Facebook Page. Retrieved from http://www.facebook.com/Whirlpool?sk=wall&filter=12    

 

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On the other hand, the Whirlpool website is sufficient in terms of CRM. The customer

has the ability to purchase products directly from the website, which has become an increasingly

popular purchasing method. Should they have any questions throughout this process, the

consumer can either call the service line or utilize an instant messaging chat with a member of

the support team. Current owners can also take advantage of these outlets as well. Customers

also have the ability to schedule appointments online and download manuals and literature,

similar to GE Appliances. Also like GE, there is a general online comment/question section to

work with via email.

Maytag:

Maytag is another major competitor for GE Appliances as well. They also have a steady

social media presence. Their Facebook use is very similar to that of Whirlpool, in which the

responses are very generic and little to no actual interaction exists. In fact, after a Whirlpool

response to a customer complaint, another consumer added, “welcome to the email autobot. No

luck on emails, just hoops.”18 This represents poor company-customer relationship because the

consumers feel that no actual communication exists. Fortunately, the company has a stronger

presence on Twitter. There are separate accounts, such as @MaytagCare, used primarily for

customer service, and @Maytagcooking, which keeps consumers up to date with the latest

cooking products.

The company website is designed exactly like the Whirlpool website, giving consumers

the same features. Similarly, customers can also choose to purchase products online, or through a

retailer.19

                                                                                                               18  Maytag. [Mar. 2012]. Facebook Page. Retrieved from http://www.facebook.com/maytag?sk=wall&filter=12    19  Maytag Company Website. 2012. Retrieved from http://www.maytag.com/.    

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A Customer-Centric Culture:

Overall, GE functions in a very customer-centric manner. The key is striking the right

balance between customer pleasure and company profit, which requires numerous building

blocks. The first is developing a holistic and continuous view of each customer’s evolving life-

cycle needs, as opposed to short-term needs. This involves monitoring a customer’s past

purchases and browsing behavior, as well as the purchases of similar customers, to tailor

recommendations to individual preferences. Becoming a customer-centric organization entails a

fundamental shift in mindset from selling products to solving problems. With that in mind, a

truly customer-centric company works to fulfill customer needs, and more or less create

customized solutions. Evidence of a customer-centric culture comes from GE Appliances’

engagement in continuous dialogue with their customers, both before and after the purchase.

This is done primarily though social media channels, as previously mentioned. GE Appliances

also provides customers with a sufficient can-do interface. In other words, the company has

numerous self-service channels that efficiently handle routine needs, while skilled sales and

customer care personnel deal with more complex scenarios.20

Through appropriate training, executives learn how to create a customer-centric

environment. Though many companies work with a “customers are always first” mindset, that

should not be the case. In a true customer-centric organization, the employees come first. All

employees play a part in the experiences that the company provides to its customers, therefore,

their attitudes about their jobs and the company can affect the customer experience. Because of

this, GE Appliances strives to provide great experiences for its employees so that they pass along

the greatness to their customers. An example of this is the company’s rewards and benefits for

                                                                                                               20  Booz, Allen, Hamilton. The Customer-Centric Organization: From Pushing Products to Winning Customers. Rep. New York: Booz Allen Hamilton, 2005.  

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employees. They offer a wide range of employee services, retirement, health and other benefits

to help eligible employees make the best decisions for themselves, their family, and their

lifestyle.

GE also encourages the development of talent among new employees. This is designed to

build skills and develop in-depth experience that is crucial to the long term success of the

company. Because of this, the company invests in training and educational offerings annually.

Employees can also take advantage of tuition reimbursement benefits to help improve their

skills, grow their career, or get a loan to help pay for their family’s education. Benefits like these

prove that the employee is a valued part of the company, and certainly serves as an incentive to

participate in CRM.

Strategic Pain Points:

Strategic pain points are problems that have a large impact on customer satisfaction and

loyalty. Solving these problems can lead to superior financial rewards and competitive

advantages.

A primary pain point is that the revenue of GE’s overall Home and Business Solutions

segment has suffered a decrease in revenue and profit. The segment’s revenues of $8.5 billion

decreased 2% ($0.2 billion) in 2011. With that, segment profit of $0.3 billion in 2011 decreased

34% ($0.2 billion) as well. These pain points are a result of lower sales volume in Appliances,

which has been partially offset by the weaker U.S. dollar ($0.1 billion) and increased pricing.21

Another pain point for GE Appliances is customer satisfaction. In 2008, J.D. Power and

Associates conducted a kitchen appliances study based on responses from 14,782 consumers

                                                                                                               21  “GE Works.” GE 2011 Annual Report. 2012.

