A Letter From Lester Wunderman
Don Peppers and Martha Rogers wrote an article, titled, “Peppers and Rogers Answer the CRM Cynic” (The CRM Loop, Sept. 22). It is an article meant to create sales for their new book, in which they claim: “That’s why we maintain that Return on Customer Value is in fact that rarest of things in business—a truly new idea.”
I would like to thank them for the compliment because my clients, my agency and I seemed to recognize and use long-term customer value, and even wrote about it long before they did. But I never thought it was a new concept that I originated. Had I done so, I would have censured myself for bragging.
In their article, they criticize a negative review of their book by Ray Schultz for whom I have always had great respect. I really don’t want to enter the controversy, but Peppers and Rogers’ article also states, “The plain fact is that no one—not even the shrewdest direct marketer—has ever written anything about tracking LTV change as an aid to making decisions. We’ve been searching the academic and trade literature for two years and we haven’t found a single example.”
Again, I beg to differ with Don and Martha. Back in 1996, Random House published my book, “Being Direct.” The Direct Marketing Association has republished it and continues to make it available. It is not obscure, since more than 100,000 copies have been sold here and it has been translated into French, Spanish, German, Japanese and Chinese.
In the book I give several examples of the creation, measurement and changes of customer value. The penultimate paragraph of “Being Direct” reads, “So what does the post-present imply for information-based advertising that affects both behavior and attitudes and creates measurable profits?” The paragraph ends with the following: “The purpose of marketing and advertising has always been to sell products. Hereafter it will be to sell products through long-term relationships. Marketing investments will be made against a consumer’s lifetime value.”
Martha and Don, would you like a copy of “Being Direct”?
Lester Wunderman
