THINKing

Dumbass Marketer Redux

Photo credit: chaka from morguefile.com

We have talked here before about dumbass marketers, and this probably won’t be the last time, unfortunately. Let me tell you a story about one. This firm, to which we have brought a lot of business including that of a Fortune 500 company, has made such a dumbass move that they will never get additional business from me.

Brands Need A Home

Photo credit: clarita from morguefile.com

Many brands are investing a lot of time and money into social networks, almost to the point of ceding control to another entity. It’s time to rethink this.

Netflix’s Corporate Seppuku

It’s good that Netflix has a red background on its logo. That way the blood doesn’t show from its self-inflicted wounds.

I Heard That!

There are still a lot of companies that haven’t yet figured out – or worse, don’t care – that social media is a great way for them to monitor the mood of their customers. But some – like Olay – really  get it. My wife read about a new Olay product and began looking for it. Turns out the product is not fully into the distribution channels yet.

A Silent Message From Your Customer

Your customers are telling you something, but aren’t saying a word. Most businesses will never get the message because they are too focused on what they want, not what the customer is asking for.

Top 15 Uses For QR Codes

Have you been seeing funny looking images like the one above popping up in stores? This is called a QR code or Quick Response Code. They are great tools for connecting the real and the digital worlds. Microsoft has a competing technology called tags. My prediction: it loses.

Customer Surprise

When is the last time you had a customer surprise that was also pleasant? Mine was just today.

I’ve been looking for a black turtleneck to complete my Halloween costume. Unable to find one anywhere. Went to Belk, the recently rebranded Charlotte, NC-based department store, to see if they had one. Lo and behold, there it was.

Hey, Do You Have A Real Person I Can Talk To?

More banking consumers, it seems, are comfortable with the Internet as a primary channel, unless they have a problem. Then, they want a person and they want one now. No surprise, there. MediaPost’s Research Brief reports that,

Forgotten Gems

Through no fault of their own, sometimes really good posts just get overlooked. Here are a few forgotten gems you may have missed.

Grandma Says -  Southern grandmothers have often said, “there are only three times a respectable person’s name should be in the paper: when you are born, when you are married, and when you die.” This is the one area in which I part company with my grandmothers.

Hook Me Up With A Human

Oh, what has happened to the carbon-based organizational interface? Many organizations have digitized humans – aka carbon-based units – out of existence in their customer service operations. Now, I love digital technology as much as anyone, but it is time to bring the people back into their appropriate customer service roles, don’t you think?