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who purchased or obtained appliances in the previous 24 months. The results are expressed in

Exhibit 8 below.22

Dishwashers Side-by-Side and French Door Style

Refrigerators

Freezer-on-Top Style

Refrigerators

Free-Standing Ranges

Built-in Cooktops and Wall Ovens

GE Appliances Customer

Satisfaction Score (Based on

1,000 point scale)

728

769

715

779

747

Leading Customer

Satisfaction Score

829

819

784

815

806

Ranking (out of 17)

15

14

11

14

16

J.D. Power and Associates

Power Circle Rating Score for Consumers***

2

2

2

3

2

***J.D. Power and Associates Power Circle Ratings Legend: 5---Among the best 4---Better than most 3---About average 2---The rest

This dissatisfaction is expressed to the public via social media and other Internet sources, thus

creating a crucial pain point as well.

Customer Touch Points:

All transactions occur through a retailer, with the exception of parts, accessories, and

discount appliances. Touch points throughout the sales process are expressed in EXHIBIT 923

below.

                                                                                                               22  J.D. Power and Associates. Among Kitchen Appliance Brands, Bosch, Kenmore Elite, LG, Samsung and Whirlpool Gold Lead Customer Satisfaction Rankings in Their Respective Segments. J.D. Power and Associates, 1 Oct. 2008.  23  GE Appliances Website. http://www.geappliances.com. 2012.    

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Before the Purchase During the Purchase After the Purchase

• Potential customer researches product on company website, social media, product reviews, retailers, etc.

• Customer may request more information through contacting the company via phone, email, or “Ask an Expert” inquiry form.

• Products are compared. • Finding a dealer.

• When online, customer narrows down their product (i.e. color, price, size, extra features, etc.). Then, click “Where To Buy,” and receive a list of all nearby dealers.

• Purchase from retailer. • Parts and accessories can be

ordered directly from GE at www.geapplianceparts.com

• Discount appliances can be purchased from www.geoutletstore.com.

• Register appliance online. • Troubleshoot product using

online GE Appliances Knowledge Base.

• View video tutorials. • Appliance service (schedule

service appointment, check status/reschedule/cancel appointment, view pricing estimates, or find local GE appliance repairman).

• Review or download Owner’s Manuals and Installation Instructions

• Extended warranties. • Appliance Donation Center. • View product FAQ’s. • Viewing recall information. • Talk to Customer Support.

Recommendations

Automate the Sales Process:

Incorporating automation into a sales process is beneficial for numerous reasons such as

an increased need to share information between departments within the company, a need to

decrease the sales cycle, reduce costs, or simply to keep up with the competition.24 The

automation that GE Appliances has already integrated into their practice has provided them with

strategic advantages due to speed and response, improved accuracy, and greater synergy through

improved communication.

With that being said, there doesn’t seem to be anything left in the sales process that is

worth automating. Because the consumer is capable of browsing, comparing, and researching all

of the appliances directly from the main website, the pre-purchase step has been automated. GE                                                                                                                24  Errfmeyer, Robert C., and Dale A. Johnson. An Exploratory Study of Sales Force Automation Practices: Expectations and Results. The Journal of Personal Selling and Sales Management. M.E. Sharpe Inc. p. 167-175. 2001.  

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Appliances’ has also given customers access to purchase certain products directly online. The

company has also automated the post-purchase aspect as well. This is evident through numerous

aspects of the company’s website, as mentioned in Exhibit 9 above.

The only part of the sales process that can be further automated would be during the

process. Although discount appliances and parts and accessories are available for online

purchasing, all of the other appliances are not. Should a customer wish to purchase an appliance

online, they could probably do so through a retailer’s website. It may be beneficial to further

automate the purchase process because it can potentially cut extra costs created by selling

through a retailer. This would create a convenience factor for customers as well.

Reduce the Sales Cycle:

See Exhibit 9 above for a description of the sales cycle. Overall, the sales cycle is

relatively short and simple. Looking at the chart, it is clear that the post-purchase touch points

are potential, not definite. With that in mind, there aren’t many opportunities to minimize the

cycle more than it already is.

As mentioned earlier, increasing automation within the actual purchase is an option. With

the ability to buy all products directly from the GE Appliances website, customers can disregard

any step that involves a retailer.

