Customer Needs

For any business to function, it must first understand the needs of the customer. These needs may be based on the specific product, distribution of the product, or accessibility to the product, along with many other factors. The e-business revolution is a good example of understanding that the consumer is in need of fast service at their own time. Yantra Corp, a fulfillment software vendor in Tewksbury, MA states that “successful companies must let customers order products anywhere they sell them and fulfill orders as promised from anywhere.” Web savvy customers of today are more demanding than ever before. Their needs require more than just a toll-free number or customer service reps to answer the constant barrage of e-mail messages and voicemails. Customers of today have become accustomed to shopping in a fast-paced, high-tech environment, and consumers expect their questions answered in a flash --or they may go elsewhere.Businesses are realizing that in order to enhance customer care and to best fit the needs of the customer, they must use internet-based tools, such as live web chat, call-me technology and live telephony. These products hold a lot of promise because once these live systems are in place, the company becomes better-equipped for building relationships with customers and this ensures future sales.

In order to become one of the leading manufacturers in the automobile industry, Honda as well had to first understand the needs of its customer. The automobile industry has many different kinds of vehicles to support the desires of each of its clients; there are vehicles that are more fuel efficient, trucks, Sport Utility vehicles, and compact cars. There are also hybrids, and a number of amenities that can be added onto vehicles to customize each individual one. In order to develop these different yet integral types of vehicles, Honda had to first assess the Market and understand the trends.

In Ukraine for example, the Honda Civic accounts for almost hall of all Honda models sold there. Even when it came to launching a new version for 2004, regardless of their previous accomplishments, Honda still researched the need base for the model in Ukraine. Board members at the Honda Motor Company undertook research of previous, present and potential Civic drivers, both retail and corporate and determined their likes and dislikes, and then took action. What came out of is was a stylish, more distinctive Civic that was more fun to drive but it still maintained the class-leading interior space, economy,