Upside Visa can avoid costly write-offs and save millions of dollars annually. Downside People may be judged by their predicted, not actual, behavior. First Union Bank Technology Service reps use software and the Web to help them sort customers into red, green, and yellow categories, depending on their banking history and value to the bottom line. Upside First Union uses green pop-ups to help service reps target customers who may be given more flexibility on credit card rates. A new database, software, and the Web help door-factory execs know which customers are most profitable and which distributors give the best deals to Weyerhaueser.
Systems helps company rank suppliers and distributors on price, delivery times, and innovation.
Downside Wisconsin door plant has shed some 5,000 customers, cutting into their bottom lines. Catalina Supermarkets Technology Bar codes, software, and Web site help grocery executives keep tabs on who buys what foods, how often, and at what price. Upside High-profit customer rate has gone up because most special offers and services, such as free home delivery, are given almost exclusively to the store's best customers. Net targeting eliminates the need to buy costly newspaper coupons, which offer specials to everyone, regardless of their value to the store's bottom line. Product and pricing needs of low-profit customers gets less consideration.