Truth in Advertising???

Has to be the most truthful adverting I have seen for a while…..

Now you start to understand my sense of humor …..

United Parcel First Class Service?

I have family in Australia, based all around Adelaide, and we still do small, oddball Xmas gifts. Modest, fairly trivial things such as Christmas Crackers (American readers, check the web to see what you are missing!) and in return I sent a Yosemite images DVD and, wait for it, Bear Poop (it’s a candy, actually) and an Alessi bottle opener (aren’t you glad you are NOT on my gift list?). The whole entourage was carefully packed and weighed in at under 2 pounds.

I head off to my local UPS store. The cost to ship, a little under $120!!!! I double checked, yup the price was ‘correct’. I declined. The parcel went US Mail for about $28.

It got me thinking though. I wondered how much a first class ticket is, surely it’s not as much (per pound) as that? So I checked, and on American Airlines it cost $12,395 and odd cents. So assuming a 200lb person, that’s $62 per pound roughly. My (slightly under) 2lb package was $120. So with a bit of rounding here and there, I conclude that UPS were intending to ship my package in first class.

Now I’ll bet you want to be on my Xmas list when I ship my packages.

Living Your Values

I’ve been a fan of Seth Godin’s blog for a long time. He speaks wisely and well.

But the point of this post is about living your values. Walking the Walk, and well as Talking the Talk.

I was fortunate to be involved in a (still closed) social network in support of Seth’s latest book “Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us” and there was, as you might expect, a local Bay Area group. We met at Apple’s HQ in Cupertino and chatted, ate pizza, chatted more. During the meeting the organizer said ‘I have a call from someone who can’t make it’.

Seth not only knew that this group was meeting (out of 5,000 participants in the network) but took the trouble to make sure he had the host’s number and called to congratulate and encourage us.

THAT is what living the values you espouse is all about.

Now, what does that mean for you? What will you DO differently?

Your mother is watching you…….

I’m a great fan of Seth Godin’s blog. I like his analysis and feel very comfortable with most – but not all – of his marketing approaches.

He recently posted a very good way for ALL of us to think about our actions whether marketing or not. You can read the article here:

Act like your mum is watching you

Now if only we could get drivers to adhere to this principle too!

Truth in all its Glory!

As regular readers will know, I’m an advocate of truth and authenticity in our relationship with customers. However, I do think that the poor product marketers responsible for Quaker Instant Oatmeal have had to carry this a little too far – something you never thought you would hear me say!

Take a look at this:

“Artificial Fruit & Cream Flavors” plus “AND OTHER NATURAL FLAVORS”.

It struck me how different the two – at first glance – similar product packages were and I wondered if this was legal advice at work, or whether someone in the product department was being overzealous. As I said, I’m in favor of truth and authenticity in marketing and in product information, but I would hope for a little more creativity in presenting accurate information. As I pondered a little more, I started to think that maybe the two packages were so in order to try out different packaging.

But that’s a risky way to do it, live in the field. I always advocate quick and cheap ways to test ideas – like asking directly.

So what’s the lesson? Be truthful, but be creative. If you want to test ideas, ask customers directly.

It’s the Experience……

… that counts.

I was in Las Vegas for a client this week and they had booked the team into the Luxor (the Mandalay Bay where the trade show was, was full). As it happens I was driving – via the Mojave desert and a few days of photography on the way down, and Yosemite for more pictures on the way back (you can see the results at www.brearleyphoto.com) and so chose my arrival to coincide with a morning drive through the Mojave National Preserve. Big Mistake!

I got to the hotel at 12:05 and the line was huge – much worse than airline checkin. It took over 40 minutes to get checked in, and as I get to the head of the line, the usher pointed me to a clerk. I stood there for over three minutes whilst Amy completely ignored me and typed on the terminal. I get that she was completing something for the previous guest, but no greeting, no smile, no ‘I’m sorry, this is going to take me a moment’, I stood there, ignored whilst the people after me who were ushered to other clerks departed for their rooms. Eventually Amy turned to me. ‘I was busy’ was all I got.

It really is all about the people and their attitude to customers. It took four days and some exceptional experiences – such as the maintenance guy who fixed the internet and TV to appease some of the memory of checkin. Las Vegas is supposed to be ALL about the experience.

So I eventually get to my room, quite nice, roomy – but clearly not set up for a business traveller. The workable table has no power outlet within reach and when I power up my MacBook there is not a wireless to be seen. Hmmm. No Cat 5 cable or connector to be found. Hmmm. As part of the checkin conversation, I had mention that I needed an internet connection, surely that hadn’t been ignored too? I checked the directory in the room. No mention of internet. I call guest services. “There is a cable in the armoir, just pull it out and connect.”

