Wired Shopping - Amplified Retail 3.0

While people may have become used to searching for reviews, comparisons and the best prices online,  in many cases solitary shopping and virtual interaction with products isn't enough to help customers figure out what they want.  People still want the retail experience for a number of reasons.  

People like to get out, pick up and examine products, try on things, ask questions, and talk to people who know something. However, they don't want to lose the pressure-free experience that comes from figuring it out on their own online - even though good service is paramount to them.
Simply put, people go back to the stores where they get the best service.   


Experiences therefore need to combine the tactile interaction of retail 3.0 with the power of knowledgeable, courteous sales reps.  Today’s retail 3.0 innovations therefore should look to amplify shopping beyond the check-in - and answer some fundamental customer needs on-premise. For example:

How do I find things?  - In larger stores or venues, customers can often have difficulty finding what they what. From this simple observation came the idea to use GPS or mapping. Some of the mobile location mapping in places like the American Museum of Natural History in New Yorkgives us clues into the way we can guide people through large spaces. Visitors to the museum can download on their mobile device an application that guides them through the massive halls and gives information on all the exhibits. (See: www.meridian-apps.com for more info.)


Is this product any good? - Online customer reviews have become a key part of shopping. Bringing dynamic user reviews and product ratings into a store is a good way to build loyalty. US beauty chain Sephora incorporated the use of customer reviews in-store when they introduced a mobile application that lets customers compare products and reviews as they shop. Customers can browse products by SKU (Stock Keeping Unit), category, or keyword - or refer to the bestselling items when making their purchasing decisions.


What's on sale? - Some retailers have responded to advances in location-aware applications that can provide specific promotions and product messages to customers while they're in or near the store. These messages are delivered over SMS, QR codes or Bluetooth, or through custom mobile applications. Several retailers, including Best Buy, have started usingShopkick to provide customers with special promotions and discounts for 'checking in' through a mobile app at their retail locations.


Am I having a good time? - The most effective experiences in retail environments are the ones that draw people in and keep them coming back. The interactive photo booth and style finder at the American Eagle Outfitters children's store, 77kids, allow kids to see themselves in a digital mirror, take a picture, make designs on it, print it, share it with their friends, and then take it home. The kids can also leave a copy of the picture in the store if they want to become part of the growing tapestry of customers there. And if the kids have a good time, the chances are their parents' shopping experiences will be better too.


How does the store know who I am? - One important online convenience is customisation and personalisation - the online brand remembers who you are and what you bought. With RFID and interaction with mobile devices, we can bring the same experience into the store and incorporate functionality that tracks past store visits and purchases. For example, if someone bought a pair of jeans the last time he was in the store, on a return visit the store might suggest a shirt to go with those jeans. An early trial of this idea was installed at the Galeria Kaufhof in Essen Germany - RFID was enabled on one floor to give customers product recommendations. The additional use of this installation is to capture and analyze data of products customers have tried, but did not purchase.


Can I get some help? - The best way to give the customer a good in-store service is to improve the social interaction between customers and staff. Very often customers do their research online and know more than the reps about products; or they may be sceptical of a sales rep's expertise. If a customer is in a clothing store and the rep knows that a specific celebrity wore a particular item in a movie or at the Oscars, that could be the difference between making the sale and losing it. By using simple SMS messages or interactive product comparison tools, brands can provide sales reps with insights or the most up-to-date information about products or today's promotions. Giving customers the kind of information they can't get with their own research improves the overall relationship with the rep and the brand.


How do I get out quickly? - Getting customers out of the store quickly and giving them a good point-of-sale experience are the best ways to lure them back. Several retailers are starting to use the iPod touch Linēa-pro handheld checkout device. This seems to be the first of many consumer mobile devices converted into sales rep check-out tools. These devices make it possible for sales reps and customers to have a simple social interaction that makes check-out lines less daunting and sometimes eliminates them altogether.


How did everything work out? - One of the goals for retailers should be to extend their brands beyond the store and reconnect with customers post sale. After in-store purchases, many retailers now send follow-up emails thanking customers for their business and requesting that they rate their purchases. This allows brands to become part of an ongoing dialogue with customers and to make changes to the products they stock. Retailers can use customer comments to change, remove, or add products. For instance, after receiving customer feedback stating that numerous packages were difficult to open, Amazon launched a campaign called 'frustration-free packaging', placing the onus on product manufacturers to develop simpler packaging options for customers.


