It’s a well known fact that I’m an avid online shopper. I have never had any qualms about purchasing online, in fact I find the ‘commit to buy’ button a considerable adrenalin rush. It’s all just too easy. One click and it’s mine.
In the run up to Christmas I’ve heard a lot of moaning around the office, the shopping centres are crowded, it’s expensive, the parking is impossible – the list goes on. When asked how I was finding the process I replied (in hindsight a little too smugly) that I was yet to step outside to buy a single present.
Crowded Christmas Shopping
What I constantly find surprising are the amount of people that still find online shopping daunting. I think I can put myself in an oddball category where my adrenalin hit is concerned, but that aside the products are considerably cheaper, it saves serious time – you can compare 20 styles, stores and products in the time it would take you to circle one level of a department store and the best part of all? Shipping.
Back in the early days of online shopping, shipping was probably the biggest downfall. A lot of the major players (let alone those dabbling in the online sphere) got it all wrong. The dispatch took days, the shipping was standard only and it often arrived looking like it had been gathering dust on a warehouse floor.
To all those who lost faith, renew! I have told so many people of this year’s Christmas success I feel I should share it to more. The last two parcels I have received have thrown in a bonus gift and a handwritten note, thanking me for my custom. When has this ever occurred in a physical store? I previously wrote about customer service in the GFC on the incline, but in comparison to online, it’s miles behind.
Another of my purchases was gift wrapped (complimentary) and arrived the next day, Platinum postage (I paid a whopping $2 extra for this service). Sure you don’t get the instant gratification of walking out the door with your product, but in the case of Christmas shopping – delivery to the office means the recipients don’t catch sight of their presents, sneakily hidden in the corner of the wardrobe.
I have to say online service has far surpassed my last experiences in store. Gone are the days of poor security, scepticism and slow shipping. It’s certainly a winner in my books. Give it a go and you might just end up finding Christmas shopping enjoyable.
I’ve been meaning to share my favourite Android apps for a while now and can’t think of a better app to start off the collection than Places Directory.
Created by the Google team this app is the most fantastic addition to your Android phone, in fact I would go as far to say if you were to download one app, this should be it.
Ever been out and needed to find the nearest ATM? Places Directory takes that one step further and can tell you where your nearest bank ATM is to save on those nasty charge fees. It’s simple but has all the smart features you could need.
The creators have thought of where the user will want to go after the selection and so you can continue to delve through more information, maps and streetview if you wish.
The app uses your phone’s compass and GPS to guide you to the location. Gone are the days of the clueless tourist, holding a map with a puzzled expression on a street corner.
Recently on a trip to Sydney the restaurant my partner and I had hoped to visit had closed, and lost in an unfamiliar street holding a bottle of wine we pulled out Places Directory – and asked it to point us to nearby BYO restaurants. We found a couple but clicked through to sort by reviews.We ended up finding the most incredible restaurant in a back alley, and 6/8 outstanding reviews recommended a particular dish, which we blindly ordered. We were the only non-locals in the restaurant which went to show we would have never found this place without our trusty Android phones.
Places Directory allows you to search for accommodation (hotels), movie theatres, ATM’s, restaurants, gas stations and many more. The best feature is the link to reviews so you know what to expect and what reputation the location has. Of course word of mouth marketing is the strongest marketing of all!
So give it a try, it’s so simple to use and a very useful addition to everyday life.
Cost? Places Directory is free.
Places Directory Android App
What are your customers saying about you? Wouldn’t you like to know? Word of mouth has been long known as a very powerful form of marketing. It is often most blatant in the undeveloped world where businesses thrive on reputation without the luxury of large marketing budgets like Apple, Coca-Cola or Nike.
It’s always fascinating to note the stall at a market with the longest queue. I put this to the test on a recent trip to the Queen Victoria Markets in Melbourne and tested several stands, including the busiest. On appearance they all seemed of equal offering, but the crowded stall had by far the best product, and everybody lining up seemed to be well aware of their reputation as the best.
But how do you measure word of mouth or the loyalty of your customers? How do you know when they walk away from your stall or business that they will recommend you?
The Net Promoter Score (NPS) is a simple tool that was developed to measure exactly this.
Long gone are the lengthy, costly customer surveys filled out by bored students and discarded by most. The Net Promoter Score is a calculation of your customer’s loyalty with just one simple question:
“How likely are you to recommend (your business) to a colleague of friend?”
The customer then ranks their response on a simple 1-10 scale, with 1-6 being classed as Detractors, 7-8 Passives (those who weren’t fussed either way) and a 9 or 10 being a Promoter (those who will actively recommend you to their friends).
