ROI Case File No.405: Where Four Perspectives Intersect
Where Four Perspectives Intersect
Chapter 1: The Stopped Clock
"Our Amazon EC site hasn't been updated in two years."
The digital marketing manager at Altera Corp made this confession. On his laptop screen, the company's product pages were displayed. Indeed, the photos and descriptions gave an outdated impression.
"Compare it with our competitors' pages."
The page he opened next showed a rival company's Amazon listing. High-quality product photos, video content, detailed usage scenarios, customer testimonials—the volume and quality of information was incomparable to Altera Corp's pages.
"Sales are gradually declining. New customer acquisition is also trending downward. At this rate, we'll be completely left behind by the competition."
Urgency tinged his voice.
"We've tried partial improvements—replacing a few photos, rewriting some descriptions. But we can't make professional judgments about what's truly effective or where we should focus our efforts."
"We want a professional assessment of our site. And we want guidance on a path to improvement—that's our request today."
The problem was obvious, but the direction for resolution remained unclear. That was Altera Corp's current reality.
Chapter 2: A Map of Four Perspectives
"For this case, a BSC model approach would be appropriate."
Gemini drew four boxes on the whiteboard, arranged in a cross pattern, connected at the center.
"BSC—the Balanced Scorecard," I began explaining, "is a method that evaluates organizational performance from four different perspectives and pursues balanced improvement."
"The four perspectives are: 'Financial,' 'Customer,' 'Internal Processes,' and 'Learning and Growth,'" Claude supplemented. "These aren't independent—they influence each other."
The manager tilted his head. "Why do we need four perspectives for EC site improvement?"
"Because," I answered, "if you pursue improvement from just one perspective, overall balance collapses. For example, if you only look at sales and increase advertising spend, sales might rise short-term. But if customer satisfaction and operational efficiency are sacrificed, it becomes unsustainable long-term."
"The BSC model achieves balanced improvement by viewing all four perspectives simultaneously."
[Perspective 1: Financial - The Reality Numbers Tell]
"Let's start with the financial perspective," Gemini organized.
"Analyze your current EC site's sales data. Monthly trends over the past two years, sales composition by product category, purchase amount per customer, repeat rate—these numbers show your current 'financial health.'"
The manager opened his materials. "Sales have declined about 15% annually. New customer acquisition is particularly challenging—we're relying on repeat purchases."
"Then let's set post-improvement targets," I prompted. "What level of sales recovery are you aiming for?"
"At minimum, we want to return to levels from two years ago. Ideally, with 10% growth from there."
"Understood. That's the financial perspective target," Claude noted.
[Perspective 2: Customer - For Whom and What]
We moved to the next perspective.
"To achieve financial targets, what should you provide to customers?" I asked.
"Have you conducted customer satisfaction surveys?" Gemini inquired.
The manager shook his head. "No formal surveys. However, looking at customer reviews, we see recurring comments like 'product details are unclear' and 'can't visualize using it.'"
"That's an important clue," Claude pointed out. "What customers want isn't 'quantity' of product information but 'quality.' Photos that let them imagine usage scenarios, videos conveying actual usability, comparison images showing size—these kinds of 'information that enables experience imagination' are lacking."
"So the customer perspective target is," I organized, "creating a state where customers viewing product pages can concretely imagine post-purchase usage scenarios."
The manager nodded emphatically. "Exactly that."
[Perspective 3: Internal Processes - What to Improve and How]
The third perspective focused on actual operations.
"To provide value to customers, how should you improve business processes?" Gemini asked.
"Currently, how does product page updating flow?" I inquired.
The manager began explaining. "First, the product planning department sends new product information. I receive it, outsource photography, create descriptions, and upload to Amazon."
"How long does that process take?"
"From receiving product information to publication, about two weeks. If revisions are needed, it takes even longer."
Claude analyzed: "So the process is person-dependent, with long feedback loops."
"As an improvement measure," Gemini proposed, "first systematically research competitor top companies' site structures and expression methods to create 'success pattern' templates. Types of photos to shoot, description structure, video length and content—if you create standard formats for these, you won't need to start from zero each time."
"And," I added, "using those templates, first renovate pages for 5 flagship products. Through that process, improve the templates themselves. Record successful patterns and expand them horizontally."
[Perspective 4: Learning and Growth - Building Capability]
The final perspective addressed organizational capability.
"Even if you improve processes, without corresponding executor capability, sustainable improvement won't happen," I pointed out.
"Manager, have you received training in EC site operations?"
"No," he answered honestly. "Only practical experience—I haven't studied systematic knowledge."
"Then the learning and growth perspective measures are clear," Claude organized. "Amazon SEO strategies, product photography techniques, copywriting fundamentals—let's create a plan to acquire this specialized knowledge progressively."
Gemini supplemented: "And through collaboration with external experts, acquire skills practically. This site improvement project itself becomes a learning opportunity."
Chapter 3: The Chain of Four Perspectives
The manager stared at the four boxes on the whiteboard.
"How do the four perspectives connect?"
"Good question," I answered. "The essence of the BSC model is that these four perspectives form a 'causal chain.'"
I added arrows to the diagram.
"Through 'Learning and Growth,' staff skills improve. With improved skills, 'Internal Processes' are enhanced, enabling efficient creation of high-quality product pages. With quality pages, 'Customer' satisfaction rises and purchase conversion increases. And ultimately, 'Financial' numbers improve."
"Conversely," Claude continued, "if you only look at financial numbers and say 'increase sales,' without the underlying customer value improvement, process enhancement, and skill acquisition, sustainable results won't emerge."
The manager's expression brightened. "So that's why we need to view all four perspectives in balance."
"Exactly," I nodded. "And what's important is setting specific targets and measurement indicators for each of these four perspectives."
Gemini organized: "Financial perspective: 'sales recovery rate.' Customer perspective: 'page dwell time and purchase conversion rate.' Internal process perspective: 'page update lead time.' Learning and growth perspective: 'number of specialized knowledge items acquired'—measure these regularly and cycle through improvements."
Chapter 4: A Balanced First Step
"Then what should be our first step?" the manager asked.
I proposed: "Move all four perspectives forward simultaneously—but in small ways."
"Financial perspective: Track sales data for 5 flagship products weekly."
"Customer perspective: Add usage scenario photos and comparison images to those 5 product pages."
"Internal process perspective: Create product page templates and trial them with those 5 products."
"Learning and growth perspective: Attend an Amazon SEO basics seminar and apply what you learn to those 5 product pages."
"Execute all four of these in the first month. Then record how each indicator changes."
Claude smiled. "Moving forward in small steps, but with balance."
The manager nodded deeply. "I see it. The path forward, illuminated from four perspectives, crystal clear."
After he left, Gemini remarked, "The BSC model has power to organize complexity."
"Yes," I answered. "Business improvement often becomes skewed toward one perspective. Only sales, only customers, only efficiency—but organizations are complex systems. Changing just one element won't generate sustainable improvement."
"The BSC model," Claude continued, "is training to view the whole picture in balance through the lens of four perspectives."
Outside the window, the setting sun illuminated the office.
One month later, a report arrived from Altera Corp.
Improvements to the 5 flagship products increased their sales by an average of 23%. Page dwell time extended 1.8 times, and purchase conversion rate also improved 15%.
And the manager himself reported, "I can now judge for myself what matters in product pages."
The four perspectives had improved in balance.
"Organizational improvement distorts from a single perspective. Finance, customers, processes, growth—view all four perspectives in balance. Then move each forward in small steps, confirming the chain. That is the path to sustainable improvement taught by the BSC model."
