ZMOT should be a priority for all brands

I talk a lot about the first and second moments of truth, however, when it comes to choosing a brand 84% of consumers in US look on-line first - according to Google. They are calling this the Zero Moment of Truth (ZMOT).

The ZMOT concept is simple. The internet has significantly changed consumer shopping habits. Now they typically start the process of choosing by checking out blogs, consumers opinion websites, social network, competitor sites, etc, before they visit the store

Delivering winning brand experience at the ZMOT is something all brand organisations need to be focusing on.

Kevin Roberts has posted the some excellent nuggets that Lecinski (Google US Sales) has suggested. These are key:

1. Put Someone in Charge. If it’s nobody’s job, it’s not going to get done. You need a ZMOT evangelist, in on every meeting and empowered to do the job.

2. Find Your Zero Moments: Find out exactly how people search for your product. Where do they go? Who do they trust to give them information?

3. Answer the Questions People Are Asking: There’s no point meeting people at ZMOT if you’re not giving them the kind of information they want, as and when they want it.

4. Optimize for ZMOT: Show up more when it counts by making your content super-relevant, and being where you need to be (Lecinski makes the point that having a great mobile presence is a big part of this).

5. Be Fast: Know when something’s making people search for your product, and do something quick to capitalise on it. Speed beats perfection.

In my view there is another thing missing from this list. That is to ensure you WOW existing consumers so they become advocates. This is a vital component because positive social commentary and conversations from delighted consumers will fuel your brand's on-line reputation.

Powerful stuff.

Cool ad from Touchwood

Docomo - Trees / Forest / Touchwood SH-08C - (2011)

This is a cool ad.

It is fun, engaging and should get noticed.

Tips on how to get mobile right

Mobile is becoming an increasingly important way for brands to deliver enhanced brand experiences that have the potential to delight consumers.

Technology is getting extremely smart.

Revenues are growing fast (ABI research predict $119bn of goods and services will be bought via mobile by 2115).

Internet Retailing recently published a very useful article for any brand that recognizes the potential of mobile and wants to start using it now. It has a common sense checklist when comparing mobile to on-line.

Here are the highlights:

Screen size - means you have to be sure what content should be served (with on-line 90% of page can be irrelevant).

Load times - mobile is generally slower so you need to think about content and number of steps you get users to take.

Mobile vs tablet – may require parallel sites to take into account differing functionality.

Innovative services – like Augmented reality and location based services are powerful but not always relevant.

Personalization integration –the mobile experience needs to be consistent with that delivered by other brand platforms.

It is worth getting it right because it can be a smart way to deliver brand experiences that will delight consumers and thereby drive loyalty and advocacy.

However, get it wrong and consumers will desert you and may even become detractors who use social media to rapidly spread bad news about your brand.

My advice is simple. Start to test and learn as soon as you can.

Zapposication - the new marketing goal

I rave about Zappos all the time. [See example post]

It is therefore of no surprise to me to see this recent post by CustomerThink.com, that shows Zappos at the top for customer service:

1. Zappos
2. Expedia
3. Apple (Computers)
4. Acer /Samsung
5. Kindle
6. Discover/ American Express
7. Apple (Smartphones)
8. Fed Ex
9. McDonald’s
10. HP/ Samsung

How do they come top?

Simple...they focus on delighting consumers. They ensure they whole organisation understands the focus by publishing, training and living their core values.

All marketers should take note as winning in marketing in this day and age is not about creating great advertising (although that is important). It is about delivering an overall brand experience that delight. A great customer service is integral to that goal.

Learning about in-store success from luxury brands

Here are two highly effective ways to build a great in-store brand experience (see Sparxoo article about luxury brand in-store experience).

Make consumers feel comfortable and special.

