On-line (retailer site) brand experiences are a turn-off

There is an excellent post [read at Retail Customer Experience] about how most on-line retail sites are uninspired, technically driven and over analysed.

 ...”a tempting brand experience they are not”

 This article provides a number of clear reasons why they disappoint. To me one comment really resonated:

 “The most important of the day’s experiences are human interactions.”

I could not agree more. It is virtually impossible to beat a human interaction (provided it is a positive one), but these days more and more interactions are becoming automated (telephone, on-line, vending, etc).

The problem is that when brand organisations reduce head-count and increase reliance on automated solution - to ‘increase efficiency’ - it inevitably means that they lose the opportunity to create powerful interactions that can truly delight consumers on an emotional level.

Brands that know what brand experiences will delight consumers and how to deliver them will gain competitive advantage, as they are likely to be brands that consumers are loyal to and will talk about. 

How do you delight on-line? - it isn't easy.

There are clearly times when an on-line solution is vital. If you are in this situation, as suggested in the above post, look closely at how iTunes works and think about how you can replicate the inspired interface they have created.

Fun with South West Airlines

This is fun.

During a shareholder meeting this is a great way to cover-off the dull matter of: ‘Generally Accepted Accounting Principles’ (GAAP). [watch video]

I think it's targeted more at YouTube than the shareholders.

It's a clever way to get noticed.

I don’t travel much in America but if I did I would consider South West Airlines.

Brand Experiences that gets brands noticed

The first stage of the Path to Advocacy is to get your brand noticed. Noticed by both potential consumers (to try to persuade them to consider buying) and existing consumers (to help make them feel positive about their decision to buy).

I define notice as the moment a brand gets on the radar of a consumer; when they see/hear about the brand and consider whether it might be something they need.

In years gone by this was about shouting at consumers. It was all about intrusion, cut-through and impact....the more a brand spent the better chance it had to get noticed.

As we all know, the world has changed. Consumers are in control so a big budget no longer guarantees success.

Brands therefore have to behave differently.

To get noticed they need to deliver brand experiences that talk to consumers in a way that will resonate and persuade them to pay some attention to what you want to say.

It’s about being engaging, appealing and relevant.

Here are some approaches that I think help get noticed:

• Make people smile/laugh [Vegas, Meerkats]
  
• Provide stuff that people muck around with/re-edit [Cadburys]
  
• Capture memories [Porsche, Hovis]
  
• Show stunning visuals [Sony, Honda]
  
• Generate conversations [Wispa]
  

If you can add to this list let me know.

What is Brand Experience?

A brand is a collection of perceptions in the mind of a consumer that has been shaped by the accumulation of every encounter that consumer has ever had with the brand.

I call each of these encounters a Brand Experience.

Brand Experiences are therefore delivered by all touchpoints, e.g. traditional advertising, packaging, shop staff, memories of previous usage, customer service, word of mouth, etc.

The aim of all brands is to gain competitive advantage. To sell more stuff, to achieve greater loyalty, to get talked about and build sustainable profitability.

Brands should be aiming to gain a competitive advantage by delivering brand experiences that are better than their competitors.

Not only that, brands should ensure that their operation delivers brand experiences that embody what the brand stands for (brand personality, character, values, etc) each and every time a consumer encounters it.

The Path to Advocacy (and PDD Framework) is a useful way to look at how consumers’ are encountering/interacting with a brand and to help brand organsiations work-out how to deliver better Brand Experiences.

T-Mobile - Trafalgar Square event - Part 2

I went to the T-Mobile's Trafalgar Square event and watched 13,500 doing karaoke.

It achieved great PR and the TV ad [see film] has enjoyed a lot of positive editorial [Read: my friend Faris – 'Bring people together and see what they do' and Futurelab– ‘T-Mobile gets it’].

I like the ad and think it nicely captures the ‘Life’s for Sharing’ idea in a warm and engaging way.

Good work T-Mobile.

The challenge for them now is to build on the positive goodwill and buzz created through the current activity by ensuring they deliver brand experiences to existing users that live-up to the Life’s For Sharing promise.

My advice to T-Mobile is to:

  a)  Ensure they deliver customer service excellence.

  b)  Find ways to delight customers by adding some magic to the relationship.

I believe to win brands need to ensure they deliver positive brand experience at every touchpoint - from the brand promise (advertising) to brand delivery (usage experience) to delighting consumers. If they can do that it is very likely they will move consumers down the Path to Advocacy – a proven success strategy.

This is something O2 seems to do very well. [see case study]

Packaging problems for make-up brands

It is well understood that a key role for packaging is to successfully deliver a compelling brand experience in-store (at the first moment of truth), where it needs to standout, appeal to the consumer and clearly communicate the brand proposition and values.

