CorraoGroup Blog

During the last few weeks, I’ve been spending more time with existing and potential clients discussing 2010 business planning.  “Confidence” in the business climate continues to slowly grow and most companies are exploring investing into expanding their customer reach. I have observed an interesting trend in that these same companies really don’t know who their customers are, and in turn, what their real requirements are for products and services. I can only equate this to trying to catch butterflies in the dark -  you might get lucky and catch a few, but lose the opportunity to get the majority.

Understanding your current and future customer segments with existing financial data, customer satisfaction surveys and industry data is critical to developing a solid strategic and business plan. Consider that what might have worked 2-3 years ago will not always apply in today’s market; the days of “nice to have” products and service are long gone, and you must provide simple messaging that communicates your value as a “got to have”  in relation to your customer’s day to day business.

Last, and probably the most important, is to share this information internally to your business! I can’t tell you how many times I find companies that fail to accurately communicate customer requirements within their organization. Some symptoms to look for related to lack of understanding of customer requirements are:

• Deadlines continue to move out on critical projects;
• Customer support  = fire fighting culture;
• Missing/Inaccurate company milestones;
• Sales and profitability declines;
• Employee turnover.

Staying connected to your customer is not only critical for upfront business planning but should also be developed for ongoing customer satisfaction.  Developing an integrated social media strategy that allows your customers and internal staff to interact in real-time will also provide you with invaluable data, allowing you to adjustment your plan as needed throughout the year.

Any startup or established company with a unique technology should focus immediately on beginning the patenting process.  The importance is significant, as a patent gives your company the right to stop others from copying, manufacturing, selling, and importing your invention without permission. The existence of a patent may be enough on its own to stop others from trying to exploit your invention. If it does not, it gives you the right to take legal action to stop them from exploiting your invention and to claim damages.

Patents are also valuable for generating interest and investment in new and growing businesses. This is particularly important for companies attempting to establish themselves in high-tech industries. Start-up companies are often based on the development of a specific new, sometimes potentially ground-breaking, technology. Without securing rights for our technology, we may find ourselves unable to obtain sufficient resources to bring that technology to market.

Patents may also be licensed to other parties allowing these parties to exploit the invention in exchange for royalty payments.

Finally, a patent serves as a readily accessible public record of the innovative developments made and owned by the patent owner. The existence of a patent may serve as a warning to competitors to stay clear of a protected technology. In addition, a patent stakes out a patentee’s technological territory, precluding others who develop technology at a later stage from attempting to claim or patent that technology as their own.

Well I hope I didn’t bore you with my “Benefits of Patent Protection” analogy but it is a critical step in the evolution of any company. That’s it for this week kids—-this is the CFO signing out.

Frank