Sure, this is obvious, but the article highlights two good ways to help deliver this successfully combination:

Personalise tech

“….one innovative way luxury brands are adding a touch of special is through mobile technology. In-store sales people can deliver better service with the aid of mobile devices, such as the iPad. “Mobile devices combine personalization efficiency and effectiveness with an unprecedented touch of caring and nurturing”

Invest in kind human capital

“..the stuffy, know-it-all, sometimes condescending sales associate is certainly a big turn-off for customers at luxury stores. LI takes example of superior customer service from the online retailer, Zappos. Taking a cue from the extremely polite, considerate and genuine customer service reps at Zappos, “putting polite, informed and well-groomed sales personnel on the floor is just the start, but done well it can be a true differentiator”

The iPad idea is fabulous. It seems kinda obvious but I have yet to see any retailer use the ipad to help improve the shopping experience.

Zappos is a brand I love. I have written about them many times because they know ho to WOW consumers with their great approach to customer service.

So, if you are responsible for in-store delivery of brand experience then look into: a) how iPads can be used as a staff tool to delight consumers and b) at Zappos for ideas about creating values that direct staff on how behave in a way that will delight consumers.

Elle Magazine brings Brand Experience to Life

I just read that Elle are opening a branded spa inside the Eden Roc Renaissance Miami Beach hotel.

This is what I would do if I ran a successful magazine like Elle.

Build an experience that enables readers to engage deeply with and delight in the brand.

It seems in the publishing world a lot of magazines are struggling trying to work out how to survive and thrive in the new always on internet world we now live in.

A few are having success bringing their brands to life on-line.

Others are cutting cost in journalists, cutting costs in product development and as a result losing circulations fast.

Most have forgotten that one sure fire way to win over the hearts and minds of their readers is to deliver a brand experience that brings the brand to life and delights and excites.

This Elle spa look like it will do just that – deliver a winning brand experience - and no doubt make some good incremental revenues.

Others magazines should look at similar ideas.

Have O2 delivered the ultimate brand experience?

This must have been a fabulous brand experience for this very lucky O2 customer.

Imagine it.

Katie hobbs (random O2 customer) gets a ticket to an exclusive Tinie Tempah concert.

The big night arrives.

Tinie appears on stage.

Shortly after the gig kicks off the floor clears and Katie has her your own one-on-one performance from Tinie.

Wow. As she says, she will never forget it.

I love his idea from those clever people at O2.

They delivered a brand experience that absolutely delighted a customer. That in its own right would not deliver a great return on effort and investment, however, the interest in the story and the number of You Tube hits definitely do a good job presenting O2 as a brand that really knows how to delight it’s customers.

Nice one.

Great experiences drive word of mouth

Amazon.com: the Hidden Empire

View more presentations from faberNovel

Thank you Gerd Leonhard for pointing me towards this very interesting deck about Amazon.

I have long been an admirer of Jeff Bezos and, as I have posted before, I thought his purchase of Zappos was smart.

This is my favourite quote in this deck (and there are many great quotes, not to mention loads of great tips about how to build an extremely successful digital based business):

"If you do build a great experience, customers will tell each other about that. Word of mouth is powerful."

Absolutely. This is what my Promise Deliver Delight framework is all about. Deliver and delight and consumers are more likely to buy again and tell their friends.

Amazon deliver $34bn revenues annually. Need I say more?

Three Top Packaging Tips

Brand organisations know that delivering a fabulous in-store brand experience is critical to ensure consumers buy their brand.

Packaging is clearly one of the most important components, given the role it plays at the first moment of truth. I have written about this before.

Retail Customer Experience have just written a useful article covering three ways packaging can improve, impact the retail experience.

Whilst every category and brand has different strategy there are three common packaging considerations that are becoming more essential to ensure the brand deliver a positive in-store experience for consumers.

Here are the article highlights. (These tips seem obvious but I find it surprising that many brands get it wrong.)

1. It needs to stand-out and differentiate

It has to get attention and convey what the brand is all about.

2. It's secure but possible to open with too much hassle

It needs to keep the content secure but not be a nightmare to open.

3. It's sustainable

Consumers care about the environment and don't like it when brands are wasteful.

