Welcome to Customerium

The SaaS tsunami is bringing dramatically changed realities to how we view  technology.  While the most obvious aspect of the new profit model is entirely different; the bulk of the Customer Lifetime Value to the vendor is no longer gained at the point of initial sale — that’s just the first step in what will be a profound journey.  The CLV is now the result of an income stream over time, with profit coming incrementally — and only after the acquisition costs for that customer have been recouped and the retention costs included in the calculation.  That single shift, from front-loaded profits-realization to balanced income stream, inherently changes the very nature of the product being sold.  Now the technology is only one aspect of a much larger and more vital whole.  The fundamental basis for the industry has gone beyond code to an ongoing economic connection.  SaaS, for those vendors who want to succeed, ultimately has to be about mutually beneficial relationship and incremental exchange of value.

The Architecture of Enduring Customer Relationships

It’s time to intentionally explore the architecture of customer-company relationships in the SaaS ecosystem, and that’s what Customerium will be about.  Underneath the sea-change in the software industry, despite its essential impact upon the way that software is manufactured, marketed, sold, delivered and supported, old-model patterns, perceptions and practices are still very much present and stifling the success of both vendor and customer.  Customerium as an online resource will speak to the issues, challenges, approaches, tools and best practices of designing and building lasting customer relationships in the new era. Welcome to Customerium.

Comments Are Welcome

Customerium will be an ongoing conversation, and community feedback –including disagreement– is very welcome.  Unlike a blog, comments will not be posted as direct attachments to articles here.  Instead, the Comments button will enable readers to e-mail their reactions and feedback about a particular article privately to the editors for use in either direct response or in future articles — or both.  Privacy and confidentiality will be strictly respected; unless specifically authorized in advance, the names, company affiliations and/or e-mail addresses of commenters will not be published.  Nor will your contact information in any way be provided to anyone else.

There are times, however, when there is a great deal of value to be gained from an open exchange of views between known individuals.  That form of discourse will also be available through links to our discussion forum, The SaaS & Support Forum, on LinkedIn.