Most of theses examples are basic (on-premise) customer relationship-building ideas, often forgotten with the flood of new technologies on the market. New technology can be an excellent tool to help customers, staff, and brands interact better, but it's only when we continue to ask the basic questions that we actually improve the experience.


Have tips to share?  We'd love to hear them.

Nestle’s “Jesus” Kit-Kat: Viral Magic

Multiple “Jesus” sightings (in inanimate objects) had occurred in rapid succession in the Netherlands with growing coverage in the news.  

To capitalize on this buzz, on the Friday before Easter, Nestle’s agency in Amsterdam (UbachsWisbrun/JWT) seeded fake news content (with pictures) to the country’s largest news websites. 

The story identified that a Dutchman had found the image of none other then Jesus Christ in his Kit-Kat bar.  Kit Kat wanted to play on its 'Have a break, have a Kit Kat' tagline within this context. Have a break in the Netherlands means "give me a break" or "enough is enough". Instead of creating an ad, they created a sighting of Jesus in a Kit Kat. 

A credible fake email was created and sent from a person who had apparently just taken a bite out a Kit Kat and found, to his utter disbelief, an image of Jesus.   Within four days the Jesus Kit-Kat was on more then 100,000 websites around the world.  

Watch the Case Study

LISTEN, SPEAK, ENGAGE, GIVE – THE MERITS OF SOCIAL MEDIA

If the past decade was all about the power of linking and integrating web pages and data, today it's all about power of linking and integrating people. Brands today must socialize with consumers in ways that increase their relevance and value in the eyes of their consumers. Brands must develop a credible social voice that is more engaging, personal, humble, authentic, and participatory than ever before.

Social media and networking are all the rage these days, but many people still do not understand what all the fuss is about. From the outside looking in, it would seem that online social networking is all about spending a lot of time doing nothing.  But once you understand that a social network is as much of a place or social construct, as it is an activity, all of that begins to change.   For many people, Social Networks are their home (or “hub”) online; a small piece of the web that they can call their own. Social media is really just participatory media disseminated through social interaction online.  Users gravitate towards it extends a platform that allows people to both express their individuality - and meet people with similar interests.

Social Media is about recognizing, accounting for, and tapping into the fact that, as your potential consumer makes a purchasing (or engagement) decision—they are being influenced by different circles of people through conversations with them, both online and off.  Consumer conversations about brands, products and services are increasingly woven into the interactions of social networks as a means to connect with others, and these conversations have great influence (even though people aren’t consciously asking about brand opinions.)  Moreover, consumers do not always realize how much influencing they are doing and how much they are being influenced when they have conversations about brands across social platforms. 

Most companies are seeing Social Media as an imperative today simply because search ranking, indexing, and subsequent monetization are directly tied to end-user experience and interaction.  The bottom line is social media marketing is relationship marketing.  You need to fish where the fish are.  To this end, our ultimate goal is to ensure a framework is in place to turn the world of social media into a strong asset and powerful tool to grow and extend your relationships and business.  Some (high-level) questions to answer before you get started include:

LISTEN | do YOU have the ability to monitor your brand?

Make sure you have the ability to update comments, requests, questions, and concerns in a timely manner.   It’s one thing to participate in the massive conversation that is social media, but if you have no mechanism for seeing what’s being said about you, your competition, your products, or your employees¾adding any real value to the conversation will be a challenge.   Consider investing in a social media monitoring solution (e.g. Radian6, Alterian), or you can even build your own using Google Reader if so inclined.

SPEAK |ARE YOU prepared to be transparent in your communications?

Social media has created a forum for people to openly voice their opinions.  If they feel that they’re being sold something that may be too good to be true, they surely will talk about it. So, admit your shortcomings, and exorcize your demons as quickly as you would your triumphs and successes.  This will earn people’s trust – the currency of the social sphere.

ENGAGE| ARE YOU prepared to BE PARTICIPATORY?

Social media acts as an enabler and facilitator of this two-way exchange with your prospects and consumers.   This exchange importantly evolves your communication platform from a (one-way) monologue to a (two-way) participatory experience.

GIVE | DO you have something of value to share?

This question may seem obvious, but just take a look at the myriad of Blogs and Twitter accounts that provide worthless, insipid content.   Moreover, companies that Tweet their “About Us” website page in 140 characters over the course of a week are adding nothing more then noise. Worse still, this will likely create detrimental brand exposure.   Best to start by creating original content that would be of value to prospects and clients - and then expose it to relevant social media channels.   Spread other people’s content as well (and give credit to the sources.)