If consumers notice and like what they see there is a far greater chance they will buy. When a consumer buys a brand and it delivers - and ideally delights - them then the brand will succeed. Packaging is an important part of that equation.

The Role of Enchantment

I just bought Enchantment - a new book by Guy Kawasaki - in which Guy defines enchantment as the process of delighting people with a product, service, organisation, or idea. The outcome of enchantment is voluntary and long lasting support that is mutually beneficial.

This fits very closely with my thinking.

Enchantment plays a key role because to win brand organisations need to deliver brand experiences that:

• Start by making a Promise (via marketing activity).
• Then Deliver (the promise).
• Then Delight (WOW consumers by exceeding the promise).

Delighting consumers requires focus and resource but will increase loyalty and advocacy - so worth it (see mutually beneficial comment above).

I will read Guy's book with interest.

Nissan force a test drive and deliver a powerful brand experience

One of the most powerful ways to deliver a compelling brand experience is force potential consumers to use (key stage of Path to Advocacy) the brand.

I came across this idea by Arabian Automobiles (exclusive Nissan distributors in Dubai) at creamglobal.com.

It is very simple.

Block in SUV vehicles with a Nissan Patrol leaving keys and a note encouraging them to move the Nissan.

Once the Nissan starts up a message tells them what is going on and suggests that the driver goes for a spin.

As a result of 7 out of 10 people signed-up for a test drive.

What a great idea that will drive usage and get talked about.

Cebu Pacific deliver a Gaga brand experience

Airlines are always looking for fun ways to deliver brand experiences that to get noticed.

Check out my previous articles Spanair, Air New Zealand, South West Airlines (twice) and Virgin.

This example from Cebu Pacific airline is one of my favourites.

Apparently they only did this on 2 domestic flights but millions have seen it on You Tube.

A great example of a brand experience that people will talk about.

Nice one.

Brands need to handle social media with care

I love this. "Google before you Tweet."

It applies to brand organisations as much as people.

When a brand decides to enter the social media conversation they need to be really clear about how they handle themselves.

Mashable wrote a useful article about what you can learn from previous social media blunders.

It includes the following key tip:

"When building a brand, engaging customers, or just communicating with friends, it is vital to remember how quickly even a single update can go viral in social media. People value honesty, being upfront, and listening to others. Employing these principles can prevent social media blunders from turning into lawsuits and PR disasters."

When you get social media right it can be a powerful way deliver brand experiences that WOW consumers. Get it wrong and it can be a disaster.

Fanatical loyalty should be a brands primary goal

In marketing 'brand loyalty' is often the given primary objective. That is because loyal consumers usually account for the lions share of revenue (check out the Paretto principle).

Wikipedia defines loyalty as: "faithfulness or a devotion to a person, country, group, or cause."

That is fine but it important to remember that there are different types of brand loyalty.

Seth has a good view on loyalty.

As I see it there are broadly three consumer types/behaviours:

Inertia loyalist who can't be bothered to change switch brands - banks benefit from this type of consumer. This applies to any low cost/interest/risk category, like FMCG staples (eg baked beans and pasta), because consumers often buy them on autopilot.

Transaction loyalists who stick to a brand because it is commercially beneficial to them, ie any brand that offers a 'loyalty card' or that gives away coupons/discounts/free stuff.

Fanatical loyalists who just really love a brand. This is the territory of Lovemarks (Loyalty beyond reason). This is the level of loyalty that brands should be striving for because consumers will buy again and again, even if there are better offers.

This is what the path to advocacy is all about. If you can deliver brand experiences that delight consumers they are likely to become fanatical loyalists who buy frequently and tell others about your brand.

It is worth getting it right because when you do you will gain competitive advantage and increased revenues.

Electrolux reaches new heights

Electrolux are planning to build pop-up restaurants in cool places.

I love the picture of this one.

I last posted about Electrolux (almost 2 years ago) when they had just built a restaurant overlooking Paris. At the time I said I thought it was an idea that would get talked about.

I guess the fact that they are going to do more of these pop-up restaurants means it is having some positive effect. Great.

