The last place you want to go, Dixons.co.uk: A service story

I might be showing my age here or a slight snobbery (or both) but I must confess that Dixons had well and truly fallen off my shopping consideration list.

Whether it was the memory of those pretty horrible stores where some spotty teenager would grunt at you whilst surrounded by electrical detritus or the confusion over Dixons stores becoming Currys digital, unless of course you were in an airport, I can’t really pinpoint the point when they fell off my radar but suffice to say it, they had.

Recently they made a resurgence into the public consciousness with their witty, irreverent and rather risky ads:

 

And although I smiled at their boldness – it kind of reinforced the view that it offered a less than satisfactory experience. After all, they make the achingly cool place sound kind of nice…

Anyway, I recently met with some senior members of DSGI who were telling me about the efforts to reinvigorate Dixons and the virtues of their service offerings:

 - Free delivery = Check
 - Price Match Promise = Check
 - Installation and removal of old appliances = Check

Good on them I thought.

Fast forward a few days and my lovely Mum decided she wanted a new TV, and of course she needed it within a week as the Virgin Media people were coming to install new services. So, as my better half offered to trawl the web for a good deal I happened to say “oh check Dixons, they’re supposed to have good delivery options.”

Later that day, with a good deal found, we placed an order on Dixons.co.uk.
Magically they were able to deliver that week. The only downside so far was that whilst they could tell us the date of delivery, they couldn’t tell you the slot or even better, let you choose one.  Mum had an appointment that she couldn’t miss so I figured we’d take the risk and hope we could resolve any issues once Dixons were able to confirm the slot.

The night before the delivery was due, my Mum received a phone call from a lovely lady called Nicky* she informed Mum that they would be delivering the TV between 7-11am. At this point Mum told her that she had to leave at 9.30am for a hospital appointment, and asked if the nice lady could call me to rearrange. Nicky said it would be no problem to sort out but that she would call her back to confirm.

I then received a voicemail from Nicky* telling me that due to Mum’s circumstances they would arrange for delivery between 7am-9am and that she would try me back later to confirm. She also then phoned Mum and informed her of the times.

Now this may sound all fairly straight forward but what impressed me was that Mum wasn’t treated as simply one of a number of deliveries that had to be made, or as if she was a pain in the ass but instead she was treated with kindness, empathy and most importantly as a human.

Fantastic service.

But it didn’t finish there. The next morning at 7.30am I received a phone call from the delivery drivers telling me that they would be delivering within half an hour.
So, I called Mum to let her know but, I’m too late she’s had the same call from the delivery guys herself. Later on I received a text from her to tell me it’s all delivered, no problem. When I saw her later that morning, I quizzed her…"What were the delivery guys like? Rude? Impatient? Drop it off on the doorstep?"  "Nope, not at all" she replied, "they were lovely, polite and helpful," brought it straight in and popped it down right where she asked them too.

I must say I’ve been impressed, Dixons service way surpassed my expectations (hence writing this post) and for me they have placed themselves well and truly back on my consideration mix. Well done Dixons!

Things to crack:
1. Allow users to see delivery options when ordering
2. Allow users to select delivery slots – preferably in one hour slots but if 4 is all that’s possible then go for it
3. Align service proposition with brand – it did confuse Mum why Curry’s called her regarding her delivery when she thought we’d ordered it from Dixons.
(I know, I know but it confused her and I’m sure there are others)

*Nicky - I'm sure that was her name but I may be mistaken. 

Customer Engagement & The New Consumer Demands

As a planner I'm always looking for ways to create customer engagement for clients. Typically we do that by finding ways to meet customer demands in ways that create an emotional connection, or value, or of course, both. As 2009 comes to a close there were two reports relating to these topics that were published. I am proud, honoured and slightly surprised to have been a contributor to them but thought I should mention them here:

The first is the 4^th Annual Customer Engagement Survey Report from cScape and E-consultancy. “It is the most comprehensive and influential report  available on customer engagement, based on a survey of more than 1,000 companies and agencies. Companies can benchmark their customer engagement strategies and tactics, and see how others are adapting to changing customer behaviour and increased use of social media and the mobile channel.” As the most comprehensive survey of its kind it includes commentary from experts such as Jim Sterne, Dr Dave Chaffey and none other than my talented colleague Richard Wand.