Increase Customer Satisfaction:

Lower customer satisfaction is one the pain points for GE Appliances, therefore it is

important to improve in this field. Interestingly, GE already provides numerous incentives,

promotions, and sweepstakes for consumers. Examples are listed in EXHIBIT 1025 below.

When customers register their products at geappliances.com, they are automatically entered in a monthly drawing to win $2,500.

                                                                                                               25  GE Rebates and Promotions. GE Appliances Website. http://www.geappliances.com/rebates_promotions/. 2012.  

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GE will donate 2% of all appliance purchases at the GE Outlet Store to United Way to “help advance the common good.” Customers can save up to $2,000 on select Monogram appliance packages purchased within January 1, 2012-March 31, 2012. ENERGY STAR appliances may qualify for an additional rebate from states, funded by a Federal Rebate program.

It is clear that incentives are a prominent part of GE Appliances’ CRM strategy, however,

there are still opportunities for improvement. Adopting a loyalty program would be very

beneficial in this sense. Although GE Appliances have lower customer satisfaction ratings, it is

evident that there are countless satisfied customers. With that being said, it is important that

these customers feel appreciated. In doing so, these consumers are more likely to advocate the

company and its products. A stronger relationship between GE and its happy customers will

continue to encourage them to return the favor. In turn, they may buy more appliances and/or

spread more positive feedback. Details of a potential loyalty program are expressed on page 75.

Another way to increase customer satisfaction is to provide better warranties and/or

guarantees. When the larger, more expensive appliances run into issues after only a few years, it

is likely that the disruption is not at the fault of the consumer. In fact, many of the complaints

posted on Facebook and Twitter are about products breaking after only a couple of years.

Guaranteeing a replacement for products with these problems will definitely help increase

customer satisfaction. A distraught customer is much more likely to buy a replacement appliance

from another company before they would buy one from GE at full price again. However,

replacing the broken appliance or part for free or at a low rate will encourage the customer to

remain with GE.

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Recommended CRM Software

As mentioned before, GE Appliances already utilizes two excellent CRM platforms to

monitor and analyze relevant Internet data. Because of this, it may be useful to adopt a software

program that is tailored to the customers outside from social media.

Green Beacon’s CompassPoint Solutions:

CompassPoint Solutions is built into two other Microsoft platforms, and enables High-

Tech Manufacturers to make rapid, accurate decisions using real-time data from internal

operations, suppliers and customers, to more effectively meet customer demands, lower

production costs, and open visibility to global suppliers. EXHIBIT 11 outlines the features of

the CompassPoint Solutions software.

Improve Supply Chain Management

Increase visibility throughout the value chain. Shorten development cycles by integrating product development with manufacturing, accounting, purchasing, and suppliers. Make fast and accurate decisions based on real-time data.

Reduce Time-to-Market

Connect customer demand requirements directly to manufacturing, suppliers, and distributors. Shorten development cycles by integrating product development with manufacturing, accounting, purchasing, and suppliers. Increase product innovation through collaboration with customers and suppliers.

Enhance Collaboration

Speed product development using collaboration tools. Integrate design with manufacturing systems Gather customer inputs and requirements and

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integrate it into product development plans. Take advantage of security-enhanced, web-based products and technologies.

The electronics industry faces numerous challenges such as shorter product life cycles,

unpredictable demand, rapid outsourcing and price erosion caused by worldwide competition. To

meet these challenges, GE Appliances needs to optimize its supply chain, enable complete real-

time visibility with customers, partners and suppliers, and reduce its time-to-market. The

CompassPoint Solutions platform is an excellent tool to monitor these concepts. 26

Sales Machine:

Sales Machine is a CRM software program built specifically for manufacturing

company’s sales department who want to manage their leads, opportunities, and the quotation

process. With this software, GE Appliances can maintain other client related things such as issue

tracking and RMA’s etc. EXHIBIT 1227 highlights the key features of this program.

Centralized Database

Easy access and structure. Ability for users to generate and share client quotes, profiles, and contact information in one database. Database will allow mangers and specific employees to be able to access relevant information in one area. Access can be controlled by individual settings and permissions for viewing, sharing and ability to edit respective client files.

Lead Generation and Marketing Campaigns

Execute email and direct marketing campaigns. Measure the effectiveness of each marketing channel. Generate leads and nurture prospects that are not ready to buy yet. Send email marketing material to filtered lists of specific customers and prospect.

