Closing the Gap On Customer-Centric Success is Closer Than Most Organizations Realize.

Business Editors

CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 28, 2002

Braun Consulting report identifies critical components for

achieving profit impact from customer management initiatives

Few companies, if any, are realizing the promised benefits of customer relationship management (CRM) - enhanced customer satisfaction and retention, and increased customer revenue and profitability. Although this apparent failure has prompted many to question the value of their CRM efforts, success is closer than most firms realize. Braun Consulting, experts in improving business performance through customer insight, has identified the critical focus areas for businesses seeking to maximize near-term ROI and long-term profit, areas that have eluded most CRM efforts to date.

In a new report titled "How to Close the Gap on Customer-Centric Success," Braun reveals how a focus on integrating customer channels and understanding individual customer value can improve profits and provide the foundation for CRM success. Published in conjunction with Gartner Group, the study identifies the strategic and tactical considerations organizations must employ as multi-channel integration and customer value management move to the forefront of their customer management efforts.

"Developing and managing multiple channels has proven to be far more complex than executives anticipated. But it doesn't have to be," said Larry Goldman, vice president, Braun Consulting. "Where companies are falling short is in their ability to understand a customer's true contribution to the bottom line, and then using that understanding to make investments in the channels that can positively influence customer actions."

According to Braun, the payoff of CRM cannot be realized until organizations enable seamless, consistent interplay among and across customer channels. To do this, organizations must be able to evaluate the profit impact of a single customer interaction and reconcile this data across all customer channels. This level of integration will enable marketers and their partners to deploy a holistic view of their customers, seeing firsthand how individual interactions impact the bottom line. This breakthrough customer understanding can then serve as the foundation for incremental implementation of sales, marketing, and customer management initiatives, culminating with the ability to strategically service customers in real-time based on consistent, integrated information.

Braun's report outlines how the intersection of multi-channel integration, customer value management, and real-time analytics offer organizations a powerful new business reality. It also addresses some of the toughest challenges associated with taking CRM initiatives to the next level, including:

    --  Understanding the dynamics of customer interactions across all
        of an organization's channels
    --  Understanding what multi-channel integration means to your
        organization, including the risks and issues associated with
        moving down the multi-channel path and how to prioritize
        investments
    --  Understanding how differential value fits into the CRM
        equation, and how to develop an actionable customer value
        management framework
    --  Understanding what level of real-time technology will deliver
        optimal business benefits

To get a copy of this report, or for more information on Braun's experience developing customer valuation strategies and implementing multi-channel solutions, contact Larry Goldman, Vice President of Customer Management Solutions at [e-mail], or download the paper from Braun's web site at www.braunconsult.com.

"Safe Harbor" Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995

Statements in this press release that are not strictly historical are "forward-looking" statements that involve risks or uncertainties, many of which are not under the control of the Company. The risks and uncertainties could cause actual results to differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statement. Such risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the nature of the market and demand for our service offerings, competition, overall general business and economic conditions, the nature of our clients and project engagements, attracting and retaining highly skilled employees, the ability of our clients to pay for our services, timely payment by clients for services rendered, and our ability to effectively manage growth and client relationships, as well as other risks identified in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2001, and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The Company is under no duty to update any of the forward-looking statements after the date of this report or to conform these statements to actual results or changes in its expectations.

About Braun Consulting

Braun Consulting, Inc. (Nasdaq:BRNC) is a professional services firm delivering customer-focused business solutions to Fortune 1000 and middle market companies. Braun Consulting combines cutting-edge business intelligence and CRM/eCRM technologies with business strategy to help clients build customer loyalty. By creating the necessary connection between technology and strategy, Braun builds effective business solutions that help clients drive business performance and cultivate long-term relationships with their most valuable customers. Founded in 1993, Chicago-based Braun Consulting has 7 offices throughout the U.S. Braun Consulting maintains strategic alliances with top developers of enterprise applications, including BEA Systems, Microsoft, Oracle, SAP, Siebel, Business Objects, Documentum, and others. Additional information about Braun Consulting is available at www.braunconsult.com