Tag: customer experience

Right in the moment

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As an Italian abroad, I am a huge importer of pasta from Italy. When I saw this today, I got hopeful.

fabrizio-trotti-pasta-garofalo

The packaging is in Italian, but what got my train of thoughts started was the little branded tape that sealed the thing. It reads “comesifagarofalo.it”. A custom site the producer really wants me to check out as I am opening the package! (“come si fa Garofalo” could be translated into “how Garofalo is made”, yet in Italian the verb “to make” could also be used as “to cook”).

I got interested in the label as I have experienced many people do not know how to cook pasta. I have been asked about that quite a lot since I moved out of Italy, and I have some horror stories about how people actually go about cooking pasta that I will leave for a stormy night in the forest.

I hoped the company did recognize the problem and decided to put up a mini-site to educate people about this. I imagined a very simple site with the 3-4 key instructions (it is really that simple) right on top, perhaps a video, some hilarious “don’ts”, and a bunch of recipes. A company who made its name because of the quality of its pasta (Garofalo definitely has) should also care about how that is cooked and consumed. The possibility got me really excited.

That did not last long, as I unfortuntely found the mini-site was a mere way to showcase the manufacturing process of Garofalo pasta (where the ingredients come from, what is the process that goes into it, and so on).

I find this a missed opportunity to build a meaningful relationship with customers. When people have a package of pasta in their hands, the water boiling in the pot, I doubt they might be interested in where that pasta comes from or whether the ingredients used are genuine. I don’t mean to imply these are not important things in the buying process of a package of pasta (to some people, at least, they are). Yet by the time you have read the information on the website, your guests might have arrived, your water will have evaporated, and pasta will not be served for another half an hour.

When you think about how to promote your brand and its quality, always keep in mind that the customer has different types of interactions with the product. And while consistency is important, that does not mean you have to feed information about manufacturing and quality when they are about to cook their dinner. Think about what their needs might be at every stage, and give them what they might need the most in that moment. It is that simple, and yet definitely not easy.

Metrics that distract

Fabrizio1 Comment

Reading this reminded me of the time I found a job ad for Social Media Manager listing 1,000 (or was it 10,000) friends on Facebook as a requisite to apply.

We are easily mislead by what is not important, and so we believe that doing Marketing on social media is about metrics that are as much visibile as they are insignificant. And of course, managers and executives are then disappointed when they come to this very realization.

Continue focusing on bringing consistent value to your audience where they are, and stay clear of distraction-metrics. Long-term success will be your reward.

Assume people don’t know

Fabrizio1 Comment

Start by assuming that people don’t know. When you present an idea, when you share a thought, when you introduce your audience to your product or service, imagine how it would be to talk about that to somebody who is absolutely clueless. Chances are, they really are.

Take Ikea instructions, for example.

For as much as people make fun about them, the way Ikea presents how to assemble its own furniture is the clearest and easiest around. Just try another brand and benchmark.

Their minimalist design never fails, provided you can follow it to the letter (well, to the image) without trying to venture away from it. They have no words in it, no complicated code for the different pieces, the drawings are not necessarily captivating or artistic, and yet they never fail to tell you if that little hole goes on the inside or on the outside. And the great thing about them, is that they often are lengthy and elaborated, as they assume the normal person does not have the knowledge or experience for the job.

The next time you are sharing something important, think about Ikea’s instructions. And see how you can be as close to them as possible.

 

 

Isolated acting

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Your actions will have a much higher impact if they fit in a story you live every day.

Your feedback will be taken more seriously if it’s part of a more general attempt to genuinely help move the situation forward.

Your survey will get a better response rate if it’s framed in an ongoing effort to better understand and serve.

Your marketing will be more effective if it’s part of a strategy that aims at generating value for the prospect at every step of their journey.

Your message might actually be heard if it’s the bit of a story your audience has been waiting for and cannot do without.

Of course, for all of this to be possible, you need to spend a considerable amount of time tryin to understand the other(s).

The alternative, though, is to share your opinion every time you do not get things your way, to send out a survey without having set the stage for it in the months before, to run campaign after campaign tweaking for conversion, to forge the message with what we have in mind.

It happens every day, almost everywhere. And it drives us crazy when it is done to us.

Your call is (not) important

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My health provider has launched a mobile app a while back. It is pretty handy, as it gives you access to your health history, the booking system, the possibility to consult with a doctor remotely, and other useful stuff.

Today the app failed on me for some reasons, and the error page prompted me to contact customer service to complete what I was doing.

I had to first visit the website from the mobile browser, as the customer service number was nowhere to be found in the mobile app. I called and, after being informed that the call would be recorded for improving the service, I was put in line. Our operators are busy at the moment, if you want you can book an appointment with our app. I realised in the meantime the call was not free. We are still busy, we will answer the phone calls in the order we have received them. Five minutes later, an operator answered and I got the issue sorted in about a minute and a half.

Who pays the price for your faults?

Often, it is the customer. The one you want to serve, the one that already had to endure a disservice and embrace to get on the phone instead of going about their business, the one that can tell others and spread the word.

If your system is designed to ditch responsibility (and costs) when something goes wrong, how do you expect your people to own their failures? How will you get better at doing what you do?