Get Them and Keep Them

Green the E-Ticket Process

Nowadays, many airlines, movie theaters, museums and other venues allow you to buy your tickets online. It can be a great time saver and convenience.  All you generally need is your credit card and a printer.

However, as a consumer and a marketer, it really appalls me that I have to waste paper to show that I purchased something, especially since there is at least one green option: mobile phones.

Given mobile phone's current penetration -  nearing 61% worldwide, according to a recent ClickZ article - it's very likely your customers are carrying a mobile device.

Thus, I would encourage all companies that offer "buy online options" to give three choices for ticket purchase/admission entry 1) allow to the purchaser to receive a confirmation/ticket via text message  2) allow the purchaser to receive an email formatted for a mobile phone/PDA for display upon entry 3) allow the purchaser to print the actual ticket via an e-mail sent to their computer (for those that don't like the mobile device option).

These options may take a little IT support to implement. But customers will appreciate the added convenience, especially when local search becomes commonplace and a printer is nowhere in sight.

In the interim, I strongly believe that greening the e-ticket process is a good idea. Not only can it spare trees, but it could enhance customers' opinion of the company, and potentially tie them closer to the brand.

Technorati Tags: mobile marketing, green, ClickZ, e-ticket

Mobile Marketing: Yes in Europe, No in U.S.

Oh what a difference a continent makes!

In Europe, Mobile Marketing is widely accepted and growing at a reasonable clip. In fact, according to a blog post by Madrid's Javier Correro, 50% of Spaniards have received a SMS message to acquire a product or service, compared with 17.6% of American mobile users, 27% of British mobile users, 45% of Italian mobile users, 29% of German mobile users and 44% of French mobile users.

Moreover, the Spanish trust the mobile phone as a source of entertainment and advertising, Correro writes.

Not so in the U.S. According to a recent article by eMarketer, few Americans want ads sent to their phone. The article claims that nearly two-thirds of Generation Y respondents said they were unlikely or definitely unlikely to subscribe to texted retail offers sent to their handsets.

It goes on to say that four-fifths of mobile users in a different survey said that text messages sent by companies would be totally unacceptable. Accordingly,

Of course, what made mobile marketing more acceptable to American users was the content.  "It is one thing to ask if someone wants ads sent to their phone and another to ask if they would like free music in exchange for viewing a mobile ad," eMarketer wrote.

Technorati Tags: mobile marketing, eMarketer, advertising

Just ask!

I recently opened a direct mail piece from my former employer, a nationwide wireless company.  It couldn't have been a less compelling offer.

The piece (sent to my husband) offered a free camera phone in exchange for signing a two-year contract. Spending  a night shivering in a dark alley would have probably more appealing. (Ok, that's a bit of an exaggeration).

Why? We have no interest in a camera phone. We  prefer   "work horse" phones that can be used for at least 2 years and can take a lot of wear and tear.

However, our wireless company doesn't know us. They don't know what interests us because they have never asked.

All they would have to do is add a question or two to their customer contact preference section (you know the section that asks, "How would you like to be contacted: phone, e-mail, etc.) Then let us opt-in to the types of information we find compelling. They would find out very quickly that we are very interested in new rate plans, but not phones.

By doing this, they will learn our preferences (not just how we want to be contacted). And,they won't waste a lot of money sending out a four-color glossy that doesn't appeal to us nor probably many others. 

Thus, I recommend that if companies want better campaign take rates, they may want to find out what customers want from them first, before they start spending big bucks.

Technorati Tags Customer Experience Customer Preferences Customer Retention

Do you really need an activation fee?

Ok, so what does that activation fee really provide? Does it offer any service for the customer? Most likely, it doesn't. It's just another way to generate $35 or more of revenue. Customers aren't dumb. They understand that.

So, either roll in that charge to your monthly subscription price or forget about it. By doing so, you'll send a message to your customers that your company only charges for services provided.

Technorati Tags Customer Experience Word of Mouth Brand Building

Like Mom?

Imagine if everyone in your wireless or high speed internet company treated the customer like a beloved mother. They were respectful, said when they would be home, called when they would be five minutes late, remembered birthdays, apologized if they did something wrong and always tried their best. The company would be a lot more customer focused. Think about it.

Transcend the Silos

Link: 10 Ways to Love (and Respect) Your Customers | MarketingProfs.com.

I really like this article. In particular, I like how the author, Jeanne Bliss, explains how company silos affect the customer experience:

We're stuck in our silos making independent decisions, taking isolated actions for the purpose of executing our discipline, achieving good numbers and earning a good review.

Of course, the customer experience doesn't happen neatly down each individual silo. The customer experiences a company horizontally—across the silos. This fact creates the breeding ground for the lack of respect customers feel and the discontent they have with us. The typical silo structure bumps the customer disjointedly along to deliver the outcome of its experience.

