Shopper Relationships: 03.2010

31.3.10

Amazon Is Patenting Their Ability To Service Their Customers

When a conflict exists between a retailer and a shopper who pays the price? The retailer. Always. Because the shopper can and will go elsewhere for their goods and 99+% of the time they won't bother to tell the retailer why they left.

How can this be combatted? Simply by listening to your shoppers while they are in your store. Retailers cannot afford to commit the human resources necessary to invite 2-way communication with every shopper who enters a store but they CAN build an in-store network which enables this relationship.

How many CPUs do you have on your retail floor? Every CPU you place on your retail floor is one more set of ears to receive shopper feedback. (Of course you must have a management system such as that offered by Podo Technology to properly absorb this feedback.)

That said, a "Suggestion Box" (whether paper-based or electronic) typically fails for 2 reasons: 1) because the box sits by an exit where people are no longer interested in providing feedback and 2) because the recipients of these suggestions rarely act on the information provided.

Relationship is NOT just "listening". Relationship means listening followed by ACTION. Are you prepared to act?

24.3.10

The iPad Will Fail. Long Live the iPad.

How many times have you been disappointed by a mobile device? Every time? You buy a new toy and then learn the accelerometer doesn't flip the keyboard in every application. Or you suddenly realize you are a keyboard shortcut junkie but you didn't recognize your problem until you were confronted with a new OS.

Apple somehow still has underdog status and so they're being cut lots of slack for an otherwise lackluster list of device capabilities. But then, the iPhone isn't too impressive either, is it?

Maybe it IS all about the User Experience.

Can Microsoft beat them at their own game?

17.3.10

Microsoft's Mix2010 update

Well, it appears Microsoft's patience and planning may soon pay off. The demonstrations of the forthcoming Windows Mobile 7 OS were pretty impressive and assuming speedy hardware accompanies the new user interface MS may have a legitimate mobile OS offering for the first time since... Well, for the first time.

Before you scoff and claim the fight is already over bear in mind that I'm sitting amongst thousands of die-hard MS programmers and designers. This is a group that has been aching to join the mobile app fray but didn't want to dive right into something completely new and different so they've largely ignored the iPhone app frenzy.

It should be interesting to see if they can resurrect an OS which has largely been written off by the media.

10.3.10

Google - Trying Very Hard Not to be Evil

But they do want to know their customers very well.

The better they know you the better they can serve you.

It is easy to point a suspicious finger at Google but this is shortsighted. They're simply doing a very good job at what every other advertiser would LIKE to be doing. Getting to know you. So they can build relationships with you.

So, if you're not Google how do you engage your customers and learn about them outside of direct traffic on your website? Meet them on the shopping floor.