About Thetford Friends
Always wondered how Thetford Friends was born? Do you want to know what is behind those three fingers? Well, more then you might have thought…
How Thetford Friends is born
Thetford Friends was created in 2015 as a platform to enable Thetford to be in direct contact with the end-consumer. This was an initiative of Engineering Director Ronald Gram, Product Manager Dirk Valder and Marketing Manager Norbert van Noesel. They were interested in a consumer panel that could provide feedback on new products; the consumer could test them in real world conditions. In addition, their ambition was to establish a process of co-creation by intensively involving consumers in product development.
Your opinion matters!
In practice, exchanging products proved to be rather difficult, therefore a different form of consumer involvement arose from this over time. Product testing shifted from built-in products to consumer products, such as toilet additives. Furthermore, rather than putting the focus on product development alone, a combination has emerged that includes knowledge transfer.
Guiding each other
For many years, Thetford has had faithful customers who like to receive information from Thetford and/or who would like to share their experience and opinion concerning our products. These consumers now often register themselves with us as a Thetford Friend. As a result, we now have Friends throughout Europe!
Friendship
To effectively maintain this bond of friendship, we stay in contact with the Thetford Friends at different points in time. For example, we invite them to come and visit Thetford’s stand at various shows and events in Europe, and we are in contact several times a year via e-mail as a follow-up on promotions or online surveys. In addition, several times a year we organise a tour of our factory in Etten-Leur or feedback sessions on concept and product development at our head office, where participants are offered an enjoyable lunch. It is at times like this that Thetford learns most from its Friends!
What does Thetford Friends offer?
This activity is proving to be a real success. We receive a great deal of enthusiastic responses from our Thetford Friends. They very much enjoy sharing ideas with Thetford, for example on product development. They can also regularly test product samples that we distribute to Friends at shows. For example, we held a promotion that allowed Friends to exchange their old waste-holding tank for a new one.
Four times a year, Thetford Friends receive a newsletter with product information, along with hints and tips for the use of our products. It is easy for us to forget how much information we have in our possession, and we would like to use this information to enrich our Thetford Friends.
