Established 1996
Marketing
The Key to great Customer Service: Collaboration
A study conducted reveals that in order to deliver top notch customer service, it is essential to imbibe a sense of collaboration within the organization. Collaboration is the new competitive advantage and thus some ways have been defined to enhance the same. First of all top-down decision making impedes creativity and business innovations cannot be implemented smoothly. Sometimes it is effective to actually leave the office premises for a duration of time to relieve the team of stress. Instead of sitting around cubicles and information being shut down within silos, it is effective for teams across the organization to take leisurely strolls around the premises and discuss light work matters. There are some things that companies must avoid at all costs such as allowing negativity to grow within the ranks. The senior management often tries to use competition as a means of motivating staff, but this can prove detrimental to fostering collaboration. Quality management is a channel which must be used to generate genuine feedback about ways to improve the work flow. The management and other employees must collaborate towards this ideal.
Source:http://customerthink.com/the-key-to-great-customer-service-collaboration/
If Customer satisfaction is not enough, how do we create Fans?
Customer satisfaction used to be the gold standard to measuring the success of any product or service. But now, it is now longer enough as customers want to be treated to a level above satisfied. IKEA is one such player that has redefined customer experience by providing great service. Now is the age of creating brand loyalists or fans who will act as advocates to get more numbers in. In order to create fans, it is essential for the company to be clear about its purpose and the kind of audience it needs to tap into. The target market must be thus clearly defined. The company must also be aware of aspects about the company’s offering which genuinely create value for the customers- existing or potential. Customer-centric focus must be built into the corporate strategy so that this topic remains top priority across the organization. Paradoxically, customers must derive both unique differentiation out of the company’s offerings as well as a certain consistency across delivery. The differentiation must look in to delivering memorable emotional experiences while consistency is needed to ensure customer servicing is top notch.
Source:http://customerthink.com/if-customer-satisfaction-is-not-enough-how-do-we-create-fans/
How to reinvent the Customer Experience to increase Customer lifetime Value
A study has revealed that the majority of retailers in spite of knowing that customer retention is a far better tactic than to run after new ones, have a retention rate of barely twenty percent. In order to improve customer retention, it is essential to prioritize the value that the customer provides over the lifetime. Marketing research anchored by Econsultancy reports that nearly two-thirds of companies feel that improving user experience is the best method of retention. Relationship between brand and users improves with personalization of content. This content can be in the form of emails, push messages, pop-ups or even through social media. Customer profile can be better tracked using business analytics tools which record purchase history, behavioral data and browsing interests. Loyalty must be rewarded through specific incentive based schemes. It is important to construct a team which looks into the softer side of customer retention.
Source:https://blog.kissmetrics.com/reinvent-the-customer-experience
6 Lessons in Marketing Strategy and Technology from a Customer Experience Chief
A customer experience expert has provided tips for best marketing tactics. First of all the corporate strategy of the organization must be firm and it must be clear what it aims at achieving. Marketers must constantly be in touch with leaders from other departments such as finance or legal in order to gauge the bigger picture. Governance must be properly defined including rules on data usage, employment contracts and legal norms. A marketer must have a firm grip on team members’ capabilities or skills. The expert warns against overt emphasis on technology alone. In addition, the marketer must understand the role of creativity, emotional connect, product’s relevance in the market and the pricing. Business forecasting is another aspect that marketers must be aware of so that future trends do not get missed out.
Source:http://www.cmo.com.au/article/606348/6-lessons-modern-marketing-from-customer-experience-chief/
Why real Brand loyalty starts with shared Values
The word engagement has added whole new chapters to the game of marketing. All companies want to tout the same, but few play the right game. Some common myths exist which are incorrect. For example, it is commonly perceived that customer want to have relationships with brands whereas in reality marketing research done by CEB clearly puts this myth in its place. More than three-fourths of respondents do not want any such. Similarly, it is considered that greater interaction of the customer with the brand is always a good thing, but in truth too much of it can lead to customers suffering from information overload. Similarly engagement on a regular basis is less important, more pertinent is sharing common values. A number of companies are winning brand loyalists by flouting societal or environmental best practices. Others like Apple are creating a sense of superiority among users. Brands must take not make direct enemies by going to personal. Similarly, they must not dwell on such individual rivalries but simply move on as Microsoft has for the most part. Instead of such close scrutiny brands must instead focus on problem to solution scenarios.