                                                                                                               26  Component Manufacturing. Green Beacon Solutions Website. http://www.greenbeacon.com/greenbeaconwebsite/Solutions/By-Vertical/Manufacturing-Components.aspx. 2012. 27  Features.  SalesMachine  Website.  http://www.manufacturingcrmsoftware.com/features.htm.  2012.    

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Lead Management

Lead inquiry via website ‘contact form’ to Sales Machine database. Leads via phone and emails can be routed to a queue to be distributed to specific employees. Rules based on lead sorting based on different lead qualification criteria’s. Conversion of qualified leads into prospects and assignment of opportunities.

Microsoft Office Integration

Outlook, Word and Excel are integrated to provide exceptional functionality and user control. Individual client records allow for all income and outgoing emails to be stored under their own profile. Scheduling and calendaring is unified under each specific client. This allows staff to view scheduled activities as a whole.

RMA (Customer Returns) Management Manage product return process with built-in RMA manager. Log all returned items into Sales Machine and issue credit or replacements.

Opportunity Pipeline for Sales

Setting flags for cold vs. hot opportunities. Determine prospect’s interest based on predefined criteria. Extremely easy to follow opportunity process interface. System automated reminders to follow up on opportunities in time. System automated reminders to flag missed follow ups. Forecast revenue returns by individual opportunities.

Issue Tracking

Track and log customer services issues under each client record. Can be used for customer service activities like shipping issues, invoice issues, etc.

Sales Machine is an excellent CRM platform as because of the great spectrum of topics

that it covers. Being able to analyze lead generations and marketing campaigns is crucial in

ensuring that current marketing strategies are working and not wasting money. The issue

tracking feature is also very useful because it keeps a log of previous customer complaints and

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their progress. Because customer satisfaction is a pain point for GE Appliances, this application

may be helpful.

Clientele

In general, the GE Appliances’ customers vary from anyone buying their own kitchen

appliances to retail locations across the nation. Because the company generally produces larger

appliances such as refrigerators and water heaters, primary clientele consists of people that are

replacing old equipment or remodeling their homes. The company’s customer base also consists

primarily of cooking advocates. To accommodate this, GE provides a lot of recipes and cooking

tips on both the website and social media channels. From a different perspective, appliance

retailers are also considered GE customers. Because GE has such a well-known brand, many

stores carry their appliances. For instance, Walmart is an exclusive retailer of GE’s small

appliances.

From the remodeling perspective, customers are differentiated by whether or not they are

working with a registered builder, contractor, or remodeler. With that, the list of available

retailers is completely different for each group. When a consumer clicks the “Where to Buy”

button, they are asked if they are working with a registered professional. Should the consumer

respond “yes,” they receive a list of local resellers, where as those who select “no” receive a

much longer list of independent dealers.

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Empowering Customers

Loyalty Programs:

As mentioned above, installing a customer loyalty program would be a great incentive in

raising customer satisfaction. However, such an incentive also encourages consumers to continue

purchasing GE Appliances.

Because of its industry, GE Appliances has many customer loyalty opportunities. One

option is to reward consumers for spending a certain amount of money. That way, larger

spenders will feel that the company appreciates their patronage. Another option is to reward

advocates for generating more consumers. This can be monitored online through customer

accounts and added to the “purchase” process. In other words, when a consumer clicks the

“Where to Buy” button, they could be directed to a page that not only gives them a list of

retailers, but a space to express what made them choose that product. In this space, they could

write down the name of a friend, who would then be rewarded for the lead. Such rewards for

these loyalty programs can include things such as exclusive coupons on other appliances or

services, gift cards, free servicing, and things of this sort.

Product Design Contests:

Another way to empower customers is to give them the opportunity to buy exactly what

they want. One way to do this is through a contest oriented around consumer’s own innovations

and inventions. An excellent award would be to produce the winning product and put it on the

GE product line. Doing so will inspire consumers to create their products to customize their

particular needs. This is also useful to GE because it gives them a better idea of what customers

are searching for in their products, as well as what may be missing from them.

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Social media can be used to promote this in numerous ways. For instance, GE can use

Facebook and Twitter to announce and promote the event in general. They can also use social

media to keep participants and followers updated throughout the span of the contest. On the other

hand, customers can utilize social media to reach out to GE for help or tips about their ideas as

well.

