"Without courage, compassion falters. Without compassion, courage has no direction." ~ Eric Greitens
1,500 pair of shoes were made based on the futuristic sneakers he wore in the original Back to the Future movie. So far, typical bids are around $4,000 a pair, and it’s certainly going to go up as the auction goes on. Figure they’ll raise $10,000,000, easily. Good for them.
The interesting lesson for me is that this fundraiser is 100% about the shoes. The charity is an asterisk. This is a branding and nostalgia exercise, with the opportunity for resale at a profit thrown in as a bonus. Tote bag marketing, without a doubt. The lesson for fundraisers everywhere is: if you have something like a celebrity shoe or a signed Chuck Close painting to sell, you should definitely go do that. The ends are fabulous, and there’s nothing wrong with the means to get there.
Tote bag marketing, books and sneakers
Social media and smartphones are disrupting the established patterns and practices for B2C interactions. To be successful, businesses have to engage with customers through their preferred channels, whether that be mobile, IM or social networks.
The link between technology and consumers is, however, a two-way street. Take, for example, Facebook notifications (the auto-generated email or text alerts you get when someone posts you on your wall or comments on a photo). These alerts constitute B2C dialogue, though they operate under the guise of a C2C interaction.
The initial attraction of social networks like Facebook and other pioneers in the space was bringing groups of people of shared interest together on the web. Adding a messaging capability to the basic web presence extends the social experience beyond the website. Without notifications, you’d have to go online to Facebook to hangout with your friends. With notifications, your friends — and the Facebook brand — come and check in with you throughout the day via your inbox.
This kind of messaging lets businesses participate in, inform, and add value to the social interaction (wall post/sharing) without ever forcing users back to the site.
Why Businesses Must Adopt a Multi-Channel Messaging Strategy
Much has been made about the necessity of developing a mobile web strategy. Mobile now comprises 10% of global web traffic. This year’s Millennial Impact Report shows how important mobile has become for U.S. nonprofits. Without a mobile strategy, nonprofits have no online future. Why? Because millennials use their smartphone like a computer, reading e-newsletters, emailing people, and engaging in social media.
via No Mobile, No Future | Inspiring Generosity.
- Three-quarters of a billion tablets will be in use by 2016. It took more than 20 years for the PC to reach an installed base of 750 million people. But tablets will surpass that mark in less than half the time. Global tablet sales will top 375 million in 2016 with about one-third of tablets acquired by businesses for employees. Back in 2007, we wrote that to reach the second billion users, the computer market would be driven by lower-cost hardware, useful applications, and easy access to the Internet from anywhere.Tablets fit that bill perfectly.
- Some 81% of firms expect to support tablets for employees. IT decision-makers are getting tablet fever as 81% of firms report interest in using tablets. According to these IT decision-makers, tablets will come into the enterprise via several doors, including employees bringing their own: Our latest survey of global information workers shows that 12% use tablets, and 8% paid for it themselves. And more than half of the 1,004 firms we surveyed plan to increase their spending on mobile devices and apps by at least 10% next year.
- Tablets will accelerate the rise of the anytime, anywhere information worker. Today, 15% of information workers use at least three connected devices for work, work from at least three different locations, and use at least seven apps for work. And 30% of information workers satisfy at least two of those three criteria. The rise of tablets will drive the number of anytime, anywhere information workers up. Tablets enable access from more locations and bring relevant and useful apps to make employees more productive.
via Forrester Research : Research : Mastering The Business Tablet Landscape.
1. Out: Micro-management, or the need to control every aspect of your company. In: Empowerment, the ability to give your people some rope--even rope to make mistakes without blame.
2. Out: Management by walking around the office; it is no longer enough to be visible. In: Leadership by watching and listening, engaging in conversation, implementing the ideas presented to you, and distributing the results.
3. Out: Pretending you know everything. You don't have all the answers, so why try to make people think you do? In: Knowing your leadership team members and trusting them. Choose great people who have the right skills and fit the culture. And get out of the way.
4. Out: No mistakes, or a "no tolerance policy" some still think works. In: Learning from mistakes, or being the first to admit an error.