The other critical role for packaging is to continue to deliver great brand experiences during the usage stage (the second moment of truth), when it is unpack and used.

In most categories this is fairly straightforward.

However, with make-up it isn’t.

I read a great post on the Marketing & Strategy Innovation Blog by Marina Natanova that highlights the challenges most make-up brands have.

Marina explains: “A lot of premium or even luxury brands don’t have a package which keeps them looking good during usage.”

And why don’t they stay looking good?

…because of the handbag.

I’m not in the habit of rummaging around in ladies handbags – in fact what goes into them has always been a bit of a mystery to me – but what I do know is that they are generally full of stuff…loads of stuff…stuff that tends to get shoved in and shaken around.

This makes it really tough for most make-up items to continue to look good.

I talked before about how one of the most powerful ways to drive advocacy is to deliver compelling brand experiences every time a consumer encounters a brand.

It isn’t easy but in the Make-up category brands that can pass the ‘handbag test’ should get talked about more than their less robust competitors.

I think this is a competitive advantage worth investing in.

[read previous post about other packaging challenges]

Full marks to Marks & Spencer

M&S in UK has (rightly) been getting a rough ride from newspapers and social media because they were charging ‘larger’ customers extra for DD size bras.

I don't shop that much at M&S (and never buy bras there!) but, like most people in UK, I have great affection for them. I guess the coverage could have started to erode this affection.

Last week they ran a ‘We Boobed’ ad admitting that they got it wrong.

It reminded me of how Richard Branson cleverly handled a serious letter of complaint from a very unhappy flier. [read story here]

M&S are a smart brand organisation. They read the signals well and decided to do a u-turn.

Good move.

Their sensible handling of this issue turned a potential business disaster into a positive brand experience for us bystanders in this issue.

I smiled when I saw it.

That must be a good thing for the M&S brand. 

Brands can build a sustainable competitive advantage by showing they care

Why is it that customers are often treated so badly, even in these challenging times?

I read recently that research conducted by Better Business Bureau in US revealed that customer complaints had increased 7% - 2008 vs 2007.

This is pretty shocking.

The same post quotes Professor Michael Solomon, director of the Centre for Consumer Research at St. Joseph's University in Philadelphia:

 "Too many companies have their eye on the short-term bottom line and they're sacrificing tremendous amounts of goodwill by becoming more 'efficient’...

....I believe this is a true source of competitive advantage for companies that choose to stand out by showing they care about their customers -- and this is exacerbated in a deep recession where consumers shed their brand "acquaintances" and remember who their true "friends" are."

This is great advice.

To survive and thrive brands’ must show their consumers they care.

If you work in the marketing department at a brand organisation don’t focus your time only on developing brand experiences that make a promise saying that you care. It is vital to also invest effort making sure the organisation collaborates to deliver brands experiences that genuinely delight existing customers.

That is how you will build loyalty and maybe positive advocacy for your brand.

Building advocacy is a proven way to win.

T-Mobile could create a unique brand experience

This will be interesting.

T-Mobile have posted an invitation on You Tube to attend a flashmob event tomorrow night (6-7pm 30th April) at Trafalgar Square in London. 

T-Mobile's Liverpool Street Station Flashmob on and off-line campaign is very good, but this event could help take it to a whole new level.

Flashmobs depend on social media but I think the massive increase in Twitterers will magnify interest in this event due to the retweet button, which causes stories like this to spread like wildfire (aka the 'Boyle' effect). 

I think this event could achieve significant scale (and maybe notoriety) and create a unique brand experience that people who turn-up will talk about.

How cool is that? 

I might even go there to see what happens.

Honda's new TV ad works for me

Honda Insight - Let It Shine from Honda on Vimeo.

I like this new Honda Insight ad. 

It has a powerful idea, stunning visuals and a gentle touch. 

It delivers the kind of brand experience I would expect from them.

I don't own one but it got my attention and I could be persuaded. 

The Power of Dreams.

I guess that is the kind of reaction they want. 

A winning customer service strategy will deliver brand experiences that delight.

This post by Cardell Insights Group provides some really useful tips about how brand organisations should handle customer service (Provide basic information that consumers can easily access on the web; For anything else invest in good human customer service people; Use metrics other than call times or first time resolution).

There are a few other success drivers out there:

• P&G principle that: ‘The Consumer is Boss’ drives everything they do.
• Zappos core values includes: ‘Deliver WOW through Service'.
• Apple state that: ‘Service is Marketing’ and ‘Solving Problems is an Opportunity.’

Why is it that so many brand organisations are spending effort and money on making a Brand Promise but ignoring the opportunity to Delight consumers?

I think it is pretty simple.

Any time a potential or existing consumer calls (or drop-in) to chat, enquire, buy, complain, etc, regard it as an opportunity to delight them...show them you care...apply some magic...make them feel loved.

