CHAPTER 4 Customer Intelligence: The Science of Customer Insight. How Harrah’s Used Customer Insight to Turn the Tables on the Gaming Industry Seven Dimensions of Customer Insight Define a Scientific Process for Leveraging Customer Insight Building Blocks Required to Implement a Customer Insight Infrastructure | CHAPTER 4 Customer Intelligence The Science of Customer Insight How Harrah s Used Customer Insight to Turn the Tables on the Gaming Industry 85 Seven Dimensions of Customer Insight 88 Define a Scientific Process for Leveraging Customer Insight 93 Building Blocks Required to Implement a Customer Insight Infrastructure 104 Key Points 115 The history of business is replete with examples of how long-held beliefs were overturned by innovations creative thinking and new approaches. Market leaders have often been toppled by upstarts touting innovative business models that anticipate new or undiscovered customer needs. For example within the computer industry IBM missed the mini-computer trend ceding the market to DEC which subsequently turned the keys to the vault over to PC makers. Both companies failed to detect nascent and fast-emerging demand for personalized and more flexible computer power within the various departments of their customers. In a bold move Microsoft created a business model based on software flying in the face of IBM and DEC s hardware-dominated software-giveaway strategies. This seemingly upside-down business model anticipated personal computer use and allowed Microsoft to become the most valuable company in the world. In the retail industry Wal-Mart s discount format toppled Sears from industry leadership and retailers of fashionable young women s clothing are being rocked by top European retailer Zara s innovative model. Zara is fundamentally changing the fashion retail industry by designing producing and stocking its shelves with new fashionable items in six weeks rather than the traditional six months. Similarly casino operator Harrah s has .