From here a simple calculation of the percentage of Detractors subtracted from the percentage of Promoters obtains your Net Promoter Score. This Net Promoter Score Calculation can form a powerful tool for your business.
Whilst a common measurement tool in the U.S.A., the NPS is still relatively new to Australia although I’m seeing the survey in my inbox more and more as of late. It’s always one I fill out as it takes less than a minute to complete, and I know first hand of it’s powerful nature to deliver feedback.
Additionally, it gives you the opportunity to touch base with your customers after their experience, to find out what went wrong, or what was right. I’ve been using this survey for about a year and a half now and we find the feedback invaluable. In fact, on most occasions when we contact our Detractors – we end up solving their problem or alleviating their frustration moving them up the ranks to a Passive or in some cases even a Promoter. The damage a Detractor can do to your brand can be considerable, so eliminating as many as possible is a sure-fire way to improve your brand!
A smart company will take the results and feedback and be unafraid to make appropriate changes, after all your business is driven by your customers, not you. The more positive word of mouth that you can generate the stronger your brand or business will be. How else does that market stall thrive?
Last week I attended Social Media Masterclass at Bond University run by Des Walsh and Michael Rees. They spoke about the best strategy for applying social media for your business and how to develop a roadmap for success.
bond university
The most crucial tip they gave was how central a blog is to your social media strategy. This of course inspired me to get back to my personal blog which had been lying idle for several months. It made me think how many businesses sadly do the same. A lack of fresh material on the website, old blog postings, distant updates on twitter. Of course a lack of resources are usually the answer to why this takes place, but a good solution is to use resources when they are available, and then spread the postings over a period of time to keep things fresh.
Customers need a reason to keep coming back to your site, so why not give them one. It doesn’t need to be a lengthy update, just something worth reading. They will be more in touch with your brand and find out about any new services or offers that you have.
Michael and Des also took us through their roadmap, something every company should consider when starting up in the social media sphere. Before even thinking of what benefit social media may give your business, consider the obstacles that already exist.
Do you have a strict corporate policy on internet use? Does management reject new technologies for fear of failure? Start with a small win.
Convince management of it’s benefit for internal use, start with a wiki or staff interaction on Facebook or Twitter. It will help them to understand the technology and realise its potential benefits.
Would there be legal implications if something went wrong? If so, notify your lawyers right from the start. I would highly recommend drawing up a strategy and policy document on what is appropriate, who is responsible and a contingency if things do go wrong. If this is carefully thought out, and relevant to your brand you can greatly minimise any potential for error and hopefully reap the benefits of using social media such as Twitter in your business.
Overall I came away with some great insights from Masterclass and I hope Des and Michael run an advanced course in the future as their knowledge was exceptional.
You can check out Des’ blog here: www.deswalsh.com
Customer satisfaction. It sounds like an easy concept to master, but sadly many businesses fail miserably. I have noticed that in the last few months I’ve encountered better customer service than ever before. So what has changed? I believe the GFC (a word we currently throw around like a fast food chain) has changed company’s views for the better.
Lets step back two years ago. Business in many sectors was booming. In my previous role for a franchise company one franchise owner did not wish to participate in a campaign because they had ‘too many customers’. I wonder if they still feel this way? Businesses did not seem to care about the customer experience. Customers came, bought and if they did not return, nobody noticed. Today this is a very different story.
Customer loyalty and satisfaction is now more important than ever. More companies are focusing on retaining good customers and increasing spend, rather than numbers. Why is this? Because less people are out spending dollars and every experience counts.
I was in a deli the other day and the manager came over to talk me through all of his cheeses and offered a taste of those I was interested in. It made me think, would this have happened two years ago? Probably not. I recall that same deli, with those same owners herding people to the counter like cattle. Note that then they had people to herd, this time I was the only customer in the store! The quality of products had not changed but something had, the economy, and this made business tougher than usual.
Businesses are getting smarter and customer service is improving. Those who are getting left behind are not applying the simple rule of great customer service. Going above and beyond the customer’s expectations does not necessarily mean a greater spend, a simple smile, friendly advice and appreciation for their custom will often bring a customer back time and time again. It works for me.
If there is anything positive to take out of this GFC I believe this is it. Lets just see if they can keep it up when the cattle return. The smart companies will.
Well it’s been a year in the making but this site is finally up and running! It would seem obvious that clicking random buttons and hoping for the best would not work out well, but one should always keep a positive attitude, right?
It’s always daunting starting with a blank canvas, so I’ll come back with some marketing insights next time. Back to playing with themes for now…