This is a sure way to accelerate consumers down the Path to Advocacy.

The simplicity and power of posters

Kevin Roberts (CEO Saatchi & Saatchi) recently posted this picture and story about a poster that was produced at the beginning of World War 2.

‘The intent of the poster was to convey a message from the King to his people, to assure them that all necessary measures to defend the nation were being taken, and to stress an attitude of mind rather than any specific aim.’

Kevin also says  this  is great advice for today’s tough times.

This works for me.

Is this the ultimate multi-sense alcohol brand experience?

This is a bit of fun.

A bar which delivers an intoxicating vapour of gin & tonic that will leave consumers feeling slightly merry.

To add to the experience the bar is decorated with pictures of giant limes and massive straws, and will play a sound track of liquid being poured over ice cubes.

I am not sure that I would support this way of delivering a Brand Experience but it will no doubt provide consumers with a memorable 'multi-sense' experience that they will remember and talk about – provided they don’t spend too long there! 

A brand experience that lets consumers touch/sample the brand is one of the most powerful ways to increase their likelihood to buy

I was interested to read a recent post by Nigel Hollis (Chief Global Analysis – Millward Brown) about a research paper by Joann Peck and Susan B. Shu that proves that touching a product makes you more likely to buy it.

The paper says: “...in four studies, we found that touch does connect a person to an object by increasing the feeling of ownership of the object.”

This supports learnings from Touchpoints ROI Tracker that consistently shows, across virtually every category, that sampling is one of the most influential ways to deliver brand experience.

This is not a new a new idea.

After all, who buys a new outfit without being able to try it on, or a car without being able to test-drive it?

I recommend that any brand that wants to attract new users (errr I guess that would be most brands!) should look for ways to deliver cost effective brand experiences that lets potential consumers touch, sample and/or play with it.

It should not be complicated.

Develop a brand experience strategy that encourages consumers to interact with the brand.

Test it.

Do the numbers to check the ROI.

If it works, roll it out....

Dominoes employees rapidly deliver worst kind of brand experience due to the infectious power of Twitter

On Tuesday this week, because of a posting I spotted on Twitter, I saw the Dominoes horror movie that had just been posted on YouTube.

In case you missed the video it basically showed two employees at Dominoes doing some pretty ghastly ‘tricks’ with cheese and salami while making sandwiches for an unsuspecting home delivery customer.

In matter of days, as a result of the retweeting function of Twitter, this video nasty had been viewed by over one million people.

Dominoes are a large brand that has invested effort and dollars carefully building their brand reputation. Overnight this reputation has been tarnished, partly because of the way retweets can spread this type of story like wildfire.

In my view this very clearly demonstrates the infectious and potentially dangerous power of social media, which is now being dramatically accelerated by Twitter.

This is scary stuff.

In a week when Amazon also got caught out by the speed of Twitter it is time for brand organisations to rewrite the rules about how they approach crisis management.

If you are responsible for brand experience management in your organisation be warned. This type of issue is probably going to become more common, I therefore recommend you put together a savvy and agile team who really get how social media works and who are prepared to proactively manage this type of situation.

Motorbike brand experiences at the dealer need to be fixed

I was surprised to read at 1st5ive.com of research by J D Power that revealed that 51% of new motorcycle buyers cite dealer-related issues as a reason for rejecting a motorcycle brand; and that one of the primary dealer-related issues for rejecting a brand is the inability to test ride a bike. 

As with all categories, to win over the long term motorbike brands must deliver good brand experiences ( to the consumer) at all stages of the Path to Advocacy. 

I am not into motorbikes and have never tried to buy one, but cannot imagine why anyone would buy without being able to try it out first. 

What is relatively unique about the motorbike category is that the brand experience delivered at the usage stage is far richer compared to the usage stage with most others categories. [Usage is when the consumer uses the brand; not just when they unpack and use it for the first time (second ‘moment of truth’), but every time it is used.] 

Think about it.

The majority of brand categories are low interest products that are used day to day (eg FMCG, Household Appliances, etc)

Some brand categories can be fairly desirable but after the first usage they become everyday (eg Electricals, Fashion, etc)

A few brand categories are special/useful/fun, but the excitement of using them generally doesn’t last too long (think iPod)

The motorbike category is different. Motorbike ownership and usage is all about the thrill of riding...the open road...the power...the speed...the noise...the smell...and in some cases the bond with fellow riders.

I don’t think any other category offers a sustainable usage brand experience to match it (except maybe performance cars).

However, motorbike brands can’t rely on the user experience alone. They should also be ensuring that dealers deliver great brand experiences to the consumer during the process of trying to select a motorbike and then find ways to delight them once they buy.