Case Study – Oxford Internet Consultants (Oxinet)
How Oxinet used Reputation Marketing™ to help them win a large government contract (and other benefits).
Profile
Let me introduce you to Gordon Buxton, the MD of Oxford Internet Consultants. Oxinet are an 11-person software development business based in…Oxford. Gordon started the business in 1997, a time when lots of start-ups were getting into web development. The majority of those are no longer in business but Oxinet is still there and growing by 30% p.a.
A Quality Business
Gordon is not a businessman subject to the latest fads and must-haves. During the boom years he didn’t over-invest, so when the bad times came his business had a solid foundation and carried on growing right through the recession. Now he has some heavyweight connections in government and corporates alike.
The ProCustomer Connection
In November 2004, Gordon came to a ProCustomer seminar and decided on the spot to subscribe. He liked the way it was built and wanted his company, a software development business, to be associated with it. He rapidly built up a bank of customer testimonials and importance/performance ratings on different aspects of his service.
Government Contract
In January 2005 Oxinet was one of a number of web development businesses tendering for a large contract with the Health Development Agency, a government body. Gordon’s team put together a comprehensive 100+ page tender document and prepared to present it.
So far, no surprises – all of the bidders would be doing the same thing.
But Gordon had an ace up his sleeve, thanks to ProCustomer. One of his testimonials was a glowing comment from the National Institute for Clinical Excellence (NICE), another government health agency.
Gordon took this comment, along with a couple of others and built them into his presentation.
Presentation to the HDA
Gordon is not a businessman subject to the latest fads and must-haves. During the boom years he didn’t over-invest, so when the bad times came his business had a solid foundation and carried on growing right through the recession. Now he has some heavyweight connections in government and corporates alike.
The PowerPoint slide that Gordon used
Then Gordon also presented some of the importance/performance feedback from his ProCustomer charts. This proved that he had extremely high ratings from existing customers for delivering quality work on time – a key concern of the HDA.
The chart data that Gordon used in his presentation to the Health Development Agency
The combination of his tender proposal, ProCustomer testimonials and performance data won the day and Gordon landed the contract.
Trust
Says Gordon, “Now, whenever someone makes an enquiry I tell them to go to my ProCustomer page and see my testimonials. Winning new customers is all about trust and ProCustomer helps me establish that trust.”
Additional Benefits
As well as helping him win profitable new business, ProCustomer has helped Gordon to:
Motivate and retain key staff.Some staff members were singled out for praise in customer testimonials. Gordon made sure they saw what had been written and noted the profound effect it had on them. “Recognition like that is as good as a pay rise”, he says.
Focus on what’s important.The ProCustomer importance/performance feedback charts have shown Gordon which issues are most important to his clients….and whether he needs to do anything about them. This means he doesn’t waste time fixing things of no value but instead can focus on what the business needs.
You can view Gordon’s published testimonials at www.oxi.net