Bad Service Experience Don’t Fade Quickly From Customers Memories

It Takes Two Or More Years To Forget

Bad customer service experiences are more likely to be shared than good ones, according to results from a ZenDesk-sponsored survey conducted by Dimensional Research. Separate results from the survey indicate that not only are bad service experiences shared often, they’re also likely to have a long-term impact on customers. Respondents were asked to think about experiences with mid-sized B2B or B2C companies whose good or bad customer service impacted their behavior. Fully 39% of respondents who had a bad experience said their behavior was impacted for at least 2 years after the negative experience.                         

 Asked to recall the bad experience that impacted their behavior, 39% said it occurred 2 or more years ago, while another 14% said it occurred one year ago. By comparison, 24% of respondent who reported changing their buying behavior based on a good experience said it happened 2 or more years ago.

 The survey also shows that certain segments of the population were more likely to report having held onto the bad experience for at least 2 years. Women (45%), B2B customers (51%), those with annual household income of $100,000-150,000 (52%) and more than $150,000 (79%), as well as Gen Xers (36-50; 54%) all had an above-average likelihood of holding onto their bad experiences. B2B, Gen X, and $150,000+ respondents were also more likely to share their bad customer service experiences.

We live in a new DNAge. Think MOBILEFirst.          

About the Data: Dimensional Research surveyed 1046 individuals online in early 2013. All survey participants lived in the US and had recent experience with the customer service of a mid-sized company either as a consumer (B2C) or in a business context (B2B). For the survey, “mid-sized” was defined as any company that was not a large, well-known company or a small local or online company. 56% of respondents are female. 27% are Millennials, 35% Gen Xers and 38% Boomers (over 50). 14% had annual household income of more than $150,000.

Luxury Brand Shoppers Prove To Be Mobile-Friendly

Many believe mobile users are those who are younger, coupon seeking consumers. Nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, according to a new study from ForeSee, 59% of luxury brand shoppers say they’ve used mobile to interact with a company they are buying from. This makes luxury brand shoppers 40% more likely than shoppers at the top 100 e-retail sites (by sales volume) to have ever used their mobile device to interact with a brand (59% vs 42%). Among those who have used their device, one-quarter of luxury brand shoppers said they made a purchase compared to 16% of top-100 shoppers. Luxury mobile shoppers also were more likely to research products on their devices (56% vs 40%), compare products or prices while in store (24% vs 18%), and use retailer-developed mobile shopping apps (13% vs 10%). 

It seems that luxury shoppers are astute in using their mobile devices for shopping purposes. In fact, those who used their mobile while in-store, 65% of luxury shoppers accessed the store’s website, while 39% visited a competitor’s website and 24% a shopping comparison website. 

The researchers cautioned that customer satisfaction ratings have a strong bearing on brand loyalty and should be taken seriously. Compared to dissatisfied customers, highly satisfied luxury website visitors report being:

. 76% more likely to buy from brand online;

. 71% more likely to purchase from the brand the next time;

. 69% more likely to recommend the brand; 

. 69% more likely to buy the brand offline; 

. 65% more committed to the brand overall; and

. 65% more likely to return to the brand.

A dissatisfied customer is roughly 40% less likely to display any of those characteristics.

It is important to understand luxury shoppers also own mobile devices and use them. Mobile is an appendage of today’s consumer. It is with her constantly. 

We live in a new DNAge. Think MOBILEFirst.

People Are Spending A Lot Of Time Social Networking

Only the young kids are on social networks. That is the claim of many who are not active nor want to believe that people are spending a lot of time social networking. Today, a wide spectrum of people are on the social sites letting the world know what they are doing. In fact, Americans aged 18-64 who use social networks say they spend an average of 3.2 hours per day social networking, according to new research released by Ipsos Open Thinking Exchange. Factoring in survey respondents who don’t use social networks, the survey finds that the average online American spends 2 hours a day social networking from a computer, tablet and/or mobile phone. Unsurprisingly, American social networkers aged 18-34 self-report spending more time than their older counterparts, and women outpace men in consumption, also.

Specifically, among American social network users:

18-34-year-olds report spending 3.8 hours a day;

35-49-year-olds report spending 3 hours per day; and

50-64-year-olds report spending 2.4 hours per day.

In terms of the gender difference, female social networkers spend almost 40% more time daily with social media sites than men (3.6 hours vs. 2.6 hours), a finding consistent with earlier research from MyLife and from Burst Media showing women to be more active than men on social media.

