Many dotcom-era business plans based on “virtual community” crashed and burned. But some companies today have discovered that online communities for customers not only provide business value but also become a critical component of their customer relations, R&D and marketing efforts. That’s one key piece of consultant Patricia Seybold’s new book, Outside Innovation, which posits that companies need to engage customers in more innovative ways to help redesign products, improve processes and test business models.The author of Customers.com and The Customer Revolution goes into great detail—using dozens of case studies from heavyweights such as Staples and Kraft, and lesser-knowns such as Koko Fitness—to get executives to wake up to her main point: The traditional company-customer relationship (“We develop products for our customers”) has flipped, and those who ignore this reality do so at their own peril.This line of thinking requires a level of openness simply not found in many enterprises today—a faith that customers’ passion for your products and services will translate into revolutionary product developments and efficiency for you. In a sense, it’s R&D on the cheap. Seybold’s examples are noteworthy for their innovations and financial returns. Of course, companies can’t handpick customers, especially ones who want to strut their stuff for the company, so it’ll take a lot of work to vet the good from the bad, hammer out the relationship details and find suitable rewards for customers’ efforts. Much more work, it seems, than many firms are willing to put forth, Seybold says. Related content feature 10 most popular IT certifications for 2023 Certifications are a great way to show employers you have the right IT skills and specializations for the job. These 10 certs are the ones IT pros are most likely to pursue, according to data from Dice. By Sarah K. White May 26, 2023 8 mins Certifications Careers interview Stepping up to the challenge of a global conglomerate CIO role Dr. Amrut Urkude became CIO of Reliance Polyester after his company was acquired by Reliance Industries. He discusses challenges IT leaders face while transitioning from a small company to a large multinational enterprise, and how to overcome them. By Yashvendra Singh May 26, 2023 7 mins Digital Transformation Careers brandpost With the new financial year looming, now is a good time to review your Microsoft 365 licenses By Veronica Lew May 25, 2023 5 mins Lenovo news Alteryx works in generative AI for speedy analytics results OpenAI integration and AI wizardry for report generation are aimed at making Alteryx’s analytics products more accessible. By Jon Gold May 25, 2023 3 mins Analytics Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe