Via Mashable comes the latest Nielsen/ NetRatings report on web traffic in August for social networking, video and blog sites. Of particular interest is that while FaceBook leads in growth amongst social networking sites at 117% growth to 19mm uniques from August 2006, MySpace continues to dominate traffic and usage with 60mm unique visitors in August and 23% growth. For marketers, as much as we have come to view MySpace as “so last year” it is important to note that the public in general continue to find it useful.

[photo credit: maddog on Flickr]

Tags: Nielsen; FaceBook; MySpace

We all know the feeling - a new product or service, an exciting pitch, the need to breathe new life into an existing product, etc. - the path towards marketing innovation can be laden with distractions, the status quo, knowledge gaps, tight deadlines, and lack of budget to name a few hurdles. What I‚Äôve personally found has developed organically for me over these years is 10 concrete steps that I take before embarking on developing a creative strategy and plan. I‚Äôve tailored these steps to fit within the current climate I’m operating under, but each one is always included in the process (behind the scenes or centre stage). One of the benefits that I have found is that after taking the time to research and allow outside-the-box thinking I have a clear picture of the way forward, with many of the details, challenges and opportunities already fleshed out. No matter the project size or scope, having a clear understanding of all the various pieces has been crucial to success.

When I started out in business, I spent a great deal of time researching every detail that might be pertinent to the deal I was interested in making. I still do the same today. People often comment on how quickly I operate, but the reason I can move quickly is that I’ve done the background work first, which no one usually sees. I prepare myself thoroughly, and then when it is time to move ahead, I am ready to sprint. ~ Donald Trump

1. Get to know the company and product beyond the SWOT:
Who are they? What do they stand for? What do their employees think? What are their long-term goals? Are they set up for rapid change or are they slow and steady? Are they progressive or traditional?

2. Get to know what their customers (and former customers) think:
What do their customers say about them? What is their USP (perceived or earned)? Who do their customers believe them to be?

3. Get to know the competition and their customers:
Who else is in the market? What types of products are they focusing their efforts on? What is their USP (perceived or earned)? What do their customers (current and former) think about the brand and the products? What type of marketing channels do they use?

4. Revisit previous campaigns:
What types of mediums did they use? What was the messaging? What visuals did they employ? Did they receive any press coverage? Do they have metrics on results? Was there any follow up?

5. Seek out the developed and developing trends in the space:
Which way is the wind blowing with consumers, the competition, the media, technology, etc.? What is hot right now and what is next?

6. Free associate:
Use the company, the product, the image, the brand, the vision, to free associate connections; large and small. Be creative. There is no box. Let your mind roam.

7. Think of the future:
Are you building a brand? Launching a product that will become iconic? Promoting an existing product? Announcing a sale? Put it in context.

8. Examine what’s related:
What is related to your product in your customer’s life? What other products or services are related? What are the connections between them?

9. Notice the cultural landscape:
Are there cultural trends beyond those in your market that may impact your strategy?

10. Visualize the touchpoints:
How does your customer or prospect interact with media channels? What are they looking for in each interaction?

Not all steps can be as fully researched as Trump may undertake before inking a deal, but they can be customized and scaled based on needs and realities. I also try and keep in mind that if a project is so large or complex that it requires all of these steps be done in depth but the time or budget isn’t there, it may be a set up for a Dip down the road!

[photo credit: Ozyman on Flickr]

It’s the little things you do that can make a big difference. What are you attempting to accomplish? What little thing can you do today that will make you more effective? You are probably only one step away from greatness. ~ Bob Proctor

This week’s version focuses on customer service at two local eateries. One, a national chain, the other a mom & pop shop.As the old adage goes: the devil‚Äôs in the details‚Ķ how much are you paying attention to the details that matter to your customers?