Source:http://www.inc.com/help-scout/why-real-brand-loyalty-starts-with-shared-values.html
5 Things that Legacy Brands can learn from their faster, more disruptive Startup Brands
There are certain aspects where well known brands can copy from startups, else the latter will disrupt the former’s market even more than being done presently. A mobile-first mindset is essential these days with examples such as Uber and Lyft that have proven this theorem. Geographical limitations are reduced by using this stratagem. A bold vision must be etched out in the corporate strategy as that will give the company direction to move in the right path and cut out deviations. The vision must actually be wedded into the way the organization works rather than just being a fancy document. Modern day marketing is not about being loud but sending individually crafter communication to different kinds of buyer personas. The world is better connected than ever before thus digital marketing must be used to curate advertisement for the brand to ensure maximum reach. As Steve Jobs once famously quipped that cannibalizing one’s own products is necessary before others do so, firms must actively look to disrupt their own brands before competitors do so.
Why Companies are Advertising their Master Brand
Companies such as Coca Cola and Hershey used to advertise separate brands within the umbrella separately. But now they are moving towards the master brand being promoted. While this was relatively common for companies such as BMW and P&G, for the likes of Hershey it is a new concept. This gives them several advantages such as a cohesive impact to media channels. Due to the fragmented media, separate brands get lost out with miniscule individual shares. But the overall brand gets much higher ratings under digital marketing. It helps with customer service as single entity manages their complaints or feedback leading to overall better retention. It also provides the company greater flexibility as costs get managed under single umbrella. The overall brand equity enhances. The brand as a whole can also ward of threats from competitors or startup market disruptors. Though some limitations exist such as the lack of market segmentation, overall this is a better strategy suited to the present times.
Source:https://hbr.org/2016/03/why-companies-are-advertising-their-master-brand
The Power of Designing Products for Customers you don’t have Yet
The majority of organizations across industries including banking and finance are beset with a myopic vision of work. They cannot see beyond short term gains. This is why the segment for individuals who do not have massive wealth has been ignored as a non-profitable stream. Further down, pre-adults do not have formal means of savings due to the several checks and balances. That is where ING Direct’s business innovation has been gobbled up by the market. It does not charge any minimum deposits, instead it offers savings accounts in portfolio with Mutual Funds. In this way several organization, Le Blanc among them have realized the power of servicing the segments untapped and in requirement of so. They have thus leveraged this situation to do well in business.
Source:https://hbr.org/2016/08/the-power-of-designing-products-for-customers-you-dont-have-yet
How to achieve the Ideal state of Marketing
Due to the constant changes in the market place wrought about by business innovation, product disruption, technological changes and development of platforms, it is impossible to settle on marketing maxims in the present business environment. The ideal state of marketing is but an illusion during such times. Yet companies must continue to strive to achieve such a state. For that companies need to work backwards and see what customers really want. The company must agree on what exactly they mean by perfection. The goals of the organization must be balanced with what consumers want. If the latter is ignored in favour of short term gains, future growth may be adversely impacted. The company must try to understand the touch points during a customer’s journey to avail their products. A lot of data is available today, yet its usage patterns are inconsistent. Data analysis must study the reasons for buying products rather than simply tracking the trends. Crucially, all different aspects of the marketing must be streamlined together. Internal team alignment must be evaluated as a KPI.
Source:http://marketingland.com/achieve-ideal-state-marketing-188839
The best Marketers know more about their Customers
Due to the proliferation of tools using Big Data, marketers are often fooled into believing that they possess great insight on customers. However, this data can only scratch the surface and must not be confused with genuine market knowledge. According to a study conducted by Gartner, only one percent of companies which possess legacy data are truly utilizing it to the fullest potential. Brands need to pose certain key questions to customers to understand them better. A makeup retailer ought to understand purchase patterns and items without which certain sets of customers cannot live without. A dog food company on the other hand must know what are the special days celebrated or the pet is allergic to any particular food item. Majority of customers do not want to be asked questions directly but feel that few companies are collecting information to help them out. Customers need to be made to understand why certain data is being gleaned from them and what are the future purposes of such survey exercises.
