Rodenstock has put its Club member website at the heart of a programme to support and communicate with its customers following recent management changes at the firm.
The password-protected www.rodenstock.net site is designed to act bothas an electronic newsletter andas a central business resource for Club customers. The website contains information about all of the company's products and allows practices to track the status of jobs placed in Rodenstock's lab.
The site also hosts consumer advertising visuals which can be downloaded. Eventually itwill actas an electronic ordering tool and even collect consumer feedback.Marketing communications manager John Harrup said the site added real value for Club members, providinga simple, single source for support materials. 'The online discussion forum is also extremely popular.'
The website is just one element of a concerted effort to underpin its relationship with customers following a number of changes,saidChris Hunt who has returned to the company as regional development director for the UK market.He said Rodenstock was all about technical excellence, trust and support. 'We are getting back to our roots and putting the emphasis on the brand. The differences between the products are minimal so you have to bring something which adds to that.
'We are demonstrating to the optician that we have the technical competence and we are prepared to spend the time and the money educating the public and the profession about our products.'
He admitted that Rodenstock could sometimes appear aloof and needed to start talking to its customers again. Rodenstock wanted to change itsemotional languageand listen more, he said.
As well as putting the emphasis back on the Club, Rodenstock has re-established consumer advertising, to pushconsumers to named practices.
Hunt said Rodenstock's customers had been very loyal through recent changes. They did attract the attentions of competitors but they had remained loyal because they recognised the quality of Rodenstock products and support, he said.
'By putting the emphasis back on the brand and listening to them we have got them talking to us again. Relationships do matter.'