Digital is not a channel; it’s a life-connection tool.
At the 2009 International Licensing Expo, I watched intently as people from all over the world walked up and down the aisles with their faces literally buried in their smart phones. There were hundreds of exhibitors, featuring some of the most exciting ideas and concepts in the Licensing Industry; yet, I’m sure many good opportunities were lost or simply overlooked because those exhibiting didn’t make an effort to connect with the lives of those attending. Most exhibitors simply were not in the “life stream” of the attendees.
I decided to try a little social media experiment at the Licensing Expo to see if we could get into the attendees life stream and create personal engagement. We advertised our presence on Twitter in print and on signs in the booth, we engaged followers of the Licensing Expo Twitter feed (#LX9) on the floor, and we brought a magician to the booth to create a different life experience on the show floor.
Were we successful?
Our Twitter follower numbers are up modestly since the advertisements began to appear, but the real success comes from the buzz we generated on the show floor. We tweeted multiple times a day, awarding prizes, sharing memorable visits and talking about our booth activities. The folks at the Licensing Expo and others took notice and retweeted. Many booth visitors said the tweets were the reason for stopping.
It seems that we were not only successful in getting into the life stream of attendees, but once we gained their attention we also did well to create a memorable experience (with our magician) when they engaged. This good memory we helped to create launched many deeper conversations about our brand and our opportunities. Although, had we not made good use of the moment when we captured their attention, attendees would have been off to the next thing.
Some have said this was a successful use of the digital channel, or perhaps savvy social media marketing. Maybe, although I no longer believe in marketing channel silos when it comes to building customer relationships (see my 2003 whitepaper, Customers are Channel Neutral for details). Customers effortlessly move between channels, so our old definitions are no longer truly relevant-except to say that the customer experience must be consistent regardless of when and where the customer connects. Today, marketers must subtly connect, be accepted in the life stream, and engage with passion so that it creates a memory for the customer. So, it was not the use of the social media that mattered in our experiment, rather it was the memory we helped to create. Social media and digital technologies are only tools to help spread the message. What is most important for marketers to remember is simply: great stories and memorable experiences spread quickly to build brands–the channel and the tools are irrelevant.
With people from all over the world attending, the Licensing Expo provided a microcosm of what is happening in our culture. Our personal and work lives are intertwined and we engage both regardless of our location. Life is no longer exclusively defined by what is happening in our physical presence. For many of us it resides in the palm of our hands and is illuminated by a tiny screen. As marketers, we must adapt to these changes without being intrusive or obnoxious if we are to keep our brands relevant.
As I see it, this ever-present digital and wireless connection to the world can no longer be called a “channel.” Digital technologies simply and effortlessly extend the connections in our lives; and life connections are not channel dependant.
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Are you making promises you can’t keep?
I’m sure you’ve all read the news about the few bad apples at one leading consulting firm who have cost the jobs and pensions hundreds, if not thousands of people. Both the consulting firm
and its client have lost large numbers of customers, again, because of the actions of these few individuals.
To read some the press reports, we apparently should be surprised by the customer defections,
but losing those customers isn’t unexpected is it? After all, a relationship with a customer is based on trust-trust that’s built on a series of promises that a company has kept. Break a big promise and you’re immediately history. Not unlike our consultant friends above, whose primary promise was to assure shareholders that their client was financially sound.
On the other hand, breaking a small promise usually doesn’t result in the immediate termination of a customer relationship. Rather, it takes breaking several small promises to erode the relationship to the point of no return. Why would anyone want to do business with a company that doesn’t keep it’s promises? As the television character Gomer Pyle says, “Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.”
All it takes is a “wrong” word or inconsiderate action by one individual to start the ball rolling. How many customers have you lost due to broken promises brought upon by the actions of one or two individuals? Do you know? I would suggest you will not know many of them if you’re breaking the small promises. These customers aren’t going to complain, they’re just going to gradually slip away to your competitors. You’ll likely never know what promises you’ve broken or how often you’ve broken them, so repairing the relationship will be difficult, if not impossible.
Fortunately,fixing this mess will be easier for you and your company than it will be those firms we mentioned earlier in this article. But, before we talk about how to “make things right”, let’s look at some of the biggest causes of broken promises:
- External messages.What literal promises are you making in your advertising, marketing or customer service messages? Are you promising 24/7 service, or satisfaction guaranteed? Maybe your promises are more subjective, like one insurance company’s “Like a good neighbor…” tagline. Are you fulfilling these promises? Can you fulfill these promises?Next, look at how your messages can be perceived by your target audiences or the public at large. Can an implied promise be read into your message that would lead someone to believe that you’re not keeping your promises? This can be especially true if your promise results from the ambiguity of a great tagline that is so subjective there’s little chance you’ll be able to fulfill everyone’s expectations.
- Actions of staff.More often than not, the reason for broken promises has more to do with the actions of people, rather than the message presented. In the case of the previously mentioned insurance company’s “good neighbor” tagline, it’s the subjective interpretation of “good neighbor” by the agent and the claims staff that play a large role in determining if the promise is kept…or not.Remember, neither messages nor taglines-implied nor literal-break promises. People break promises. Make sure your staff understands how their actions affect the fulfillment of your company’s promises.
- Misunderstanding customer NVEs.As always, understanding the Needs, Values and Expectations (NVEs) of your prospects and customers is very important. In this case, however, values and expectations are paramount. A business is not built solely on the products and services that it sells to meet the tangible needs of customers. It is perhaps more important that the company demonstrates value (and values) and delivers on expectations with each and every action.
Successful businesses deliver on promises each and every day and have the loyal customers to prove it. Those who break promises regularly-intentional or not-may find themselves waging a constant battle for new customers. It’s easy to know which of these businesses you’d rather be, the more important question is which business you are now.
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Supermarket loyalty?
It strikes me odd that so many supermarkets have loyalty cards. First of all, nearly every supermarket offers the programs with price-off incentives. In other words, have the card, get a special price. Where’s the loyalty in that? Many people (including those in my immediate family) have cards to all the local supermarkets and take advantage of the special pricing on key merchandise at all of the stores. Again, where’s the loyalty?
I know that some people are afraid to join the programs for fear of “Big Brother” tracking purchase patterns and products. The fact is, most supermarkets do little with the data collected other than, well, collect points. Worst of all, you can’t usually do anything with the point that you’ve collected and often you don’t really know how many points are in your piggy bank.
So, here’s a supposed loyalty program that accumulates points; does little with them to build an individualized relationship; gives you (and everyone else who holds the card) discounts on merchandise they want to “sell” but not necessarily what you want to “buy”, and; provides no incentive to shop only with this supermarket.
Odd, isn’t it?
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PRESENTATION: Keeping Promises
Keeping Promises
Please note that this presentation is Dave Harkins’ work created in other partnerships or organizations and the design templates have not been changed. Additionally, this content may now be dated but can still be used as an idea starter for your specific needs.
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PRESENTATION: Inside the customer’s mind
Inside the customer’s mind – A framework for creating profitable customer relationships
Please note that this presentation is Dave Harkins’ work created in other partnerships or organizations and the design templates have not been changed. Additionally, this content may now be dated but can still be used as an idea starter for your specific needs.
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