These are just a few thoughts to start establishing a social framework for your brand.   More will follow in the upcoming weeks and months.  

Just remember, if you have any specific questions, we’re always here to help.  ;)

GAP’S “BORN TO FIT” SOCIAL CAMPAIGN

The digital campaign for Gap’s 1969 Premium Jeans —‘Born to Fit’— marks a first in the fashion industry as Gap launches one of the most robust consumer experiences to-date using a range of social media platforms. By harnessing the most popular social media platforms, the ambitious digital campaign developed by AKQA aims to reach fashion leaders and fashionistas, Gap customers and even skeptics to encourage conversations around Gap’s reinvented line of jeans.

           

Facebook

Gap partnered with Facebook to transform its Fan Page into the ultimate jeans destination. Developed by AKQA, www.facebook.com/borntofit acts as the central hub for the campaign, where visitors can engage and express themselves. The interactivity encourages users to find their ideal 1969 Premium Jeans fit and includes:

• A Born to Share interactive gallery with pictures of Gap fans telling the world what they were born to do. Visitors can also participate by creating and uploading their own “born to” expression.
• A virtual, moving runway where fans can watch models sport each fit of jeans in three different ways. Visitors can also click through to Gap.com www.gap.com/> and purchase their favorite outfits.
• A Fit Spotlight where users can explore the jeans up close and hear commentary about each of the styles from Gap’s head designer, Patrick Robinson.
• A video of Rada Shadick , Gap's Fit Engineer, discussing the craftsmanship and details of the new jeans.      

Mobile StyleMixer iPhone App

Recognizing that Gap customers are often on the move, AKQA also developed a StyleMixer iPhone application. This social shopping tool enables users to mix and match clothes, find inspiration, get advice and more.  

StyleMixers can organize outfits, get feedback from Facebook friends and the iPhone StyleMixer community, take, upload and integrate images of clothes from their own closets and get ideas from other community members. Leveraging a relatively untapped iPhone technology, the app unlocks surprise offers when users are near a Gap store.

             

 “Our ‘Born to Fit’ digital campaign enables customers to get as close as possible to the jeans without actually touching or feeling them – it’s a way for them to experience the jeans digitally from our point of view. Then once they’ve had a chance to try the jeans on, we encourage them to come back to our ‘Born to Fit’ community to share their opinions, style tips or even create their own ‘Born to’ expression.” (Gap’s EVP of Marketing)

             

GAP’S SUPPORTING social CAST

Further opportunities for Gap customers to express themselves via social media are:

• Style advice video content and celebrity videos are available on YouTube.
• A Gap Twitter feed will keep followers up to date with tweets on celebrity encounters, exciting events, styling recommendations, and upcoming collections posted daily.
• The ‘Born to Fit’ campaign additionally partners with the influential fashion community, Polyvore, to bring to life the jeans in the style tips section.
• Rich media ads will run on NBC.com, Fox.com, the NYTimes.com, and the Glam and Sugar networks, with an exclusive launch partnership for Perez Hilton’s new fashion-related site, CocoPerez.com.

- -

Sign-up for this Blog's RSS feed (above) or join us on Facebook or Twitter for the latest news, info, and events from the world of social media marketing, PR 2.0, and digital branding. 

Martin Lindstrom | Moments of Brand Zen | January

easier, faster and more relevant

Nothing has made access to brands easier, faster and relevant to consumers than technology.  GPS-based messaging by NTT Docomo in Japan takes it to a whole new level. Their LBS (location Based System) pinpoints and suggest shops, restaurants and whatever else you may require – to within 50 meters of your location – wherever you are! For consumers, the real rewards are contextual and relevant messages that recognize who you are, where you are and what you need – all the right moment.   Watch Video 

using sex to market your brand

If you’re planning on using sex to market your brand and get consumers to engage, you’d best be prepared for what comes next. When clothing and accessories retail giant XOXO decided to parade 2 sexy young women in a 5th avenue window around peak Christmas shopping time, it seemed they knew just what they were doing. Or did they? It’s risky business using sex as a means of luring consumers in to your brand, for the simple reason that inevitably it is not the sex that’s working for the brand, but the hype being caused. In this video I examine this precise issue, looking at some of the do’s and don’ts when heading down risqué promotional avenues.  Watch Video