5. Out: The balance sheet drives the business, and informs all other decisions. In: People drive the business, boosting customer loyalty, and profit.
6. Out: Job competency is sufficient. Do the job asked, and you'll survive. In: Recruit "A" players who will go the extra mile. They're out there.
7. Out: Invest in technology to increase productivity. In: Invest in people.
8. Out: Demand change; be very specific about what you want and when. In: Nurture change; your people can come up with the best ideas and you can give them credit for it.
9. Out: Fried food in the cafeteria. In: Wellness in the workplace.
10. Out: Incentives; pay employees more money and they'll do more. In: Rewards; being valued matters more than money.
via Leadership Practices to Stop Today | Inc.com.
- Amazon puts content — and commerce — first. Amazon's strongest asset is its ability to deliver a rich assortment of content seamlessly to its customers, who are very comfortable with buying from the big retailer on any device, not just those from Amazon. In addition, the company is a powerhouse in cloud computing and provides seamless access to purchased and personal content across any device. Yet Amazon's device offerings are limited, and its use of a modified variant of the Android platform requires a devoted effort to entice developers to create application versions tuned to that variant. While Amazon has global ambitions, its reach today is much more limited than its competitors; additionally, its method of working with mobile operators challenges its expansion rate.
- Apple exerts by far the strongest loyalty gravitational pull. Apple's collective offerings are demonstrably attractive to its customers, anchored most firmly by its most popular product, the iPhone. Consider that, compared with the total US online population, iPhone owners are 156% more likely to own an iPad, 188% more likely to own a Mac, and 235% more likely to own both. Apple has succeeded in providing digital distribution for nearly every major owner of music, video, books, newspapers, and magazines; additionally, while some media companies have publicly complained about Apple's perceived stranglehold on the market, by and large Apple has helped those companies benefit from digital disruption. Apple customers have warmly embraced the company's personal cloud services — but these services still have gaps to fill versus, for example, Google Docs.
- Google touches the greatest number of mobile customers, but its loyalty force is less strong. The company's Android software has skyrocketed to become the leading smartphone platform, but Android phone owners are not as strongly drawn to other Android devices as is the case for Apple. Online adults in the US who own an Android phone are twice as likely to own an Android tablet than the total US online population — but also 13% more likely to own an iPad. Google's range of content partnerships has grown rapidly in the past year. However, its library still falls short of both Apple's and Amazon's, and some media companies have shown reluctance to embrace Google as a partner given past collisions such as that between YouTube and Viacom. The company's greatest strength is in its broad reach via cloud services and its Chrome browser, which is now available on the vast majority of connected devices.
- Microsoft has the steepest mountain to climb. Microsoft has been singularly unsuccessful in translating its dominance in PCs to the mobile market, in fact suffering from a loss of smartphone market share since the introduction of its revamped Windows Phone 7 OS. The company has no presence so far in the vital tablet market and, as a result, has struggled to attract developers to its mobile platforms. While Microsoft has released a wide range of personal cloud services such as SkyDrive, it has not effectively communicated the value of those services to its customers. Microsoft's greatest strength in content and media resides on the Xbox, whose connections to other devices powered by the company's software is nearly invisible. With the release of Windows 8 and Windows Phone 8, Microsoft hopes to translate a common user experience into loyalty across multiple devices — a tall order given its competitors' positions.
- Others face a daunting task in building from (almost) scratch. It's clear that many companies seek to establish a competitive ecosystem. RIM promises that its upcoming OS revamp, BlackBerry 10, and associated devices will revitalize the once-dominant smartphone maker. Samsung, the world leader in phone shipments, has invested in its own bada OS, has a range of content partnerships and its own media store, and has also hedged its bets by joining Intel's Tizen development effort. Companies like HP, with strong ties to the enterprise, recognize the importance of having a diverse mobile offering, including smartphones. But we consider it highly unlikely that any of these companies can craft and unite all of the requisite components and then lure customers who have already placed their significant investments. Therefore their hope lies in those customers whose assets remain on the table — and there are billions of them.