Source:http://marketingland.com/best-marketers-know-customers-186153
How Company Culture strengthens your Marketing
Most organizations these days are in the midst of changing their company culture, yet few of these realize that such an act has a positive impact on the bottom line as well. Marketing improves with betterment of work culture and a motivated employee set. Agility is the first step in improving company culture as it fosters a sense of flexibility. Such agility is required in order to implement some business innovation. Organizations will also be able to better embrace challenges and opportunities In this way, job descriptions and responsibilities can also be redrafted and interaction between employees also improves at personal level. Corporate values must be systemic and pervasive throughout the organization. Right from the top bosses to new recruits, values must be understood at all levels. Source:http://www.forbes.com/sites/forbesagencycouncil/2016/08/25/how-company-culture-strengthens-your-marketing/#6d30a5fd3df4
5 Signs your Brand is Fading
Marketing research conducted shows that some brands may be historically well known but their current brand value is deteriorating. Certain signs can be used as clear indicators that the brand’s value is indeed fading. Their status remains static as there is no growth or recent success. Some such companies engage in price wars to maintain their turf and lose the focus. Their volumes maybe showing healthy returns but bottom line might have cause for alarm. The company continues to sell but does not possess genuine passion for what it is doing. There exists a lack of empathy for customer needs. Younger and more nimble companies are disrupting the business or taking away substantial slices off the market. The best way to gauge this brand value decline is the fact that people do not seem to be talking about the company any more. As no brand can go on succeeding forever, some strategies need to be developed to cope up with this shift in brand value or perception.
Source:http://www.brandingstrategyinsider.com/2016/08/5-signs-brand-fading.html#.V77GElt95dg
In Product Development, let your Customers define Perfection
An analysis of two car models developed by two different companies can reveal the importance of crowd-sourced insights. The first of those two cars is Porsche’s Cayenne, the other being Fiat Chrysler’s Dodge Dart. The former is an SUV, the latter a compact car. Fiat was supremely confident that the Dodge Dart could never fail. Porsche on the other hand was more cautious as it had just beaten off getting bankrupt in the early 1990s. Now Porsche wanted to venture into a new line of car- making- the SUV. To break through this new market for Porsche extensive level of business intelligence was captured. Surveys were conducted to speak to people and existing car models were debunked to make the transition smooth. Fiat though believed that its model was the best and did not venture to track customer insights before the release. In fact, initially the Dodge Dart only came out in the manual format in the USA, a country where 85% of the car market is automatic. Eventually, the Cayenne became an instant hit while the Dodge Dart bombed badly and has now been discontinued.
Source:https://hbr.org/2016/05/in-product-development-let-your-customers-define-perfection
4 Marketing Trends you need to follow to sell to Millennials
For any brand today, staying relevant to millennials is a major challenge. Certain marketing trends must be tracked and understood in order to sell to millennials. Business analytics provided by Cisco reveal that four-fifths of all internet traffic by the year 2020 will be video based. Millennials have shorter attention span and thus need to be hooked using video content. Three-fourths of advertisers claim that online videos are more effective than TV ads. Videos can further be augmented using live streaming. There are hundreds of millions of live broadcast every month on platforms such as Facebook Live, Twitch or Periscope. Memes and GIFs must also be integrated as visual content. Snapchat is growing enormously and it must be leveraged as a digital marketing tool.
Source:http://marketingland.com/4-marketing-trends-need-follow-sell-millennials-186640
6 Possibilities for the future of Social Media Marketing
Social media marketing is entering a critical phase during its timeline. It is now recognized as a major means of conducting digital marketing, but its centrality will be tested over the next few years. Certain possibilities arise for use in the upcoming years. There is a possibility of monopolization with one player running away with all the spoils. At the moment the top contender for such domination is obvious- Facebook. Streamlining is one way in which Facebook is already getting an edge over competitors by integrating various facets such as instant articles and digital assistants. Some niche players though may continue to focus on certain segments only as Snapchat is currently doing and may further increase the same. Organic traffic and visibility may be spurned in the coming years in favour of pay-only models. Personalization of content has already made headway but it could prove to be much more concrete with platforms such as Facebook, Instagram and Twitter concentrating on the same. Virtual and Augmented Reality are already very popular in gaming but may make their presence felt in social media by 2018.
Source:http://marketingland.com/6-possibilities-future-social-media-marketing-188391
Training Employees goes far beyond Skills Development
Some companies view corporate training as an expense rather than an investment. They feel that once better trained, the employees may simply shift to another job. However, training gives organizations several tangible advantages. Employee motivation and morale jumps up. Job satisfaction increases. This leads to improved productivity. Business innovations can be better grasped by such employees as they can appreciate technology better. As the company image improves, this reduces the employee attrition rate and absenteeism. Such employees will also require lesser amount of control or supervision. This also leads to reduction in wastage as they become much more efficient in work processes.