Some highlights are:

• 55% of company respondents regard customer engagement as essential for their organisation
• The presence of companies on social networks has almost doubled from 23% in 2008 to 44% in 2009
• 31% of respondents say their interest in customer engagement relates to emotional investment in their brand

My piece within the report looks at the need for organisations to be more ‘ballsy’ when considering their ventures into new or social media spaces but the full report is definitely worth a read. To download visit:

www.cscape.com

www.econsultancy.com/reports

My contribution to the second report came as a little more of a surprise. I was pointed to the new report from Paypal titled  “Online Retail: the new consumer demands” naturally I was intrigued and downloaded a copy. Being slightly old school I printed it off to read on the tube home. Very quickly I realised that those clever folks at The Future Laboratory had undertaken the report. However, on reading I came across several comments by myself and after the initial surprise I remembered doing some interviews whilst I was in Dublin at a Google conference.  Anyway, it makes for interesting reading, other than the obvious “growth in online shopping” the report also reveals that:

• Four in ten (41%) city dwellers surveyed have increased their reliance on online shopping over the last year, despite having easy access to local shop
  
• Quicker, more reliable home delivery services (16%) and greater choice (12%) has helped persuade an estimated 15.6 million people living in urban city areas to move more of their shopping online over the last 12 months
  
• Glaswegians and Mancunians have moved more of their shopping online than anyone else

For a full copy of the report click here

Work Hard & Be Nice To People - Anthony Burrill

I ventured to the Selfridges sale recently and while in the changing rooms was struck by this print on the wall. Not only do I like it aesthetically but it tickled me to hear the chap in the changing room talking to his colleague about how hard they had been working and how he couldn't wait for his break, and then transforming into the epitome of helpfulness when a customer was about - perhaps the message had struck a cord.
 I noticed on the print that this was the work of Anthony Burrill and I was pleased to come across more of Anthony's work at www.anthonyburrill.com and in particular his work for The Economist, and pleased to hear that he'll be part of the If You Could Collaborate exhibition in January 2010.

Nippaz with great attitude - A service lesson.

When pasty pink or fluffy wuffy bunnies just don’t cut it my favourite place to shop for the increasing number of children appearing in my life is www.nippazwithattitude.com  Witty, irreverent and not a bunny in sight...my particular faves are:

So recently I found myself in need of their goods and services. I placed the order, later I realised that I couldn’t remember if I had included a message or not.  On most occasions, I would have shrugged my shoulders and thought ‘oh well you muppet, must try harder next time’ but just as this was going through my head I received a personalized email order update email:

and so I was prompted to email them to see if they could check for me, to my delight I got the following reply:

FANTASTIC! They help me out and offer me a better discount – got to love that for service.

So to the big boys, take note: Personalised, considerate, helpful and timely service really does secure brand loyalty and creates advocacy.

Magic Moments...

In my conversations with clients I talk a lot about getting the basics, brilliant and then making those magic moments. Unsurprisingly in many instances clients are focused on the magic moments because it’s all shiny and new and the basics, well surely they look after themselves right?” – Wrong.

A recent example of something that should have been a brilliant basic but made it onto my list of magic moments is the recent email I got from Wired. Now whatever your opinion is of the mag I don’t care. I like it a lot and enjoy getting my copy through the post and spending then next few hours with it. So when they sent me this email

So whilst I’m sitting there cursing the postal service because my copy of NMA or Retail Week may be late, or that thank you card I sent won’t arrive on time, the people at Wired were thinking ‘Oh no, our wonderful subscriber base will not get our shiny lovely new edition on time, and their paper experience of all that is digital may be impacted” so they did something about it. Without a carrier pigeon in sight, or personal delivery, no handing out of free copies at London Bridge tube, just a simple email. That’s all it took. One single email saying, yeah we know but our hands are tied.

