MC² Market & Competitive Convergence

March 2000
Myrtle Beach, South Carolina USA

Article appeared in Filtration News

It seemed odd, at first, but there I was at the American Filtration & Separation Society's annual conference when my insurance company was mentioned during a technical session. Could this be? In fact, it was mentioned several times. Could it be that it tied in, somehow, with filtration –  my insurance company?

There are so many events that, one way or another, involve filters that you could, it seems, go seamlessly from one to another. So you have to pick and choose them carefully. I was attracted to the AFSS conference by its rich technical content, which, in turn, would attract filter manufacturers and users, material and equipment suppliers, distributors, manufacturers representatives, and people like me, consultants – a rich networking environment. The fact that it was held during March, in the warmth of Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and me living in the cold north, had little bearing. But the conference attracting someone from the insurance industry never occurred to me.

I have never participated in the full conference before. When I exhibited at shows past, I was a booth lizard, who couldn’t wait to pack it in. But this time I arrived for the opening Plenary session on March 14, and I was one of the last ones to leave, boarding my Newark, New Jersey flight on March 17, which arrived nine hours late due to the weather – the same cold wind and rain I had left was there to greet me. Woody Allan once said, ”90% of life is just being there.” You have to have the faith that by immersing oneself in this tableau of people, product and subject for the whole bit, that something good will emerge, some light will light, some synaptic connection made, that somehow I’d stay alert. And the mere mention of my insurance company snapped me into a heightened state of consciousness that saw me through.

Attending the complete conference makes you realize the shear volume of data that exists in this technology-driven market. If you attend the filtration short courses, for instance, you have to deal with all the information associated with liquid and air filtration basics, including media choices, test procedures, theories... Well, you get the picture. Then you have all the technical sessions, covering a broad spectrum of filter topics. And don’t forget the exhibits, with their products and pitches. To help us keep track of all this stuff, AFSS came through with the proceedings on CD-ROM, giving us the ability to click on subjects, authors and keywords. And Microsoft had no part in it. Can you believe it? The use of a CD-ROM is a first for the society, and now I’ll expect it, spoiled for life. But the CD-ROM gave no clue that my insurance company was somehow involved with filtration.

Just as I was wondering if I’d be able to read my notes the next time I looked at them, Ed Gregor, session meister, told us to stay tuned for the next speaker. One, he said, who would tell us how to handle all this knowledge. The speaker was Frederick W. “Tim” Timmerman, Jr., the insurance guy I was telling you about. Of course, I thought, all insurance companies must handle mountains of data. However, Timmerman’s former employer, and my insurance company since those Cold War days in the U.S. Army, USAA, is renown for using data strategically. They capture it at all points of entry, using a clearing house model to categorize and distribute it to people who have plans for its use. USAA services only armed forces personnel, and it’s headed by ex-generals who know and practice guerrilla marketing. Timmerman is now a consultant with  Computer Sciences Corporation, an El Segundo, California-based information technology provider, with 50,000 employees in 700 offices in major cities throughout the world and annual revenues of more than $7.4 billion.

Gregor met Timmerman when he moved into Gregor's neighborhood, and they soon found something in common. Something that was in common with everyone at the conference: the need to turn information into a tool that can build customer loyalty. I have seen this in action, as my 33 years as a USAA customer bears witness to. AFSS is also using information to build loyalty. I shall return. The next one is in Tampa, Florida, May 1-4, 2001. 

I bought Timmerman’s book, “Winning the Information Game,” Executive Excellence Publishing, and available at amazon.com for $22.95. It’s worthwhile reading.

Ross West is a marketing and sales consultant, residing in the Hudson Highlands of New York State. You can visit his Web site at MC2LINK.com.