For the Love of Tim

Forget Wayne Gretsky, Celine Dion and Dan Akroyd. Canada’s hottest new export to its southern neighbors is Tim Horton. This is a Canadian success story (2,700 stores coast-to-coast) that has carved out a niche in a market that is neither fast food, nor specialist coffee either. What is it then?  Watch Video

SUBWAY GOING GREEN

The recent Tokyo Designer week, which integrates the aspirations of design, technology and the environment in one show, and which provides a sneak preview of the future, left visitors with one powerful impression – brands will not survive if they cannot demonstrate real environmental support.  Watch Video

Viral Marketing Put to the Test

Explains how the strategy of spreading a video to as many popular video websites as possible.   The results? It was quickly available on 400 websites, including 70 versions on YouTube alone.  Watch Video

Viral marketing strategy?

Did you know that today only 5% of the global brands have a viral marketing strategy?  Three things have to be present to build at powerful viral video: First of all it needs a talking point, a content that makes people talk about it, secondly it has to be a bit sensational and cross the line that makes it too extreme to be shown on TV, viral videos belongs to the Internet. Finally it has to have a "soap" element around it, so the target group can get their video-input on a regular base, and it is only an advantage if the video contains humour, irony and sarcasm as a part of the message.  Watch Video

HOW CONCEPTS AFFECT CONSUMPTION - SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY

by Dan Ariely and Michael I. Norton

                       

Our prehistoric ancestors spent much of their waking hours foraging for and consuming food, an instinct that obviously paid off. Today this instinct is no less powerful, but for billions of us it’s satisfied in the minutes it takes to swing by the store and pop a meal in the microwave. With our physical needs sated and time on our hands, increasingly we’re finding psychological outlets for this drive, by seeking out and consuming concepts.

Conceptual consumption strongly influences physical consumption. Keeping up with the Joneses is an obvious example. The SUV in the driveway is only partly about the need for transport; the concept consumed is status. Dozens of studies tease out the many ways in which concepts influence people’s consumption, independent of the physical thing being consumed. Here are just three of the classes of conceptual consumption that we and others have identified.

Consuming expectations

People’s expectation about the value of what they’re consuming profoundly affects their experience. We know that people have favorite beverage brands, for instance, but in blind taste tests they frequently can’t tell one from another: The value that marketers attach to the brand, rather than the drink’s flavor, is often what truly adds to the taste experience. Recent brain-imaging studies show that when people believe they’re drinking expensive wine, their reward circuitry is more active than when they think they’re drinking cheap wine—even when the wines are identical. Similarly, when people believe they’re taking cheap painkillers, they experience less relief than when they take the same but higher-priced pills.

Consuming goals

Pursuing a goal can be a powerful trigger for consumption. At a convenience store where the average purchase was $4, researchers gave some customers coupons that offered $1 off any purchase of $6, and others coupons that offered $1 off any purchase of at least $2. Customers who received the coupon that required a $6 purchase increased their spending in an effort to receive their dollar off; more interestingly, those customers who received the coupon that required only a $2 purchase to receive the dollar off actually decreased their spending from their typical $4, though of course they would have received their dollar off had they spent $4. Consuming the specific goal implied by the coupon—receiving a savings on a purchase of a designated amount—trumped people’s initial inclinations. Customers who received the $2 coupon left the store with fewer items than they had intended to buy.

Consuming memories

One study of how memories influence consumption explored the phenomenon whereby people who have truly enjoyed an experience, such as a special evening out, sometimes prefer not to repeat it. We might expect that they would want to experience such an evening again; but by forgoing repeat visits, they are preserving their ability to consume the pure memory—the concept—of that evening forever, without the risk of polluting it with a less-special evening.

So concepts not only can influence people to consume more physical stuff, but also can encourage them to consume less. Offering people a chance to trade undesirable physical consumption for conceptual consumption is one way to help them make wiser choices. In Sacramento, for example, if people use less energy than their neighbors, they get a smiley face on their utility bill (or two if they’re really good)—a tactic that has reduced energy use in the district and is now being employed in Chicago, Seattle, and eight other cities. In this case, people forgo energy consumption in order to consume the concept of being greener than their neighbors.

We suggest that examining people’s motivations through the lens of conceptual consumption can help policy makers, marketers, and managers craft incentives to drive desired behavior—for better or for worse.

- - -

Dan Ariely  is the James B. Duke Professor of Behavioral Economics at Duke University and the author of Predictably Irrational.

Michael I. Norton is an assistant professor of business administration at Harvard Business School.