There isn’t anything obvious, but I swivel the TV and root around and eventually, amongst the rats nest of wires, find a cat 5. I pull and get a six foot length of cable, and I find a connector box back there too, not connected to anything.

I connect everything and move my notebook to the small table by the bathroom where the cable will – just – reach if it is stretched across the room about a foot off the floor, and there is a power outlet close enough.

But eventually I get it all connected:

What a mess! I can’t get in and out of the room (or bathroom) without stepping over the cable. And the connection stops after 20 mins. The roaming maintenance guy I talk to offers to help and we quickly discover why the connector box was not connected – it’s faulty. We connect without the box – viola! He gets it replaced. He has restored some of my faith in the Luxor.

Can you give your customers away?

It’s funny how things come in waves. I talked a little while ago about Nordstrom’s attitude to customers when it sold off Faconnable. What impressed me was they wrote and asked me if they could transfer my information with the sale. I remain blown away by that.

So far this year I have had two similar, but not as well executed, examples. In the first, our long time CPA / tax preparer retired (rather suddenly and unexpectedly) due to ill health. The surprise letter also told us that ‘your records and information have been transferred to….’ and named an individual I had never heard of. I “could, of course, choose another preparer if you so wish.” I was also told that we would get a call from the nominated person to introduce themselves. That didn’t happen. What did happen was that the standard tax prep pack arrived.

I was furious. Was I a commodity to be handed around as someone wished? This of all relationships was the most personal and close to home – my entire financial data and life – was simply passed on to someone I didn’t know – and I was told after the event.

The second was that Broadway Ford, of whom I have written many times (most recently here), are going out of business after 70 years. One of the reasons I stuck with them – through not always smooth car issues – was that it was a small, family owned dealer. I got a (very) strangely written form letter – it didn’t say so, but I got the impression that they were being obliged to close down by Ford – which said that there were two alternative Ford dealers close by. One is more convenient than the other, but neither are well situated for me. Maybe it’s time for an independent who is convenient.

So I was very surprised to start getting mail from the inconvenient dealer within days. It hasn’t let up, so far about six of them. No call, no personal connection, no attempt to build a relationship. I’m just a commodity to be handed around. Why don’t US automakers get that service is the differentiator. My previous car, a Jaguar then also owned by Ford, had service that was just as bad.

And it’s sad, I spent the last week driving a Ford Explorer to and from Las Vegas. What a great car! I can see why people love them – and at 20c per mile on a rental (plus gas of course!) it was a great deal. I got over 19 mpg on the 1600 mile trip including highways and driving slowly and exploring around national parks on the way there and the way back. So the cars are impressive, the service not!

So, the lessons? Back to basics it seems to me.

Number ONE – the Golden Rules

Number TWO – execution is all. This is where I judge how well the policies are delivered to me, as the customer or user.

Execution is hard! Get the policy right, then execute, execute, execute.

P.S. Today, two weeks after Broadway closed it’s doors, I got a letter from them, advising me that my Ford is due for its 50,000 mile service and to bring it to them for service.

Ermmmm. Whoops! Ford, don’t you know you closed down that dealership?????

Smart Marketing Bose

I travel on American Airlines – one of the better experiences (if that’s possible on modern airlines), really due to their customer service phone lines. I recently headed to Europe for the first time in quite a while, and took notice of how many passengers had Bose Quiet Comfort headphones – as I do. They are a nice device and work well on aeroplanes (I got them after leaving TWO pairs of in ear noise-reduction headsets on aircraft inadvertently – never to be seen again).

But what made me like them – even at the premium price they command? AA hand them out to business class passengers to try. It’s obvious that once they are tried, people buy. Something over 25% of the business class passengers on the sector from San Francisco to Chicago (where they are not handed out by AA) were wearing Bose headsets. That’s an incredibly high percentage. There were also a reasonable number, five or so, in the economy section going to London.

I’ve written before about my Bose experience – others commented that they were not anywhere near as happy. But my experiences have been positive – both with the products, and with their service. And it is clear that if you can get customers to try – especially when corralled for a long time in a perfect trial environment – they will buy.

So how can we get our potential customers to trial our offer? That is the challenge for us in marketing, but thinking ‘outside the box’ as Bose did clearly works and works well.

I’d love to hear what you have done that worked.

Renault in Los Angeles

I was in the UK this week – I’m always fascinated to watch the TV ads and see the differences in approach between the UK and the US.

One ad that really grated was a Renault car ad – it will become clear why!

The premise of that ad is a tour bus taking visitors around to view star’s homes in the Hollywood hills (presumably), big houses, pools, expensive cars, etc., etc.

The typical image that is portrayed of a luxurious and expensive lifestyle. The bus departs. The scene cuts to a guy on a radio saying ‘It’s OK, they’ve gone for the day’. What we see next at first made me smile. In each house, the big, expensive and exotic cars are moved into the garage, and the Renault moved from hiding, into the driveway.