Some other interesting demographic gaps emerge from the Ipsos research. Those include:

. Social networkers with low household income spending more time than those with high household income (3.7 hours vs. 3.1 hours). Note: both are over 3 hours;

. Those with low education levels spending more time than those with high education levels (3.5 vs. 3);

. Business owners spending almost 50% more time than those who don’t own a business (4.4 vs. 3);

. Senior executives and decision-makers spending 40% more time than those not in those positions (4.2 vs. 3); and

. Unemployed social networkers spending 3.5 hours a day on social media, versus 3 hours for the employed.

The study breaks down actual hourly estimates per day, with some striking results. For example, roughly 1 in 5 users aged 18-34 claim to spend 6 hours or more per day social networking.

Emerging market social networkers are avid users. Looking across the 24-country sample included in the Ipsos research, some countries stand out in social network usage. Among social network users, Indonesians and Saudi Arabians spend the most time, at an average of 5.1 hours daily, followed by the Turkish (4.9 hours), Argentinians (4.7 hours), and Russians (4.6 hours). In fact, almost one-third of social network users in Indonesia report spending at least 6 hours a day socializing on social media sites.

On the other end of the spectrum, social network users in France and Japan spend the least amount of time daily, at an average of 2.3 hours.

Meanwhile, among all online survey respondents, rates of social network usage are highest in Mexico (91%), Saudi Arabia (91%), Turkey (90%), Brazil (87%), Indonesia (87%), and Argentina (86%). They are lowest in Hungary (62%), Germany (72%), Poland (74%), Great Britain (74%), and the US (75%).

Overall, 71% of respondents across the 24 countries reported using social networks for an average of 3.6 hours per day.

We live in a new DNAge. With the advance of mobile, social networking is at our fingertips and we are using it.

Retail Change Has Reached Its Time… Centering Around The Consumer

There has been a cataclysmic shift about who controls what in the world today. Michelle Crames in writing in Luxurydaily.com notes, “Retail must now be organized around the customer.” Her thesis revolves around the rise of the smartphone and it is dead-on.                

Did you know that during the last holiday season, on December 10, 2011 to be exact, Amazon offered consumers an additional 5% off in exchange for scanning items in-store, and comparing the price on Amazon. Historians will note that this will be a watershed moment as one of the most important dates in the rise of mobile. It has a significant impact on what is happening today.

Shop.org holds an annual summit each year. This year, Deborah Weinswig of Citibank shared a study with those in attendance. It stated that a majority of consumers would wait to buy online with a price difference of only 2.5%. The question becomes obvious: Where does that put multichannel retailers in a world where Amazon is on average 8% cheaper than Walmart.com and 9% cheaper than Walmart stores?

With the development of the iPhone 5 and other smartphones (In the U.S., smartphone adoption passed basic phones earlier this year) the power has shifted to the consumer as they increasingly have the power of choice, infinite selection and immediate gratification.

Traditional retail, Ms Crames points out, is only becoming more complicated as consumers are empowered by mobile and are more enticed with offers from competition, even within a retailer’s own four walls. In order to compete in today’s changing world, you have to recognize this problem and work to build digital and mobile bridges to the customer, both physically and emotionally that help to go beyond price.

For those retailers who have built their brick and mortar based upon their excellence and on the belief that they know what the consumer wants or needs, life has changed. In conversation with a leading retailer in the South, it was suggested that his operation is immune because of the geographic positioning of setting up shop in a second home, vacation marketplace. “When people come here they relax and enjoy. When they want to get out of the house, they come to stores like ours that offer a dazzling array of quality products for the home within an environment that is unmatched. They need to ‘touch and feel’ the product before they buy.”

Perhaps.

In reality, people are coming into retail stores to ‘touch and feel’ the product already. And they are using their mobile devices to search out the best price points on the avenue of infinity, the web. As we have discussed before, this is “showrooming”. The question today should be how can you be the first and last stop on that journey? How can you use data to unlock meaningful value in the retailer-consumer and brand relationship? Who owns mobile, online or stores? Which, if any, wallet do they participate in: Google, Paypal, or Square? What is your team doing around iOS 6 anyway?

It is, as Michelle Crames so eloquently stated, “time to think differently about how retail works as lines become blurry.”                                                                       

Smart companies are allocating more than 20% of their marketing budget to mobile & digital. Why? It works.

Mobile is shaping the future of marketing innovation.                        

Think MOBILEFirst.                                 