How true!  In many companies, the silos are responsible for sayings like:  "That's not my job" and "You'll have to talk to so and so." In fact, many wireless and broadband companies have distinct silos for new and existing customers, leading to differentiated treatment of the two customer groups.

Nonetheless, these silos can all work together - instead of against each other - and create good customer experiences. The challenge is to have every department focused on the customer and creating a good customer experience. (See the article's 10 ways to love and respect your customers).  I happened to work for a wireless, customer-centric company several years ago. So I know it's possible.

 

Acknowledge the Poke!

When my three-year-old is on the playground and unintentionally pushes another kid, at least she has the manners to apologize.
I wish I could say the same about some companies. They poke their most loyal customers in the eye - and don't even acknowledge the poke. Here's what I'm talking about.
A friend of mine just wanted to update his e-mail address at a company he has done business with for more than 10 years. Instead of  having a system in place where he could easily make the fix, he received the following e-mail:

"Thank you for your request. In order to change the email address listed on your account, I need your first/last name, date of birth, and address to locate the account. Please advise. Thank you for choosing "X company" and have a great day!

I'm still dumbfounded.
It seems inconceivable to me that in today's business climate, a company doesn't have the basic systems in place to make e-mail address changes easily.
But it's even more unbelievable that this company doesn't have the wherewithal to acknowledge that it's lack of systems/process has inconvenienced customers.
Instead of saying, "Have a nice day," something along the lines of, "We regret the inconvenience," would have been far more appropriate.
My recommendation: If you can't fix the problem, at least acknowledge the poke.

I'm a reformed sinner

Ok, here's my confession. I'm a reformed sinner.

In my past life, I didn’t care about customer communication preferences. Once you became one of my company’s wireless customers, I stuffed your mailbox with 4-color direct mail pieces, navigated spam-blockers to push e-mails into your inbox, called you at dinner time to see how your service is working and even dropped an occasional voicemail into your mobile phone.

I did this with the hope that you would put down the baby or push aside your spreadsheets, just to HEAR or READ my up-sell or retention offer.

How often? That depended upon how valuable you were to the company.

I never once asked you: “How would you like updates about the service? I never once checked,  “What are your communication preferences?"

It’s not that the thought hadn’t crossed my mind. Of course it had. However, we (the retention team) decided that we didn’t want customers to opt-out from communications. We wanted to barrage customers with offers and information, whenever we wanted - or whenever we had to boost our retention numbers.

So we ruled out enabling customer communication preferences because we had no intention of honoring them. Our thinking was convoluted: “Customers don’t know what they don’t know…We have to tell them, so they won’t leave us.”

Now I see how mistaken we were (and how much the marketing enviroment in the U.S. has changed, with consumers saying  “No” to intrusive media through TIVO, Do Not Call lists, spam blockers, etc.)

You can’t get people to listen to you, if they don’t want to. And, you can’t get customers to read your e-mail, even if it has bypassed their spam-blockers. Just observe any three-year-old when he/she is screaming. “I don’t want to.” That’s just not a good time to discuss something.

So, not only did we waste a lot of money, we also showed a lack of respect for our customers. We sent them a message that essentially said, “Our time and needs are more important than yours.”

It shouldn’t be that way, especially for U.S.-based mobile phone, broadband wireless and WiFi companies, which often don’t score high for customer satisfaction. They should ask their customers how they would like to receive updates and offers. If customers say “never” then honor it.

At the same time, do everything possible to make sure your existing customers can access information about new rate plans and services through your print ads, rich content on your company web site/blog, RSS feeds, an opt-in subscription newsletter or bill stuffer.

Also recommended: provide information about new services on print collateral for company-owned outlets and templates for dealers. Whatever the case, build the dialog with existing customers on their terms, not yours.

 

Managing expectations - critical!

Managing expectations is one of the key ways to minimize customer defections.

It sounds simple, but it's not. So many companies develop brand promises based upon "great customer service" or something similar in an attempt to distinguish themselves from the competition. Then, they can't deliver upon it. Their hope is that customers will either be so entrenched or forgetful of those promises that they will ignore the company's short-comings.

That's a big mistake. Customers don't forget what they are promised. They especially don't forget when there's a plethora of mass media reminding them of the great service or great experience or great whatever they will be receiving, if they just purchase their product.

So, every company must develop a sustainable brand promise - or value that's meaningful and relevant to the customer. That brand promise must be realized at every touchpoint, including the company's customer service organization, web site, sales channels, distribution network, etc. It also must be realized by any vendors who supply goods and services to the company - and operate under the company's name.

If not, customers are likely to be disappointed, if not deceived. And many are likely to leave.

So, it's critical that companies do some very serious self-examination before they make promises about greatness. If they can't deliver a great experience or service throughout the organization and throughout the distribution network, then don't say it. Instead, companies need to focus upon something else that is meaningful and relevant to the customer - and promise that.

Managing expecations will prove more valuable in the long run than making bold promises that can't be realized.