The growing popularity of interactive tools such as wikis, blogs and mashups has enabled consumers to engage with firms as never before, creating new opportunities and challenges for global marketers. According to Future tense: The global CMO, a free white paper sponsored by Google, marketers are increasingly able to reach out to consumers at all points along the value chain, no longer just at the moment when a purchase decision is made. Many companies have moved to put customers at the centre of their operations: 56% of the 263 marketing executives around the world who responded to theEconomist Intelligence Unit survey agreed with the statement that their company is highly customer-centric and that marketing functions and sensibilities are interwoven throughout their operations.