Advisory Councils consist of customers from varying levels of engagement and experts in specific fields. They are important to the success of any company because of the opinions, advice and insight they provide on current and future issues.  They offer outside perspectives on product positioning, strategies and other business decisions to help guide the company towards success. Capitalizing on their first-hand experiences with a product or brand can only benefit the organization and add legitimacy to your claims.

Advisory Councils are also powerful sales tools and they use the internet as their main messaging vehicle. They gather other consumer opinions from blogs and social media sites to compile as feedback, in addition to disseminating brand/product messaging to drive awareness and ultimately increase sales.

For organizations such as State Lotteries, an Advisory Council would serve to be invaluable. The Council would be built from retailer owners and active lottery players who would provide insight and feedback right from the horse’s mouth. Utilizing this insider information will help Lotteries better understand the retailer lifecycle and how to best fulfill partner needs. They can also offer suggestions for upcoming promotions and new game concepts, serving as the lotteries personal focus groups to improve customer satisfaction.

Domus, Inc. is a Philadelphia-based marketing communications consulting company. Please visit our web site at http://www.domusinc.com for more.