The ‘little things’ that made a difference featuring Timothy’s and House of Cheung:

There is a Timothy’s location in my neighbourhood which is closer than the local Starbucks (my coffee brand of choice) so occasionally, if I’m in a rush or the weather isn’t cooperating, I’ll head over there. I’m by no means one of their loyal customers, but I still am one. Unfortunately the service just seems to get worse and worse each time I stop in. Buying a cup of coffee and a pound of beans should not take 15 mins and require repeating ones self 5 times to each of the two people behind the counter. And yes, I was the only person in line. (That example was only the most egregious one out of many).

The employees at this Timothy’s just don’t care about their jobs and it shows. I’ve never seen a manager or supervisor working the floor; the coffee beans displayed have been expired for a year; the employees don’t appear to know how to work the cash register; and on and on.

That is a training issue and a motivation issue, the product itself is fine. It can be fixed if management is motivated themselves to do so. Until that time my visits to Timothy’s will cease - the walk a few blocks further will do me good. Paying attention to things like how long it takes to complete an order and donating expired product vs. offering it for sale really do make a difference.

This experience is contrasted with House of Cheung a restaurant in Toronto. We found this restaurant when Kevin was looking for solid reviews online for Chinese food delivery (we moved from Chinatown area and the restaurants we used to frequent don’t deliver) and after fruitless searching with all the “review” sites came across a post on a message board [how old skool!] that sealed the deal. We ordered and the food was fantastic. A month went by and we placed an order again. Lo and behold the same gent who delivered the food the last time was the one who answered the phone and remembered Kevin and where we lived exactly. The least painful food order in history.

That kind of attention to detail comes from a deep regard for your customers and the product you are providing. Not all employees will have the same commitment as a restaurant owner, but if they feel empowered, respected and part of a team it will resonate back to the customers they are interacting with.

Needless to say House of Cheung is our Chinese food restaurant of choice from here on out.

{ps - check out the comments from the inaugural post, both Colin and Jonathan have two great posts that fit right into the “little things” meme}

[photo credit: +lyn on Flickr]

I’ve said for a while now that ’social media’ (or all types of platforms) may not be right for your company without serious planning and effort. That doesn’t mean it may not be right for your customers, it is what they want it to be, but for some brands it doesn’t make sense to jump in and experiment. Wal-Mart for example.

People claim that Wal-Mart has a horrible record for labour practices and predatory pricing. Is it any wonder then that their journey into social media via Facebook was met with exactly the kind of conversation the company can’t afford? The kind of conversation that is now morphing into adding pictures like the one featured above to Wal-Mart’s group and veering into turning their marketing initiative into an activist group against them.

Of course Wal-Mart went into PR mode and released this statement:

“We recognize that we are facilitating a live conversation, and we know that in any conversation, especially one happening online, there will be both supporters and detractors,” she wrote. “We’re happy that so many of our customers are talking on Facebook about why they like Wal-Mart. Most of all, we’re glad that soon-to-be roommates are using our site to come together and make choices about their dorm rooms.”

Unfortunately the only thing missing from this statement is an acknowledgment that they should be participating in a live conversation, not just facilitating. They aren’t Facebook, they are using Facebook. And of course, most of the over 150 comments at this point are not talking about how much they like Wal-Mart.

‘Analysts’ may praise the endeavour and claim it will most likely increase sales. Perhaps. More likely is that customers, or potential customers, will find out more about Wal-Mart than they would like them to… and tell their friends. They’ll increase the activism against them in the long-term even if sales spike softly in the short-term. That’s the power of word of mouth, for good and for ill.

Personally, if I was parodied on The Simpsons for exactly these issues I’d probably stick to traditional broadcast media if I didn’t plan on changing my business model without a fight or actually listening and engaging with the public.

Does the three strikes rule apply in Web 2.0?