Build your Brand as a Relationship
In earlier times, customers built relations in terms of their particular requirements. Now brands are going out of their way to connect with customers at various stages of the buyer journey. Experiences are being tagged at key touch points. Starbucks is one example of this trend where people do not only go to the chain’s stores for the coffee. The beverage is available at several places, perhaps at lower prices, but Starbucks has redefined the entire experience of walking into a coffee shop. In the tourism industry, Airbnb has revolutionized the industry with their business innovation which emphasizes on a global sense of belonging. Similarly, Uber and Lyft have moved away from the driver- passenger relationship to friend- friend.
Source:https://hbr.org/2016/05/build-your-brand-as-a-relationship
The best Salespeople do what the best Brands Do
The role of sales professionals has now evolves enormously with time. While earlier, salespersons could control information on product, pricing or availability, now they are often contacted by the customer at the last stage when purchase decision has already been made after deep study. Thus, salespeople need to reinvent in order to become relevant once again to businesses. Brand building starts from inside and similarly the best of sales personnel generate top level Voice of the Customer within the organization. Top brands avoid selling, but instead develop emotional links with customers. In this way, such organizations avoid chasing customers. Instead the best of customers become brand advocates by influencing many others to choose the product over others. Top brands do not simply copy trends, but believe in business innovation. Several organizations indulge in unfair business or trade practices and then feel the need to compensate which they do by ‘giving back’ to society. Top brands do not have such pressures as they never indulge in any questionable practices. Once a commitment has been made by such reliable brands, they stick by them. Finally, they create experiences that hit the various touch points during a customer’s journey. In this way, customers associate respective brands with experiences and keep coming back for the simple pleasures.
Source:https://hbr.org/2016/08/the-best-salespeople-do-what-the-best-brands-do
What is Brand Management
Almost all marketers aspire to understand brand management in depth. In order to grasp this concept, it is actually pertinent to test the product(s) in the market. For this an Integrated Marketing Communications (IMC) strategy needs to be worked out. First of all the corporate strategy must be clear about the idea of the product and what it sets out to achieve. This includes the concept of defining the segment in which the brand wishes to operate in. The IMC must include traditional elements for marketing across channels such as print, TV and radio as well as in the digital marketing sphere comprising of SEO, content marketing and social media. Finally it is necessary to create a sense of brand fascination by which an urge will be created among customers to own the brand. This is always more useful than chasing after customers.
Source:https://www.searchenginejournal.com/manage-a-brand/163942/
How virtual reality can revolutionize digital marketing
Sometime back when the Golden State Warriors basketball team wanted to recruit Kevin Durrant to the squad, they used Virtual Reality (VR) as the marketing pitch. They showed him a glimpse of his potential future coach’s team talks, his team mates and the stadium itself. Eventually Durrant did join up the San Francisco based team, and VR may have played a crucial role. In this way, several firms are now using VR as the ultimate tool for digital marketing. It is the closest that any potential customer can come to actually trying out the brand. This can work particularly well in luxury automobiles, fashion, and high-end tourism. Even non-profit organizations can give people a taste of what it feels like to work for the underserved. As per a study conducted by Forbes, three-fourths of world’s most valuable brands are using some form of VR or Augmented Reality (AR).
The best salespeople do what the best brands do
Source:https://hbr.org/2016/08/the-best-salespeople-do-what-the-best-brands-do
Marketing to the connected customer of today
As the customer is much better informed and connected with the organization than ever before, it is important for marketers to reinvent their work in order to stay relevant. Business research has been conducted by Sales-force on over four thousand marketers to determine best ways to continue selling to the present day more complicated customer. First of all, the company must never veer away from the commitments once made. The customer experience must be integrated in such a manner that the entire purchase journey is covered with valuable experiences at all key touch points. Marketing has moved beyond to mark-tech where technology professionals are playing a big part. This strategy helps enormously in cost reduction while also facilitating instant response to customers. Also, marketing teams must be perfectly well aligned with the management of the organization. Executives must be oriented to work in full coordination with the marketers.