The Augmented Reality and Mobile Commence Opportunity for Brands

I last wrote about Augmented Reality (AR) 18 months ago - when it was just a bit of fun. [see post]

Now more brands are starting to work-out how to use AR to deliver engaging brand experiences.

I found an interesting post at iMedia Connection that highlights these good recent examples:

Branding

Streetmuseum from the Museum of London engage users around London in a fun and informative way that is spot on for the brand.

Ben & Jerry’s Moo Vision campaign allows users to unlock a 3D brand experience from carton lids.

Utility.

Ikea had an app for their entire 2010 catalogue but also enabled users to virtually place each piece of furniture in their home.

Word Lens language app translates foreign text in real time.

Product Demos

This is an important area for on-line retailers who can’t provide a tangible experience. There are loads of fashion brands that help users ‘try on’ clothes but The Sampler by Converse is hard to beat.

The trick with all this is to work-out how ‘to close the deal ‘and help consumers move from playing with these AR apps to actually buying.

Mobile commence is about to explode so brands should be focusing on how to test and learn. If they can work-out how to deliver a brand experience via mobile, using apps, AR, etc, that both WOWs the consumer and makes it easy for them to buy - then they will win.

Richard Branson knows the power of a wow brand experience

When Richard Branson talks about delighting customers, building loyalty and advocacy it is worth paying attention.

There is no doubt he is a brilliant operator. He knows how to turn a negative situation into a positive brand story. [check-out my PR master stroke post]

In a recent article Reuters.com post Branson talks about the importance of a 'chain reaction of team that is consistent from beginning to end'

I totally agree.

If a brand organisation wants to WOW consumers it needs to create a culture that enthuses employees to solve customer service issues and, importantly, empower them to take action without having to follow a rule book or refer up a chain of command. He says:

No company can train its front-end people to handle every situation, but you can strive to create an environment in which they feel at ease "doing as they would be done by."

The Reuters article is definitely worth a read. The two stories he tells would have almost certainly resulted in delighted customers.

Brand experiences like them drive loyalty and advocacy. A sure way to drive sustainable profitability.

Brands must deliver what they promise

Once again Seth nails it.

He highlights the mistake some brands make when promising one thing in their glossy ads but not delivering. I go on about this all the time.

Check out Seth's recent post:

"..ads like this (that make a bold promise) actually decrease user satisfaction. If the ad leads to expect one thing and we don't get it, we're more disappointed than if we had gone in with no real expectations at all."

Why is this becoming more of a problem than in the 'old days'?

As I have posted before, and as Seth highlights:

"if word of mouth is the real advertising, then what you've done is use old-school ad techniques to actually undercut any chance you have to generate new-school results."

Marketer beware. Social media makes news about broken promises travel fast. [See old Dominoes story]

Marketing people should be focusing greater time and resource on delivering and delighting their consumers. That is how successful brand organisations achieve loyalty, advocacy and business success.

Mary Portas Golden Rules for Retailers - Smile Speak Serve

Mary Portas is on a mission to transform the appalling service culture of high fashion retailers in the UK.

She has a brilliant programme (on CH4), excellent experience and a no nonsense approach.

It covers loads of themes that are very close to my heart:

• Retailers must not drive short term profitability by cutting back on service. [Amazon]
• Leadership, culture and training are key to motivating employees. [De Vivre]
• Great customer service will feed stand-out and create a sustainable competitive advantage. [John Lewis]
• Happy customers will feel good and shop again. [Zappos]

If you are a retailer then watch it as there is plenty of actionable lessons. I strongly recommend that you watch it.

In my view, as I have said before, service is the new brand.

Tesco's neat scan to van app

There is a great new ad from Tesco [click here for link]

Trust Tesco to come up with this neat app.

It will deliver a win win for Tesco and their customers.

Customer's win: It will make buying easier which will delight their customers.

Tesco wins: It will increase the size of some customers shopping baskets.

It is no wonder that Tesco continue to be the most dominate retailer in the UK.