Drive Social & New Business With QR Codes

Today marketers understand QR Codes (Quick Response Codes) are extremely important in delivering a tremendous amount of information within a very small space. In the age of mobile dominance, this two-dimensional barcode, packs a wallop of a punch. Similar to a UPC barcode, manufacturers and retailers are using QR Codes to create an engagement with their target audience.

For manufacturers, it is used to deliver maximum information about their brand and the features and benefits to the intended consumer. For the retailer, it is being used to keep the customer in their store and become engaged to the point of sale…now. It can be used on the windows of your store; at key locations within your store to enable further connection with your customer in an ongoing manner.

On a broader view, QR Codes are being used to push potential customers and satisfied customers to various branded social media sites, creating a community of involved customers. It’s a great way to allow the consumer to find out more about what you have to offer in a very limited space.  

A QR Code is very easy to produce and adaptable to nearly every printed or electronic surface. For those who do not know, you can create a QR Code online by using a free tool from a host of QR Code generator companies. You can then download the image generated and add nearly anything you like, such as text for directions to your Facebook, Twitter, Google+ or Pinterest page; to your website; to a special limited time coupon offer…you name it and it can be placed within the QR Code. Note, you can produce a number of QR Codes so put one message on a signal code. Let’s not get carried away and pack everything into a single code. That defeats the purpose.

For some advanced retailers, ALL of their products have QR Codes on their product tages. For those who use digital displays, QR Codes on the digital displays make tagging simple and very cost effective.

A well placed QR Code will not cost more than a piece of paper and yield great results. It can drive more people to your branded or company website and increase interest in your brand. It can also add more people to your e-mail marketing list as well as to your mobile marketing list. Make sure you add it to your calling cards. As stated before, it can build a deeper connection with a potential customer through your social media page.

What Toyota first used in the mid-1990s, the QR Code has taken on a whole new way of acceptance because of the rapid rise in smartphones.

Don’t miss your opportunity to reach your prospective and existing customers.

Think MOBILEFirst.

New Reports Deliver More Information On TV Viewing And Multi-Screen Experience With Mobile

Consumers aren’t just watching TV anymore. According to Nielsen’s latest cross-platform report in an article by marketingcharts.com, they’re watching TV AND checking email on their tablets, visiting social networks on their smartphones and shopping. While it’s important to keep in mind that this kind of multi-screen behavior is limited to mobile device owners, it’s becoming clear that TV viewing is taking place alongside other activities. 

According to Nielsen’s report covering Q2 connected device activity, 85% of tablet/smartphone owners use their device while watching TV at least once a month. 41% of tablet owners and 39% of smartphone owners do so daily. From a GfK Report, 41% of tablet owners’ total TV time is devoted to 2-screen viewing. That goes up to 46% among Millennials.

How these consumers approach their multi-screen usage will likely determine whether this is a positive or negative phenomenon for TV programming and advertisers. Data seems to currently point to the potential for it to have a positive effect. Research from the IAB, for example, has found that even while multitasking, viewers give TV most of their attention, and surprisingly, that multi-screen activities boost TV ad recall. (It’s worth pointing out that the GfK study finds that tablet owners who use their devices while watching TV split their attention almost evenly, so the jury might sill be out on whether or not mobile devices prove to be a distraction.

The Nielsen study finds that 36% of 35-54s and 44% of 56-64s use their tablets to “dive deeper into the TV program they are currently watching”. And close to one-third of 25-34s shop on their smartphones while watching TV. This suggests that TV advertisers could see immediate benefits if they’re able to engage with these young viewers. It also indicates that advertisers would do well to consider a multi-channel approach. 

Some of the effects of multi-screen usage will hinge on the extent to which the simultaneous activities being performed relate to TV content (and advertising) being viewed. If the 44% of 18-44s and 50% of the 25-34s that visit social networking sites on their smartphones while watching TV are sharing thoughts and creating buzz about what they are watching, that’s a substantial benefit. Alternatively, if mobile activities such as social networking and emailing are unrelated to TV and increasingly act as a distraction for these consumers, ad recall and program engagement might suffer.

GfK research suggests that tablet multi-taskers, at least, are visiting unrelated sites more often than TV-related content. Looking at a typical week, GfK found that while watching TV and using a tablet, 55% visited unrelated websites. Fewer performed TV-related activities, such as posting comments about a show they were watching (34%), visiting a network or show’s website, fan site, or application (25%), or looking for more information about a show they were watching (21%). However, 28% looked up a product advertised during a show they were watching, and 12% bought a product advertised during such a program. These figures bode well for TV advertisers.