Which is fine and dandy, quite amusing really. Except that Renault does NOT sell cars in the United States. I’ve never seen one anywhere. Not even an odd import (which I do see once in a while, Puegots, Citroens, etc.). Never a single Renault.

So, a bit of harmless fun you say?

Well after chewing it for a while, and playing devil’s advocate with myself, it still grates. Surely there is a truthful way to achieve the same end result? It troubles me that a company will play fast and loose with such a basic lie. As the body that supervises advertising in the UK, the Advertising Standards Authority, says:

“The main principles of the advertising standards codes are that ads should not mislead, cause harm, or offend.”

It clearly doesn’t offend or cause harm (well not to me at least), but what about that mislead bit?

Tell me if you think I’m being too pedantic……..

How do YOU treat YOUR trapped customers?

Since I set up in business on my own, I’ve had an office at my photographic studio. When I moved in, there was no phone or internet service, so I scouted around. In short, I went with Comcast, they had a deal on, $21 for six months and $45 thereafter (more on THAT later), which was much better than paying for a phone line plus DSL.

We had some installation issues (the installer turned up with no ladder – it wasn’t clear how they thought they would reach the existing wires on the poles to make the connection – but I laughed) and eventually the service was installed. A couple of glitches – isn’t it interesting how we have such low expectations that a couple of glitches are expected – and I’m working.

Lately though – at the one year anniversary interestingly, I’ve been getting drop outs and no internet. One day I had had no connection for over an hour. I called Comcast. No system problems they said. I still couldn’t connect, whilst talking to the support rep. ‘I can ’see’ your device’ she said. ‘Nope, I can’t get anything’. They insisted there was no problem, but I couldn’t get out. They suggested that I swap the cable from the wall to the modem ‘end for end’. I asked how that could possibly help – no answer.

I was getting frustrated, and asked what the options were. ‘We can send out a technician.’ Progress! Friday morning or afternoon (this is Tuesday). We established that really was the earliest – three days is very poor in my view. And I was due to be in Yosemite making pictures, so Monday it would have to be. We book for a 9-11AM slot.

I’m in a very happy frame of mind on Monday (Yosemite in winter is absolutely stunning), arrive at 8 to make sure that I have everything covered. I connect – the internet is working! I work away whilst waiting for the tech. I’ve cancelled my lunch appointment just in case.

By 12:30 no one has arrived. I call Comcast. I wend my way through the voicemail (the one that insists on requiring the phone number we do not posses as an identifier) and get to a technician. I enquire where the technician is. ‘What are the last 4 of your social?’ ‘Why do you need that?’ I ask. ‘I can’t release any account information without it’. ‘I don’t want any account information, I just want to know where the tech is that should have been here between 9-11.’

We go on with nonsensical security questions (not that security is nonsensical, but that it’s needed for such a query). We get through that (by this time I have been on the phone for over 10 minutes), to be told that the call was cancelled. I asked ‘By whom’. You, I’m told.

I bit my tongue and didn’t point out that I’d hardly be calling if I had cancelled the visit. I can hear Barbara ‘breeeeeath.’ I ask what the options are, ‘Is your internet connection working?’ I advise that it is. ‘Then there is no problem.’ I point out that I’m having consistent intermittent problems, which is why the etch was coming in the first place. I can send a tech, but you will be charged if he can’t find a problem.

By now ‘m fuming, no apology, no sign of sympathy. Just ‘it’s working now and if someone comes out we want money.’ More money – it turns out the $45 price tag is only available if you also take cable TV service. There is no way to get the advertised $45 service alone. But i gritted my teeth and stuck with it.

And here’s the point, I’m sure Comcast have me in that ’satisfied customer’ column on the tick sheet – after all I’m still a customer am I not? I am, but not because I’m delighted. Because the switching costs and alternatives are too hard, or expensive, or both. Or maybe I just know, deep down, that going to AT&T would not be any different. How sad.

Market pressure, you say. True. Sorta. I have Comcast at home and am resisting the HD upgrade (a jump I HAVE to make next year, the analogue services go away), but Copmcast want an additional $25 just to be able to receive HD (about a 22% increase on the monthly bill). So, I’m actively looking at going with satellite when we do move. So Comcast, you might have a tick in your customer column, but I won’t upgrade my TV service, I won’t take internet services from you at home, and, and……

To my learning point for you, dear reader. How many of your customers are with you because they are delighted? And how many of them are trapped because the alternatives are few and poor?
You may say you don’t care, you still have them. And I would argue two things: One, you WANT delighted customers talking about you, your products and services, that’s what builds sustainable business. Two, what happens when a viable, or just a little more attractive alternative comes along? They (customers) bolt, that’s what happens and you will NEVER get them back.

Which category are you in? Which do you want to be in?