The full paper on which this article is based is available at www.people.hbs.edu/mnorton/ariely norton 2009.pdf.

Original article

The PUMA INDEX | A STOCK MARKET FEED WITH A TWIST

The PUMA Index is a real stock ticker, with a twist. When the market goes down, our models' clothes come off, all the way to their PUMA Bodywear.  PUMA created a free-to-download app and site called the PUMA INDEX which provides cheer to investors whose stocks are nose-diving by giving them hot male and female models clad only in Puma underwear to lift their spirits.  

The Puma Index reacts to the fortunes of the Dow, German (DAX) and Australian (ASX) stock markets: the lower the stock market falls, the more clothes they take off, so it’s targeting those who check their stocks as often as they check their mobile devices. 

Once you’ve installed the free app you can choose between a male or female guide to your index of choice, by shaking the iPhone. The market numbers will be updated automatically through the day and when it gets good enough, or bad enough, the models will be called into action.

It gets better.  If you show your iPhone with the app installed to a PUMA sales rep, you even get a 20% discount on your next purchase.  

Check out the video overview, check out the free Mobile App, or visit the PUMA Index Site.

T

2010 CaT: Creativity and Technology | NYC

Tired of hearing the same things over and over again at events or conferences?  We know how you feel.   The gap today between those on the cutting edge (of emerging technology and creativity) like YOU, and the rest of the world, has obviously never been wider.

So, if you NEED to attend one conference this year that will position you at the front of the pack (and our entire team agreed on this one) you should really check out the CaT: Creativity and Technology Conference. 

To our knowledge, there are only CaT events in NYC and London, but our trip to NYC last summer exposed us to some of the best and brightest minds in the world.  Moreover, the list of attendees and speakers read like a “who’s who” list in our space; a summit for the convergence of creativity and technology.  This show was exceptional, dare we say even inspirational. 

We hope to see you in NYC this summer. ;)

http://www.creativitycat.com/index.php

BMW USES MOBILE VIDEO ADVERTISING TO GENERATE TEST DRIVES

Bavarian Motor Works (BMW) ran a personalized mobile video advertising campaign to promote its X1 Series to a younger demographic in China. The BMW brand believes it empowers people to express their individuality and personality - and the carmaker wanted its X1 marketing message to do the same.  The personalized videos, or technically advertisements, were designed to have an impact so that viewers would show and share with their friends and create a viral buzz around the campaign (with the idea of BMW qualifying and sending the user a personalized holiday greeting.)

Why Mobile?  In this case, the mobile device is the primary Internet access tool in China and it is the most relevant medium for the demographic target. There are roughly 165 million high-speed, 3G mobile broadband subscribers in China and these are extremely active mobile Internet users.  In fact, 58 percent of Chinese mobile Web users post Web 2.0 content via their handsets, compared with 41 percent of those in the United States, according to Phonevalley. 

Personalizaton is key

The messages, distributed Dec. 21-24 in Shanghai, Beijing and Guangzhou, targeted individual customers with a holiday greeting that was uniquely tailored to each recipient.  For the campaign Clip in Touch, whose platform provides a means of sending advertising campaigns via MMS, enabled a targeted campaign with sight, sound and motion that BMW’s audience can personalize and make their very own.  The technology for the campaign’s targeting and personalization was provided by Israel-based, Clip in Touch.  Initial response to the campaign has been very positive, generating more test-drives in a three-day period than at any time this year. The uniqueness comes in allowing users to personalize, edit and add their own voice, video and text to any advertising campaign.

BMW GETS mobile
In Germany this past April, a BMW launched a mobile campaign specifically to sell more winter tires - and is said to have achieved a 30 percent conversion rate.  BMW Germany wanted to remind its customers that snow tires are more of a necessity, rather than a luxury, especially during the winters in Germany. The luxury carmaker targeted owners of BMWs, urging them to visit a local dealership and buy a set of tires (see story). 

BMW Z4 Roadster Launch

BMW turned to mobile to launch its new BMW Z4 Roadster as well. The German company introduced the Z4 Roadster to auto enthusiasts with a new application for the iPhone. The car was launched a few days ago at the Geneva Auto Show (see story).

The carmaker also ran a mobile campaign on the Nokia Media Network to promote some of its popular luxury vehicles to consumers in Spain (see story).

Also, BMW's mobile advertising campaign for the new BMW 1 Series Coupe resulted in a 67 percent increase in traffic to the brand's WAP site for Britain (see story).

Read original article