Source:http://www.enterpriseinnovation.net/article/marketing-connected-customer-today-505441916
The 30 things customers really value
Source:https://hbr.org/2016/08/the-30-things-customers-really-value
Only 15 percent of companies have advanced marketing capabilities
Source : http://www.huffingtonpost.in/entry/only-15-of-companies-have_b_11496016
Inside out Branding
In order to develop a positive image as an employer, organizations develop brand advocates who speak well about the same and generate interest among possible applicants. Speakers from ODEON, SPA and IHG recently spoke about best ways to manage people in organizations. It was understood that it is best to conduct inside-out nurturing of employees. Thus these firms have developed their internal Employee Value Proposition (EVP). At SAP, everything is digitized and thus it is easier to get employee insights through the use of business analytics. IHG and ODEON both exist in highly competitive service industries where the staff has to be well trained and refined while handling clients or guests. These companies took the approach of being honest and genuine with their employees as that is how the employees in turn will solicit a positive brand to the external world.
Source:http://www.transformmagazine.net/articles/2016/inside-out-branding/
Beyond Automation: The downside of humanless Customer Service
In a studyconducted by Parature, a whopping 97% of respondents find customer service very important in choosing brands over their competitors. Customer service in earlier times meant handling queries over phone or appearing cheerful, but now it is a 24/7 task. Thus automation is increasingly being adopted in customer service as it is available throughout the week and not just during the working hours of weekdays. Customers want instant solutions and do not want to wait for working hours. However, while automation eliminates human error and reduces response time, it also does not allow customization. According to marketing research conducted by Accenture, four-fifths of respondents claimed that they prefer solving problems with customer service agents than software tools as most of the latter are not effective enough. Therefore, a top futurist speaker from Google claims that while billions of jobs will be lost of reshaped by technology and automation, customer service is not one of them.
Source:http://customerthink.com/beyond-automation-the-downsides-of-humanless-customer-service/
How Nike Shifted From A Sales To Marketing Mindset
In the 1980s, Nike was a new company doing extremely well with quarterly business innovations. A certain sales mindset enveloped the organization but so was an almost apathy towards marketing. Departments had production, design, line management and sales teams but no marketing plan had ever been written. The reason for this apathy towards marketing was threefold. The founder and other seniors were afraid that marketing would involve excessive business analysis which will slow down the cycle. Plans would apparently cripple its extraordinary market reach efficiency. And there was this sales mentality which suited retailers. In order to change this it was essential that managers were explained that marketing was a process and not a department. The basketball division in particularly grasped this idea and recruited star Michael Jordan to endorse their products under the brand line Air Jordan. This new marketing plan allowed for extensive analysis but not paralysis by the same as was the fear of trying to emulate P&G.
The new rules of customer engagement
Source:http://www.inc.com/wendy-lea/new-rules-of-customer-engagement.html
5 customer experience strategies that work
Source:http://blog.clientheartbeat.com/customer-experience-strategy/
The difference between customer service and the customer experience
Customer service and customer experience are two phrases which sound similar and often mixed up together, yet have some crucial differences. They are built into the corporate strategy of service companies, yet many still do not understand the difference. Taking the example of donuts, customer service is the basic donut that builds a certain perception about the company without which things won’t move. Yet there is the other donut which has sugar glaze and jam sprinkled on top which takes the satisfaction level up a few notches. Customer service is the latter and provides only a single attribute that is support. Customer experience on the other hand is the whole process involving every touch point in the customer’s journey.
Source:http://customerthink.com/the-difference-between-customer-service-and-the-customer-experience/
How to improve customer service training by 900%
The typical method for conducting corporate training for employees is to hire external professionals who work with the concerned people for a matter of a few days. This approach is monetarily good for the trainers and helps organizations to tick off their required bucket list but does not really produce tangible positive results for the employees. This is because of the 70-20-10 rule. Business research conducted by the Center for Creative Leadership asserts that training follows this 70-20-10 pattern where seventy percent of learning for employees takes place via challenging assignments. Another twenty percent of this requirement is met by fruitful development relationships while a mere ten percent is fulfilled through formal training. Thus instead of such sessions, companies must instead focus on developmental mentorship and assignments that will get the best out of existing talent. This can also reduce costs substantially.