Do you know FOMO? That’s not some fancy latte — it’s Fear Of Missing Out, and something that’s become a recognized thing by many social media users these days.
You’re probably familiar with the concept, if not the name. Here’s an example: It’s been a long workweek and you really just want to spend Friday night at home watching a movie. But then that old familiar urge hits, and you can’t resist grabbing your smartphone for a jolty fix of quick-burst information. One friend’s Twitter post mentions an awesome concert. On Facebook, someone else put up photos of a raging house party.
Suddenly, your mellow evening feels entirely inadequate and you wonder what else you’re missing out on. You put the phone down, only to pick it up again and again because you can’t shake the feeling that you’re missing out on finding out just how much you’re missing out on. The vicious cycle continues.
via Do You Suffer From Social Media FOMO? [INFOGRAPHIC].
I feel like I have the best of all worlds… I can come into our open area at work when I need to meet with staff or someone in particular. I can hole away in my home office to do solitary work, and I am in fact, in my home office most of the time. My home office is a quiet environment (most of the time) and I can actually think and work. While there, I feel totally connected just by having my Lync window up showing all my team's status colors. I think the work-life balance benefits of this arrangement are incredible and I feel empowered knowing that I don't have to "show up" in the collaborative area just to be seen.
I enjoy telecommuting because I have the option of staying away from the masses, the drive byes, and the side conversations if I wish. My favorite days are those where I have few meetings and I can actually do work. Unfortunately that doesn't happen very often so I have to find other ways to get real work done or to just think/strategize.
Walls to offices during the Industrial Age intended to guard leaders from the daily onslaught of activity and requests. Today, leaders are bombarded with Facebook requests, Twitter feeds, texts, IM pings, SPAM, an eMail from their boss demanding the most recent numbers in a report, and another eM just below the eMail from the boss ... from a friend sending a stupid "forward" eMail with cats in it.
Where's the walls now to your office? Not so clear anymore ... is it?
via Saying Goodbye to the Industrial Age | MAGsays.
Recently I noticed something on my home page which is iGoogle. I've used what seems like forever.
This happens way too much. It clearly isn't helpful to deny the facts. It is also important to actually know the facts.Transformational leaders don't start by denying the world around them. Instead, they describe a future they'd like to create instead.
Denying the truth about relative market share, imperial power or the scientific method helps no one.
Gandhi didn't pretend the British weren't dominating his country, and Feynman didn't challenge Einstein's theory of relativity or the laws of thermodynamics.
It's okay to say, "this is going to be difficult." And it's productive to point out, "our product isn't as good as it should be yet."
The problem with Orwellian talking heads, agitprop, faux news and Ballmer-like posturing is that they take away a foundation for a genuine movement to occur, because once we start denying facts, it's difficult to know when to stop. Tell us where we are, tell us where we're going. But if you can't be clear about one, it's hard to buy into the other.
via Seth's Blog: Denying facts you don't like.
- Always respond promptly. Even if you don’t have an immediate solution, customers like to know their complaint has been heard. Offer a tentative time frame if possible, or let them know you’re working on a solution.
- Carefully choose employees. Employees who will be working in the customer service department or handling any customer interactions. “They are ultimately your voice,” says Schaub.
- Make it personal. Include a handwritten note or a personal follow-up call.
- Follow the golden rule. Treat your customers as you would like to be treated in a similar situation.
- Use the Wow factor. Wow them. They will never forget it.
via How to Turn Bad Customer Service Into a Win-Win : topic :: American Express OPEN Forum.
Customers expect great service all the time but great customer service shines through mainly when something goes wrong. And despite their best attempts, organizations will face circumstances when their customers are unhappy with their experience.
The trick, and what differentiates great brands from the rest, is how they recover from these roadblocks. I recently purchased a highly discounted cardigan from one of my favorite companies, the flash sales site Ideeli. When the item arrived, I noticed that the belt that was supposed to be included was missing. I quickly emailed the organization to explain what happened and ask whether they could send me the missing belt.
Read the rest here: Great Service Turns Problems into Opportunities - Think customers: The 1to1 Blog.
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