About ISM
We help companies acquire, retain, and grow their customers using cutting-edge technologies.
Since our inception in 1985, we have focused on guiding the world’s best companies to successfully apply technology to support sales, marketing, and customer service strategies. We focus on three areas: Metaverse/virtual world, Digital Communities, and CRM.
Led by futurist, author and keynote speaker, Barton Goldenberg, the ISM team is one of the most experienced customer strategy consulting teams in the world. Customers turn to ISM because of our 38 years of experience helping companies create and implement their customer strategy to acquire, retain, and grow their customer base using:
- Our knowledge and creativity in applying the right technologies to optimize sales, marketing and customer service strategies
- Our 100% objectivity from all technology vendors
- The outstanding quality of our consultants
- Our structured and proven TDBU methodology
- Our track record delivering consistent on-time and on-budget engagements
Our Signature Methodology
In 1985, ISM created a proprietary, multi-step engagement methodology – we call it TDBU or ‘Top-Down Bottom-Up’ – to ensure the successful implementation of our customers’ strategy initiatives. We have found this methodology to be so successful over the years that we now apply it to all customer engagements including Metaverse, Digital Communities, and CRM. The methodology helps our customers realize successful strategic initiatives that deliver increased sales from enhanced customer loyalty, satisfaction, and advocacy, lower costs to service customers, and more engaged customers.
Our TDBU methodology is built on a paradigm that incorporates people, process, and technology. Specifically, we have found that 50% of the success of a customer-facing technology initiative depends on ‘people’ issues (i.e., organizational readiness), 30% depends on effective business processes (both internal and external customer-facing processes), and 20% depends on technology tools.
Our TDBU Methodology gathers both ‘top-down’ (executive and management) and ‘bottom-up’ (sales, marketing and customer service personnel) perspectives to ensure that the critical mix of people, process and technology is properly aligned. These two perspectives come together to ensure the successful implementation of a company’s technology initiative in support of their customer strategy.
Regardless of whether your company is applying Metaverse, Digital Communities, or CRM technology to support your customer strategy, our TDBU Methodology guides you to:
- Align the executive team through an agreed-on vision
- Determine your business requirements (both internal and customer-facing)
- Enhance your internal and customer-facing business processes
- Select appropriate technology
- Determine required change management activities that range from creating an optimal governance structure to designing/implementing effective training, communications, and reward & incentive programs
- Create your people-process-technology implementation plan
- Create your Business Case or Business Justification document
- Identify and fill Project/Program management needs
A critical deliverable of our TDBU methodology is a 2-to-4-year Implementation Roadmap that supports your customer strategy. The roadmap detailed requirements for people, process, and technology activities, as well as activities for successful software selection and implementation.
Our TDBU methodology is structured yet flexible. ‘Structured’ in that there are key activities and deliverables that must be met within the methodology for your initiative to be successful. ‘Flexible’ in that we also take into account each company’s unique culture and adjust the methodology to ensure an optimal fit.
Ready to Take Your Customer Strategy to the Next Level?
To learn more about ISM's TDBU methodology and how we can help you acquire, retain and grow your customer base,
call ISM at (301) 656-8448 or schedule below to get started.