Source:http://customerthink.com/how-to-improve-customer-service-training-by-900/
How to reinvent the customer experience to increase customer lifetime value
Source:https://blog.kissmetrics.com/reinvent-the-customer-experience/
Beyond automation: the downsides of humanless customer service
Source:http://customerthink.com/beyond-automation-the-downsides-of-humanless-customer-service/
Why ‘Missed Call’ marketing has taken hold in India
Source:http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/missed-call-marketing-taken-hold-india/
Why bots are becoming brands’ best friend
Source:http://m.marketingprofs.com/opinions/2016/30371/why-bots-are-becoming-brands-best-friend
Insights-driven business are stealing your customers
The Preoccupation With Pre-Customers
Source:http://customerthink.com/the-preoccupation-with-pre-customers/
Eight steps to turn your customers into sales people
Brand Simplicity Rules The Day
Source:http://www.brandingstrategyinsider.com/2016/04/brand-simplicity-rules-the-day.html#.V5sUHNR95DB
Why new Consumer Brands must scale Faster
Like most industries, even the Consumer Packaged Goods (CPG) industry has been hit by the shorter shelf life affliction. It used to be that large companies brought out brands which would stay on top for years, maybe decades. Yet business research by Gallup proves that Americans now view big corporations are non-trustworthy. Millennials on the other hand have greater trust on newer companies like Uber and Netflix due to increased transparency. Thus a substantial proportion of hits in the CPG segment are originating from non-top 100 companies. It is now imperative e for brands to scale up quickly, else the market can get eroded. The opposite is also true as proven in the case of Noosa Yogurt from Australia which in just few years was valued at US$ 50 million. Source:https://hbr.org/2016/07/why-new-consumer-brands-must-scale-faster
Why Voice of the Customer Data is your most important Marketing Asset
The Voice of the Customer (VOC) is proving to be implementable as amongst the top marketing tools. While digital marketing is now allowing extensive personalized targeted marketing, VOC allows capture of rich customer data. This enormous amount of data now captured though must not dictate marketing strategy. The business analytics performed using the data must simply be used as an aid for designing strategy. That is a very important role as with VOC it is directly the customer explaining companies what kind of products they actually need. The other methods such as sample surveys can only be periodic at best, and reflects the mood at that time of the year or even day. VOC though is an ongoing measure which captures real time customer feedback.
Source:http://customerthink.com/why-voice-of-the-customer-data-is-your-most-important-marketing-asset/
Make it easy for Customers to Share: Customer Experience lessons from Amazon to Hershey Park
Customer experience chapters from across industries clearly prove that easily sharable content is valued by customers. While a number of organizations include share buttons on content they broadcast, very little of it is actually used as this depends on quality of content, quality of experience and user friendliness of the sharing procedure. Certain marketing savvy industries retail hospitality and entertainment are as expected investing heavily on online space but so are many unconventional ones such as the funeral industry. Hershey Park has realized the power of digital marketing and leveraged Instagram to showcase its scenic locations. Amazon too believes in simplicity and has thus tagged share buttons everywhere so that its easier for customers to share their experiences with others.
Why a Major Brand felt the need to change its Marketing Department
With the evolution of marketing and its techniques, several famous brands are finding the need to alter its branding. Recently, MasterCard has done it, but now it is the turn of Clorox. The latter believes that in order to be relevant in today’s world, it has to reposition itself. For this, three major steps have been taken. The first of that involves the extensive use of business analytics for real time content, feedback and product testing. For digital marketing, Clorox has tied up with creative agencies such as FCB and Mc-Garry-Bowen to create content. The marketing structure has also been changed so that real time instant action can be taken. Clorox also believes that the core hallmark skills such as creative thinking and strategy development will remain the same. Yet, business will become more technology driven.
How Nintendo mastered Customer Experience through Pokémon GO
Nintendo the creators of Pokémon Go have absolutely hit the bull’s-eye when it comes to customer experience. They have taught us some important business lessons on best way to deliver customer experience. First of all, companies must forever be open to reframing their corporate strategy. Nintendo like several other successful firms has always paid maximum heed to customer feedback and the strategy to develop this game based on Augmented Reality came via that source. The real world is full of problems, Pokémon Go offers users an escape from all that. Pokémon was a staple cartoon character for kids who growing up in the 1990s. While Nintendo’s gaming consoled never reached the same heights, when the company wanted to re-strategize instead of going back to the trusted formula they developed this business innovation using old characters. This success has also shown how nostalgia can hook audiences. Scores of adults who grew up adoring all things to do with Pokémon, are now fans of this game.
