Women and mentoring 

Source : Linkedin 

Posted via email from Karima-Catherine

A Comscore report revealed that only 6% of smartphone users scan QR codes. That equates to approximately 14 million users in the United States.

Marketers and businesses are constantly trying to find new way to gain visibility with their audience. This, in the hope to be the chosen one when there is a transaction. The consumer buying process is complex and requires more than a series of isolated and silloed tactics.

Below, numbers that will illustrate QR codes adoption:

Figure 1

What are your thoughts? Do you think QR codes can go mainstream at all? Do you think QR code can actually be reserved to a specific segment of the businesses and brand? What about customers, are they ready to start scanning away?

Image1:

Source figure 1: http://news.cnet.com/8301-1023_3-20091767-93/report-6-percent-of-smartphone-users-scan-qr-codes/?tag=cnetRiver

Source image 2:  Not sure but I borrowed it somewhere.

Posted via email from Karima-Catherine

Below, are presented a few of Netflix management philosophy :

• No vacation policy (take as much as you want, as long as you’re doing a great job and covering your responsibilities).

• “Outstanding” employees only–doing an “adequate” job leads to your getting a “generous severance package,” so the company can hire an A-player in your place.

• “Freedom and responsibility” vs command-and-control: Good managers give their employees the right context in which to make decisions–and then the employees make the decisions.

• No “brilliant jerks” – Star performers who also happen to be hell to work with are sent packing.

What do you think? 

Source : http://www.businessinsider.com/netflix-culture-management-presentation-2011-7

Posted via email from Karima-Catherine

A new logo and new products, Starbucks is displaying its colours just in time for Spring.  Sitting at my favourite Starbucks in Montreal (more precisely, in St-Laurent), I have witnessed, first-hand, the changes in branding, I’ve read about on the Web. The ”solo” siren logo on the cups and merchandising, the mini cupcakes, the tribute coffee and the launch of Howard Schultz new book.

I love my Starbucks. It has definitely been a 3rd place – a corner stone –  in my daily routine. Everything from the delicious green matcha tea to the fun and friendly staff is appealing to me.

Why I chose this Starbucks and no other:

This location won my business over the 36 other Starbucks I could go to. It won my business over all the Second cups and Tim Hortons in the area. Not because of social media, although Starbucks is constantly topping the lists of best companies in social media. Social media for Starbucks is part of their customer relationship strategy. Social media does not replace quality and delivery of the promise.This Starbucks place delivers an amazing experience. Every time.

It took me a long time to wrap myself around paying $4.50 for a medium latté. I would occasionally get green tea at Second Cup and Tim Hortons. Until a cold winter morning when I needed a warm tea to try to sooth my cold. That was IT. that place was everything I thought Starbucks should be and I quickly got hooked on the place. The staff works tirelessly to make it my favourite work and hangout place in Montreal. I attribute this new holistic addiction to one factor:

SERVICE !

Customer experience is Achille’s heel of most brick and mortar and online stores. Although an impressive 85 % say they would be willing to pay more over the standard price of a good or service to ensure a superior customer experience.

Customer service is how Starbucks won me over. Simple and basic in concept but complex to actually successfully implement. Frontline staff professionalism and generosity. Forget the scripted robotic verbatim that is taught over training sessions. The staff here takes it personally to do well their job and satisfy clients. Every time.

What generally pushes customers away is the lack of consistency between staff members. Whether brick and mortar or online, customers like to connect with staff. We like this relative sense of familiarity where we’re recognized, acknowledged and valued.

Business efficiency is important. Numbers count and are crucial to the financial survival of any business. Being friendly is probably not in the job description of the typical barista but it drives loyalty and thus, repeat sales. The Sales district manager must be freaking out when he comes in and sees the “community” of regular customers chatting away with the staff. If I were the Sales district manager, I would reward this Starbucks team.  They manage to bring in the same people over and over. The new ones come back. Some customers come over 3 times a day to get a coffee. Some drive 30 miles and more to spend the day working here.

We can get coffee or tea anywhere. But the warmth of this place is unique and this is what keeps me coming back! Every time

Thanks to Marcel and team! (I’ve included a few snapshots of the stars of the place)

Diversity, fun and relevance!  Great to watch it evern after the real wedding! 

Posted via email from Karima-Catherine

Compelling statements Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook, on “Why we have too few women leaders”

The numbers are staggering about women at the top, C-Level jobs and board seats only 15% are women and this, since 2002

Mrs Sandberg touches on 3 points: (I am paraphrasing)

- Seat at the table

No one gets to sit at the table by sitting on the side lines - We’ve got to get women to sit at the table

- Make your partner a real partner

When both partners work full-time, the women has to take time off for home duties

- Don’t leave before you leave

Basically, don’t sell yourself short. Take the opportunities. Reach for the promotions. Keep your foot on the gas pedal until you really have to leave.

But it is not that simple

What do you think?

Posted via email from Karima-Catherine

Source : http://www.allfacebook.com/infographic-top-10-brands-on-facebook-2011-03

Posted via email from Karima-Catherine

According to a Netpop Research study, Youtube users are more likely to recommend the social network than users of Facebook and Twitter.

One word : RELEVANCE!

Source : Marketingprofs

Posted via email from Karima-Catherine

Mind the gap

Like many busy moms, I willingly and sometimes, forcefully, take on everyone’s shopping in my family. This year, more than ever before, I’ve had the opportunity to experience the limits of customer service at retailers, more particularly, at Canadian retailers.