Performance Metrics

Profit and Revenue Increase:

Because GE Appliances sparked a 2% decrease in revenue and a 34% decrease in profit,

the change over the next few years is a performance metric. These decreases are due to a lack of

sales volume, however accommodating these recommendations and other CRM software

platforms should counteract the fall. However, it is important to understand that these

adjustments are expensive, thus it is likely that the metric will be a little off in the beginning.

Also, it is going to take time before the changes become apparent to the consumers, meaning that

the increase in sales volume may be a little slow in the beginning. Even the slightest

improvement is a positive sign though, as the CRM system will only improve over time.

Online Reviews and Social Media Conversation:

One of the goals of these recommendations and new CRM software is to increase

customer satisfaction. This can easily be measured through the conversations and reviews

expressed across the Internet. As customers become more satisfied, or at least less dissatisfied, it

will be reflected in the things that they say. For instance, Facebook should receive more positive

comments on their wall and less of the negative complaints. Because these social media channels

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are such a prominent aspect of GE Appliances’ current CRM program, any changes will be

noticed rather rapidly.

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Works Cited

Booz, Allen, Hamilton. The Customer-Centric Organization: From Pushing Products to Winning Customers. Rep. New York: Booz Allen Hamilton, 2005. Component Manufacturing. Green Beacon Solutions Website. http://www.greenbeacon.com/greenbeaconwebsite/Solutions/By-Vertical/Manufacturing- Components.aspx. 2012. Cone Communications. “Cone Finds That Americans Expect Companies to Have a Presence in Social Media.” 25 Sept., 2008. “Crimson Hexagon Data Visualizations.” Crimson Hexagon Website. 2012.     http://www.crimsonhexagon.com/products/> “Engagement Console.” What We Sell. Radian6 Company Website. 2012. Errfmeyer, Robert C., and Dale A. Johnson. An Exploratory Study of Sales Force Automation Practices: Expectations and Results. The Journal of Personal Selling and Sales Management. M.E. Sharpe Inc. p. 167-175. 2001.  Features.  SalesMachine  Website.     <http://www.manufacturingcrmsoftware.com/features.htm.>  2012.   GE Appliances Website. http://www.geappliances.com. 2012. GE. [Feb. 2012]. Facebook Page. Retrieved from <http://www.facebook.com/geappliances?sk=wall&filter=2>. GE. [Feb. 2012]. In Twitter Page. Retrieved from <  https://twitter.com/#!/generalelectric >. "GE Fact Sheet: Businesses, Locations, Awards, Leadership". GE company website. 2012. "GE Foundation." GE Main Company Website. General Electric Company. 2012. "GE rankings". Ranking the Brands. 17 December 2011.   GE Rebates and Promotions. GE Appliances Website. < http://www.geappliances.com/rebates_promotions/. 2012. “GE Works.” GE 2011 Annual Report. 2012. J.D. Power and Associates. Among Kitchen Appliance Brands, Bosch, Kenmore Elite, LG, Samsung and Whirlpool Gold Lead Customer Satisfaction Rankings in Their Respective Segments. J.D. Power and Associates, 1 Oct. 2008.

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"Leadership & Learning." GE Main Company Website. General Electric Company. 2012. Maytag Company Website. 2012. Retrieved from http://www.maytag.com/. Maytag. [Mar. 2012]. Facebook Page. Retrieved from http://www.facebook.com/maytag?sk=wall&filter=12 Narasaki, Rich. “Social Engagement Opportunities.” PowerPoint. GE Digital Marketing Report. 15 Nov. 2011. "Our Company." GE Main Company Website. General Electric Company. 2012. "Our People." GE Main Company Website. General Electric Company. 2012. "Products Z Services A-Z." GE Main Company Website. General Electric Company. 2012. "Thomas Edison & GE." GE Main Company Website. General Electric Company. 2012. "Volunteerism." GE Main Company Website. General Electric Company. 2012. Whirlpool. [Mar. 2012]. Facebook Page. Retrieved from http://www.facebook.com/Whirlpool?sk=wall&filter=12. "Working Environment." GE Main Company Website. General Electric Company. 2012.  

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Ten Points

1. Background, History, and Culture

2. How GE Appliances implements social CRM and the company website

3. Being a customer-centric organization

4. Current CRM software—Radian6

5. How competitors differ with social CRM

6. Consumer touch points

7. Recommendations---Automation and reducing the sales cycle

8. Recommended CRM platform

9. Empowering the customer—Loyalty programs and innovation contests

10. Performance metrics related to strategic pain points