Simple.

And in return for that simple email they gained more brand loyalty from me.

Oddly enough I got home that night and there in it’s white Conde Nast pack was the latest copy….magic indeed.

Collaborative innovation for a $1mln prize

We're always looking at how we can drive true innovation for our own organisation but also for our client. I was interested to read in the New York Times recently about the latest venture from Netflix and AT&T. What seems to have started out as a creative way of solving a business challenge has led to some interesting insights into how to optimise collaboration and innovation, and of course for the lucky team a chance to win $1ml.

The full article can be found here:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/19/technology/internet/19unboxed.html?_r=3&ref=business

QR Codes get a stylish makeover

The humble QR code has not taken over here in the UK quite as much as we would have hoped. In Japan, the QR code is so ubiquitous that it is no longer just an advertising tool but they are now being used in places such as on graves. Simply scan the little box of info and get directed to the memorial site of the deceased.

To celebrate the launch of the Marc Jacobs mobile site in Japan, the designer gave them a stylish makeover:

Conversion, conversion, conversion!

I work for EMC Conchango and this week it was announced that we are one of the first partners to be accredited by Google in their new Conversion Professionals program. Not only are we delighted to have been selected after a rigorous process of interviews, exams and more interviews but more importantly we’re delighted that Google has got behind the whole analytics and optimisation piece. As this is a topic close to my heart, and I was involved in the process I'm especially pleased.

Analytics and MVT (multivariate testing testing) are things we have been talking to clients about a lot over the last few years. And while we already provide services in this area it still amazes me that so many organisations overlook these tools – particularly in light of the economic situation we are in.

After all, if it was my website and someone told me that I could increase conversion by 2% – 12% then I’d be very, very interested! The way we talk about it is that not having analytics or MVT in place is akin to not having store managers, footfall counters or clear stock positions in your stores!

To see what Retail Week have to say about it then click here or for the full NMA article here for the full Google Conversion Professional microsite click here or to talk about the services we offer in this area then email us on Experience.Planning@emc.com

WOW marketing: The difference cultural values can make.

Fancy hitting $1 billion in gross merchandise sales despite what’s going on in the economy? Or how about debuting at #23 on the FORTUNE Magazine’s ‘100 Best Companies To Work For’ list? If either of these sound interesting to you, then ask yourself what are your company’s core cultural values?

Is your first thought about where you might find them? In the employee handbook perhaps? Afraid not.

Zappos have achieved great success in their 10 year existence, not only financially but also by creating a company that is much loved by their customers – all 10 million of them that is! So loved are they, that on any given day circa 75% of their orders are from repeat customers. Impressive to say the least but at the heart of this success are their core cultural values – that they clearly apply:

- deliver WOW through service
- embrace and drive change
- create fun and a little weirdness
- be adventurous, creative, and open-minded
- pursue growth and learning
- build open and honest relationships with communication
- build a positive team and family spirit
- do more with less
- be passionate and determined
- be humble

At this time of economic turmoil are you and your organisations focusing in on what will drive both short term and long term relationships with your customers?

If you’re still looking for that list of cultural values then one would presume not….

Source: Latest edition of Contagious

A new take on bricks & clicks

Over the past few years there has been a lot of talk about the death of the high street as a result of the web. It's always been my view that the web will not gobble up the high street or retail park but that the two mediums provide an array of opportunities both for retailers and for us, the customer.

The great thing is that the rise of internet shopping and general advances in technology have shifted the power base and this creates an interesting challenge for retailers to present us with more interesting, exciting, engaging and rewarding environments in which to experience their brands. I have always been particularly interested with how retailers respond to this opportunity within their physical environments.