Source:http://customerthink.com/how-nintendo-mastered-customer-experience-through-pokemon-go/
Customer Experience with a 25 year Guarantee
The Portland, Oregon based Leatherman Tool Group is one which produces tools that are used for everyday purposes. The company has experienced conditions where it has realized that providing authentic experiences to customers is what really counts in the long run. The need to be original is felt. Also in order to sell, it is important to understand what the customers really want. Patience is a virtue that has been highlighted as there will be lows in the business but resilient organizations will have the perseverance to keep trying. The company must also be humble in its dealings with customers. Providing service is ingrained in Leatherman’s corporate strategy. Its products of services thus serve necessary purpose. The customers feel happy but they also feel pride to be part of an entire group of people choosing Leatherman. Finally the customer service support is top notch at Leatherman. This is what ensures customer loyalty.
Source:http://customerthink.com/customer-experience-with-a-25-year-guarantee/
How to tackle Agile Marketing in a large Enterprise
In order to perfect agile marketing principles in a large set up, some guidelines have been suggested. First of all, the right place or project needs to be indentified to implement agile principles. The project must by very nature be complex. A business consulting expert who has worked with these methods for years needs to be involved in this. Business analytics must be tracked to gauge the effectiveness during the progress. Third parties must not be involved much. The team must be located at one place as agile is difficult to implement with remote employees. Also the team must have cross-functional abilities. Crucially, the project must be one for which an executive sponsor can readily be sourced. Both the top-down and bottom-up approaches need to be ignored in favour of a more hybrid approach as typically agile starts working from small setups. The structure is one around which the agile implementation teams need to work on. They must not get the impression, that agile involved reworking the structure.
The Preoccupation with pre-Customers
There are several organizations that spend disproportionate amount of time in acquiring new customers rather than servicing those already in existence. This results in loss of customers as some of them are highly demanding and will run off to the competitor if the servicing there is superior. This sort of attitude by the company is due to several possible reasons. Firstly, some of them are complacent enough to believe in their own publicity imagining that customers will be retained anyway, such is the high quality of service. In other cases, the industry trends are such that a high churn rate is considered natural. New business generation is reported to shareholders, analysts and management while no such study exists for the churn. The business analysis of lost customers’ impact is often not reviewed thoroughly by several organizations. Crucially, some firms link their marketers’ salaries with new customer acquisition not with retention. All these trends are harmful for the health of any business and needs to be rectified with urgency.
Source:http://customerthink.com/the-preoccupation-with-pre-customers/
Do Consumers Love your Brand or Value it?
Brand visibility is usually considered a marker for its success, but such thinking harks back to a time when options for customers were limited. A lot of companies even today, in order to be more visible and have more mentions online, beef up their digital marketing efforts primarily through social media. All this however, is no guarantee of actual success in terms of the bottom line. A lot of marketers are going so crazy about numbers that they are ignoring those metrics which really matter. A clear example of this is Spotify which is very popular, known to all but is hardly generating any real cash as its operating expenses are far greater. In the tech industry, the gap between actual brand value and its perception can be particularly skewed. This is best reflected in Microsoft’s takeover of LinkedIn which was valued at a price much higher than the actual returns projected.
Source:http://www.brandingstrategyinsider.com/2016/07/10737.html#.V5Wwq9J95dg
Customer Support is part of a complete Business Strategy
Customer servicing and support has to form a key ingredient of corporate strategy. Good service eventually drives business value. When the customer support is good, experience are created between the brand and the people. Thus support agents rather than sales staff develop long term relationships with customers. New customer acquisition is far costlier than retention. A loyal customer in turn can eventually prove to be a brand advocate driving more traffic alongside. Features such as agent ratings also improve customer engagement with the firm. Such feedback collected over time forms the raw material for business analysis to be conducted. This helps the firm predict changes in customer tastes and act before competitors steal a march.
Eight steps to turn your Customers into sales People
Existing customers may surprisingly prove to be extremely effective sources of generating sales. A loyal influential customer can in no time become a brand advocate if satisfied with the services. To ensure this some steps must be taken by marketers. First of all the geographical area of the person must be known so that campaigns whether using social media or above-the-line campaigns may be targeted precisely. Once this is done, the organization must itself be aware how it will solve customer problems. The organization must appear to be genuinely concerned about customer needs. The transition period between knowing your customer and shifting operational base needs to be smooth. Measurable targets must be set with metrics to compare. All this must be implemented in a properly defined timeline. Business analytics must be used up to measure the results. The data for this will be derived out of the feedback forms, surveys and employees’ experiences that will be noted down. What is needed is that all plans formed are for long term as only then will customers stick with brands.
