3.1 Customer and Market Knowledge (40 pts.) Approach-Deployment

Describe how your organization determines requirements, expectations, and preferences of customers and markets to ensure the continuing relevance of your products/services and to develop new opportunities.

Within your response, include answers to the following questions:

1. Customer and Market Knowledge

   1. How do you determine or target customers, customer groups, and/or market segments? How do you include customers of competitors and other potential customers and/or markets in this determination?

   2. How do you listen and learn to determine key customer requirements (including product/service features) and their relative importance/value to customers' purchasing decisions for purposes of prod uct/service planning, marketing, improvements, and other business development? In this determination, how do you use relevant information from current and former customers, including marketing/sales information, customer retention data, won/lost analysis, and complaints? If determination methods vary for different customers and/or customer groups, describe the key differences in your determination methods.

   3. How do you keep your listening and learning methods current with business needs and directions?

Notes:

N1. Customer groups (3.1a[1]) might include Web-based customers and/or customers with whom you have direct contact. Key product/service features and purchasing decisions might take into account transactional modes and...