It's good to see that many retailers now see having a web presence as a hygiene factor, though I am still surprised as to how bland and un-engaging some of these sites are, at least they are aware that the internets not going away. We have seen the more forward thinking brands turn their physical retail experiences into more than simply a shop and probably the best example of this is the Apple store. It's not a shop, it's a showroom, a destination, a place for engaging, playing, and experiencing what it means to be Apple. Apparently Microsoft are thinking of doing the same thing - I wait with baited breath to see how that turns out….

But what has peaked my interest is the news that The Hut - currently an internet only venture is in discussion with shopping centers about the possibility of going all bricks & mortar - but with no staff. The Chief Exec Mathew Moulding has said that shops "would be the size of a juice bar, no doors, and there would just be touch screens and a Chip and PIN reader". He added "It would help brand development. The high street brings a lot of traffic online instantly.”

Well Mr Moulding I salute you - it's great to see web natives looking to the physical as a means of engaging with their customers and I'm also excited to see how the shopping centres, developers and landlords will respond to these sort of discussions. Given all the work we have been doing with MS Surface and Windows 7 we have talked at length with retailers about how these technologies can be used in retail environments to facilitate collaboration and provide richer, more innovative ways of looking at product information, but very few have been thinking about taking a staff-less approach. That's not to say that a staff-less approach is the right thing for all - of course not but it will certainly be interesting to see how this pans out…

Electrical Retailer short circuits...

Yesterday’s London Paper, shortly followed by the Retail Week site, are reporting tabloid uproar at Comet’s decision to implementing a listing fee of up to £15,431 for manufacturers to be stocked across their 250 retail outlets. While retailers have been playing this game for many years, the current outrage highlights a deeper industry issue around the cost and value of channels. How can retailers like Comet – already very successful online – continue to justify the immense expense of operating physical outlets?

So, Comet, has decided that as a means of generating extra revenue at this particularly challenging time, it’s to charge manufacturers up to £15,431 if they want to put a new product on display in it's 250 stores. Yep, that's right, with all the wealth of distribution options that the internet presents to these manufacturers, Comet thinks it can charge £61.72 per store for carrying the new product.

Now, I may be wrong here but I can't imagine that the manufacturers are going to be delighted at this prospect, in fact if some of the comments on Retail Weeks’ site are to go by then it’s fair to say they are outraged.

It’ll be interesting if the manufacturers simply comply with this or if they start to leverage the wealth of distribution options available through the web and challenge the traditional models of Manufacturer & Retailer.

I can’t help but think that if this scenario plays out, and the manufacturers refuse to pay these new fees then surely Comet is accelerating it’s own downfall?

Think about it from a customer perspective, Jane has convinced the Bob that they just have to have the latest new shiny washing machine, so Bob has a look at Comet.co.uk - no new shiny machine there, but a little click away is Tesco Direct / Argos / Kelkoo / etc etc and there it is in all it’s shiny glory ready to be bought from Comets' competitors!

Alternatively, Bob goes in-store and the delightful, helpful customer assistant say's 'Oh I'm sorry Bob, but brand X didn't want to pay £15,400 for us to put their new washing machine in our 250 beautiful retail environments, so that you can buy it here, helped by me, your happy, friendly knowledgeable assistant." Bob doesn’t think to himself "Those pesky tight fisted manufactures', how dare they not pay for me to buy my washing machine in this wonderful shopping environment" he's more likely to be a bit perplexed and irritated that Comet don't have the product he wants at the price he wants to pay for it and trot off to the nearest store that does.

I wish the very best of luck to both Comet and the Manufacturers. It is indeed a challenging time and I’ll watch with interest to see if the Manufacturers take the opportunity to reinvent themselves and challenge old models. And if retailers such as Comet will move away from draconian quick fixes that are so short term. What would be great is to see them put the customer back in the heart of they are doing and enable them to buy the right product, at the right price, through the channel they would prefer – just a thought.