H/T - Kevin for the point to the Slashdot story

[photo credit: Dave Haack on Facebook - Wal-Mart Roommate Style Match group]

Tags: Wal-Mart; Facebook; The Simpsons

As I’ve been not enjoying the hot, humid summer as much as I should as I’ve been slammed with work, pitches and personal life, I’ve been noticing the little things that make an experience a good one vs. one that makes you cringe. Since I’ve had such a hard time getting back into the swing of posting (it isn’t for lack of things to talk about… just too much writing for business and the words just don’t flow as easily as they did a couple of months ago), I thought a good way to get things re-started is a regular feature on the little things that make a difference in the way you experience a brand, company, or product - whatever that may be, good or bad.

As the old adage goes: the devil’s in the details… how much are you paying attention to the details that matter to your customers?

To start things off for this inaugural post I have two interactions to share, one offline and one online. The ‘little things’ that made a difference featuring Chapters Indigo and Lush:

Offline -

• Walking into a Lush location is like a mini holiday. The sights and scents are overwhelming, but in a way that produces glee. A Lush store is like a candy shop for grown ups. Although wildly successful around the world, your experience is distinctly unique. What sets Lush apart in my mind is how their employees are encouraged to use the products, even at work. The woman who rang me up on Friday did so while wearing a fresh face mask. A bit weird, sure, but it’s a damn good endorsement of the product that is literally in my face. Each time I go into the store I find out something new: a new idea for mixing two bath products together, how two products combine to form the ultimate pedicure mixture, to why they had to change the format of my favourite product because of the way the fresh ingredients adhered to each other. They also give away stuff… a lot. I don’t know the last time I walked out of a store without a sample of a product or an actual product because of their on-going promotions. Sampling has always worked in retail and Lush has it down to a science. I can’t possibly use all of the samples I get because I just bought all the products I need. So I pass them on and my circle of influence gets to experience Lush products… and become customers. I also can’t tell you how many times I bought a product just because one of the sales reps handed it to me and told me to smell it based on the other products they saw me looking at. They have the details down.

Online -

• First there was Amazon… I used to shop at Amazon.com when I lived in the States. Moving back to Canada was an unwelcome jolt of reality in terms of e-commerce and our bricks and mortars. Back in the day there were none and paying duty for shipments from the U.S. was not fun. Slowly but surely that tide is shifting and now I can even shop Canadian Tire online (next week’s “little things” post :) )! Now Chapters Indigo does everything for me Amazon used to, with the exception of recommendations, although Amazon’s system is far from perfect. I buy a lot of books. Business books, history, politics, and mystery. I’m an iRewards member and the fee pays for itself each year, no worries. I’ve never had a shipping or ordering issue with them before so the details weren’t on my radar. Until this last order where they got one thing very right and one thing very wrong. I ordered about 15 books a couple of weeks ago and they all shipped out fine and dandy. Except for one. It didn’t ship at all; just sat there all by itself in my order history saying “awaiting shipment” for a couple of weeks even though their system indicated all books would arrive by a date that was now long past. It was in stock when I bought it so what was the issue, and why did I receive not one update from Chapters as to the status? Finally I decided to contact them about it. This is where the customer service details kicked into high gear and what I received back was excellent. They explained the problem and after a brief correspondence with an actual person they placed a replacement order for me and shipped it out without additional charge. They didn’t make me cancel and then order a different copy of the book, they just handled it. Quickly (well, once I contacted them), painlessly, and with a virtual smile.

To me, details mean everything. If you know me in real life you’ll know that I never get lost in the weeds, but I know how many there are in the garden. I can be a real pain about it sometimes because I feel they are so fundamentally important and form the foundation of any business or interaction. To get them nailed you have to put yourself directly in the others shoes and care about the experience. It’s just that significant of a cornerstone in my books.

In our age of instant feedback loops, short attention spans, and CHOICES, sometimes the little details can make an experience extraordinary; or as Godin says - what’s your purple cow? Sometimes it can be as simple as making a routine interaction painless for the end user.

Do you have any exceptional experiences with details to share? I’d love to end up compiling the posts into a list of companies that ‘get it’ after a few months, so please share if you’ve got tales to tell!

[Photo credit: Pisco Bandito on Flickr]

Tags: Lush; Chapters Indigo