This is giving me a pretty good insight in their practices and what the end user, the customer deals with. I will use this “experience” to bring you a series on Canadian retailers; the first topic is pretty general as it sets the tone and give you a fair idea of the landscape.

I’ve recently had a few incidents at RW & Co and Tristan stores; I complained about it on Twitter and Facebook; Yes, I was really mad. I am not talking about stellar customer service, even the basic politeness had not even been displayed; The general attitude has been cold and unhelpful on each of my several visits. A few of the gems I can vividly remember:

- I was dismissed by a sales staff when I asked to help me find specific size for an item; she said there was only extra small left; I skimmed through the rack one more time and found all the sizes; Note: I am really persistent otherwise, they would have lost an sale opportunity.

- On one occasion, I said I would call head office in order to weigh in with them for a return policy issue and before I exited the store, the manager started to shout: “where is the phone? Where is the phone, need to call head office now.”  Note: This lady totally did not see the iphone in my hand? I can dial faster than my shadow.

While I received no word from Tristan – which doesn’t come as a surprise, RW & Co, on the other hand, reached out to me on Twitter and by email – I figure 2 different teams are handling  online monitoring as both, customer service and sales asked me for my phone number;  2 weeks later, they haven’t called me back.

Social media, so what?

I’ve looked at several retailers’ online assets and find a deep disconnect between the company’s statement and the reality of the brand.  Is the gap in the definition of the company’s mission, in the implementation of the mission, in the communication within the organization, in the operational steps such as HR, sales, training, or could it be in the strategic planning.

Social media will not help any company if internal processes to handle a social media program are not in place. Social media will only showcase the organization is unorganized, at best.  One of the biggest challenges retailers face today is the disparity in service delivery from one location to the next and from one sales assistant to the next; However, a retailer needs to be able to serve their customers with consistency. Today’s shopper knows more about the industry as most staff members; customers are aware of what’s being said about retailers thanks to platforms such as twitter, Facebook, Yelp, foursquare, and Google. Smartphones penetration, with over 7 millions subscribers, allows customers to update their social profiles from anywhere, including  in stores if they are not happy with service.

For most businesses, using social media seems to be just another place to market to their consumers, a means to an end, an expedient purpose. Business doesn’t start nor end with social media. Social media should be part of how organizations conduct business. Social should allow them to better serve their customers.  Displaying a Twitter icon is not doing social media; it’s just adding another widget to the plethora of social tools out there. What makes the difference is what efforts and initiatives businesses put together towards truly making the customer’s experience a * WoW*

Customer DO care

Most clients don’t complain as they don’t deem it worth their time and effort; a customer that complains is a huge opportunity for businesses.  I am one demanding customer; my expectations are high as I expect the service that goes with the money I pay for my purchase.  When I complain, I can be tough because I feel the business did not fulfill their promise. However, I never fail to shower with compliments those that are good. Today’s norm is to be mediocre so anyone who does a little better will get my attention.

Chasing customer through social media will not do it. KLM has demonstrated avant-garde thinking with their latest campaign.

Businesses don’t need to chase customers across social networks; Initiating contact on social media is great when it is a premise for the business to show they have the internal processes and internal culture to follow-up on their social promise. In a time where customers are craving for connections, businesses have to retrieve the human in their business practice.

To be successful, retailers must deliver consistently on their promise. Also, for brick and mortar retailers, their success or failure may just depend on its manager – choosing the right person as well as training and empowering them are crucial steps to diffusing good customer service in-store.

The organisation’s culture ought to be geared towards serving the customer.  This include management shaping the culture and supporting it throughout the organization, empowering its people, and focusing on the customer. This way, all processes will be put in place.

As for front-line staff, I have 1 word and a few tips : Human 101

• Customers want to spend money.  Staff should be welcoming. Smiles are not optional
• Staff should be empowered to take decisions without having to call head office
• Return policies are great in the back of a receipt but a customer has specifics that sometimes go beyond the policy. You know, like in real life. things that cost or very little could make the customer happy. No need for stiff and unflexible return policies; Policies to keep frauds away will probably also keep customer away.
• Don’t suspiciously look at every customer as if they were thieves trying to rip you off a $20 shirt
• Be consistent!  (This one is tricky because some brands have consistently bad service across all their stores)

Canadians only?

Of course, this post is solely based on my experience and research; my focus on Canadian retailer is both logical and inherent to the actual landscape.  There are exceptions, such as Lululemon, who use social media as an extension of their business strategy and manage to create a very active and engaging community online as well as offline.

Canadian retailers are terribly disappointing in term of how costumers are cared for, whether offline or online. Social media is an amplifier of their weaknesses or strengths. They have to fix their processes first before going out loud in social media. They must be willing to look internally how they can improve the overall customer experience, it has to be their prime responsibility.

In upcoming posts, I will look at the Canadian retailers landscape, how the industry is being shaped by technology penetration. I will also look at how today’s customer is truly expecting a contemporary experience.

Update: As I am finalizing this post, the sales director at RW & co called me in order to have more information about my twitter post and the service I received at their stores.  She came out very professional and willing to make changes. She offered a gift card to compensate for my inconvenience but I declined, as this post was already written and I preferred to keep an unbiased and independent editorial line.

What Can I say, Intel has done an amazing job piling up all the capabilities of their Core i5 processor in less than 2 minutes. 

I particularly like the sequence with Flikr and YouTube. This promotional video is a long way from the Blue Man Group; they have included social platforms with Facebook, Youtube as well as gaming, graphic design with Photoshop and location-based services with Google street view.  

What do you think?

Posted via email from Karima-Catherine