The Path to Customer Experience Maturity
One of the major problems organizations are facing these days is the prevalence of too much data. There is so much data that it just cannot all be organized under one head to make it easier to derive proper business analytics. Also enough executives aren’t yet able to understand the significance of customer experience. There are other cases where there exists a mismatch between the budget of the company and the know-how. In order to facilitate customer experience maturity in any organization, it is necessary to have the right mindset and culture. Smaller firms must not get intimidated by the level of servicing sophistication that giant firms have. But they mustn’t get complacent either as no firms will survive the wreckage of the modern times unless they provide customer with authentic service.
Source:http://www.1to1media.com/weblog/2016/05/the_path_to_customer_experienc_1.html
Which Channels do Customers trust for Branded Content
Branded content is a form of advertising different from traditional forms. In the latter people stories are created around a brand and how that product helped them achieve certain positive results. In the former, brand stories are created where the brand speaks about its practices and how people can be served accordingly. A very good example of this is the campaign by Chipotle which positioned the brand as an up-keeper of sustainable agricultural practices. Dove and Volvo have also responded very well to this form of digital marketing. A study was conducted to gauge which were the top media outlets for branded content and perhaps not surprisingly Facebook is right on top followed by print editions of newspapers. Younger viewers found Facebook more credible while older ones had greater faith on newspapers. Branded content is also different from mentions as business analytics is available in far greater detail in the former than the latter.
Source:https://blog.kissmetrics.com/branded-content
Customer Experience and Process Management: A Dichotomy?
It has often been considered that an efficient process management is at odds with excellent customer experience. The former deals with the cold, hard side of business, while the latter deals with the softer aspects. However, there is no need for such a dichotomy and the two can exist side by side. In order to maintain an efficient process, companies design rigid systems. This goes against the maxim of customer experience as that dictates that company processes keep evolving depending on customers’ wants and preferences. However the two can be wedded together and indeed must be. An adaptable and flexible process is more desirable than a rigid one. This will also enable better level of talent management as top employees will be able to work according to their strengths rather than pre-defined norms.
Source:http://customerthink.com/customer-experience-and-process-management-a-dichotomy/
6 Ways to maintain Brand Continuity
For a brand in order to remain relevant to its customers over time, it is necessary to maintain a sense of continuity throughout. For that the brand must be aware of what success really is. Some brands identify their vital statistics likes sales as parameters for success. But truly successful brands will gauge the businessintelligence of customers’ reasons for choosing the brand as true measure of evaluating success. It is not enough for a brand to be well known, but must register in the customer’s minds during the shopping sprees. Thus the company must understand the value of time. A similar concept is the ring-fence engagement where the potential customer base is targeted a product of service at a time when engagement will be the highest. Oreo’s intervention during the Super Bowl stands out. Brand communication plays a huge part and the way it communicates with the outside world reflects its true personality. Also the communication must be consistent throughout in such a manner that elements of the brand are visible in all its actions. The company must keeping alive brands and their aspects which endure over a period of time and not only that which sells in the short run. Source: http://www.brandingstrategyinsider.com/2016/06/10538.html#.V5BiFNJ95dg
Brand simplicity rules the Day
The KISS Principle of keeping things simple applies to brands as well. Some brands in order to present themselves as unique offerings, communicate in jargon like language. In today’s world where a business innovation is developed every sixteen months in Europe, three months in Japan and only ten weeks in South Korea, it is essential that a brand communicates in simple language as customers simply do not have the luxury of time to understand the entire product properly. Thus eighty percent of new product releases fail in the first three months itself in the western world. In order for a brand to project itself in a simplified manner, it should think of its working not just for business purpose but more holistic purposes of improving life. Simple products are actually improvements of earlier prototypes which were more complicated to handle. When offerings are simple, the onus of owning a brand emotionally falls on the customer. A work culture which has fewer lines of hierarchy and open communication is place where innovations can thrive. The same applies to products, simple products having originated from work cultures conducive for innovation.
http://www.brandingstrategyinsider.com/2016/04/brand-simplicity-rules-the-day.html#.V5G3atJ95dg
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