As you can see, mobile is shaping the future. Today it is all about screens.

For retailers and manufacturers, a MOBILEFirst strategy should be at the center of your budgeting considerations. If not, you are destined to do what you did before. Doing that will get you exactly what you got before. That is a trail to fail.

Think MOBILEFirst.

Consumers Agree: Ads Should Tell Unique Stories

Advertising should tell a unique story rather than just try to sell, agree 73% of US consumers. That’s one in a series of findings from Adobe and Edelman Berland on consumer attitudes towards marketing and advertising. Respondents were presented with 17 statements about marketing and advertisements and asked with which they agree. Two-thirds agreed that a video is worth 1,000 words and that user product reviews are the best source of truth. Also, 51% agreed that beautiful advertising is more effective.

It is all about storytelling. We have been passing on stories since the beginning of time. In essence, we are no different than our predecessors. Now, instead of drawing on the walls inside of our caves, we are taking videos and watching video. That is how the stories are brought to us. Today, with over 50% of the consumers having access to a mobile device, using video to reach them with a message of interest that is unique, should be the take away from this article that can generate interest and sales of your brand.

Why is this?

Women have the power. Video sells.

Details from Adobe’s “Click Here: The State of Online Advertising” reveals that 44% of consumers and 29% of marketers feel that advertising works better on women than on men. Some 28% of consumers believe women are very influenced by advertising, while just 11% of consumers believe the same about men.

Nielsen in April 2012 observed a considerable gender gap in online purchases inspired by television ads. Among consumers who use the Internet while watching TV, either on their computer or on a mobile device, women are 12% more likely than the average consumer to purchase a product online that was featured on TV, while men are 14% less likely. Also true, female tablet owners in Q4 2011 were 12% more likely than male owners to look up product information for an ad they saw on TV (28% vs. 25%), and 14% more likely to look up coupons or deals related to an ad they saw on TV (24% vs. 21%).

Video is the constant. It is the driving force in activating the consumer to the brand. With mobile now in the hands of half of the population, it is time to understand the relationship between women and your product(s) and or service(s).                    

For retailers and manufacturers, a MOBILEFirst strategy should be at the center of your budgeting considerations. If not, you are destined to do what you did before. Doing that will get you what you got. That is a trail to fail.

Mobile is shaping the future of marketing innovation.

(Source: cnasophis.com)

LISTEN TO THE CUSTOMER

Listen to the customer and respect what they want. In all of my dealings with clients regarding marketing communications, learning to listen is a constant life lesson requiring super human discipline and patience.

What does this mean to companies and brands? Consumers want to trust a company or a brand in exchange for their loyalty and share of wallet. OK. You may say there is no more consumer loyalty. However you can’t say that ‘share of wallet‘ is unimportant.

In writing in luxurydaily.com, Budd Margolis, a London based shopping expert stated, “Time is usually more valuable than money. Precise offers targeted to profiles will save them hassle and relief. Rewarding customer service is a highly valued feature.

Delivering the feel-great factor is a big deal. Customer delight has to be delivered time after time to truly engage and connect with today’s busy and marketing message drenched consumer.”                                                                                     

It is important to understand that old-school terms such as newspapers, magazine and television is being replaced by a single term…content. Les Moonves, the head of CBS, has talked about how that company is a content provider. By being that, Moonves has projected CBS to the highest point in the communication universe because it’s understood that technology will spread quicker as smartphones and smart TVs gain ground. Margolis states, “All formats of media are blending and this will cause stress to marketers and brands which do not get in front of the curve and start innovating.

Consumers will gain more control over their applications as they demand personalized and secure systems that save time and money and deliver truly exciting offers. Today’s consumers want innovation, delight and entertainment in their retail relationships.”                                                                                                  

Today, the customer is in charge. They select the content they want to see (notice I didn’t say ‘watch’) and in doing so, they are in charge. They see your product or our brand and interact with you almost instantly. That is if you listen to what they want…to what they need. Too often, as we come out of the Great Recession, we are thinking that we can go back to the old ways. Just talking to the customer is no longer acceptable. You have to listen to them. They are in charge.

Digital and Mobile commerce are driving these new methods and systems at tremendous speed. Convergence is here. They are selecting their content.

We need to treat brand followers with respect. We must listen to them.

We live in a new DNAge.

Think MOBILEFirst.