 Handbook deal, or it may be a process that takes place in the consumer's mind. In either case, the consumer considers the options, weighs the alter- natives, and decides to move forward with a particular purchase. Transaction (Sale) In the typical retail/marketing-oriented view of the process de- scribed by the Costa model, the final step and the ultimate success of the entire process, is the business transaction or sale. The entire objective of customer relationship management, from this perspec- tive, is to generate sales. How do you know the process is working? You generate sales! How do you measure how well the process is working? By the number of sales! The Retail Model For the typical telecommunications executives, especially those involved in sales and marketing, the retail model we have just de- scribed should look both familiar and comfortable. It describes how the retail-oriented telecom views the overall process of customer relationship management. Not surprisingly, this model also, clear- ly and strongly, reinforces the headcount and activation model for measuring the success of those customer relationship management activities. FUNCTIONS The next layer to consider is organizational functions. Functions are the actual jobs and disciplines that are traditionally employed by businesses to accomplish various objectives. Not coincidentally, the functions discussed here correspond directly to the functions described in the telecommunications value chain. Listed here are some of the major functions that relate to the customer relationship missions we have been discussing. Chapter 17 Advertising and Marketing Advertising is the name given to all those activities directly related to placement of ads using television, radio, and print media. Advertising played almost no role in the development of customer relationships for the monopoly phone company (everybody was already familiar with the phone company). However, in the modern competitive marketplace, advertising is the primary weapon in the battle to establ