Downloading was a success, but I had problems finding the activation code for the software, so I went in search of a company contact.
I jumped on GameHouse’s website, and my first instinct was to look for a phone number to call its customer service department. If you read part 1 of my “You Lost Me There” series a few months back, you know that I’m an adamant believer in having your contact info prominently displayed on your website. Another one of my pet peeves is the ubiquitous page with the contact form. Or, more importantly, how long it takes to get a response from said form.

To me it’s simple: Make it easy to speak with me or my business goes elsewhere. I couldn’t find a satisfactory way to contact GameHouse, and I grew frustrated. But there was a big (really big) “Follow us on Twitter” button, so I clicked it. I sent a tweet to GameHouse — and the rest of its followers — on how I was having problems and was aggravated that its website had no contact info. For good measure, I joined its Facebook fan page and sent the same message.

It didn’t take GameHouse long to respond. Thanks to Kristy, who manages GameHouse’s Twitter presence, I had an easy way to establish communication with the company and resolve my issues. Turns out that I also ordered half a dozen copies of Monopoly as I tried to get the activation code. Kristy helped me get squared away with GameHouse’s billing department, too. It took about a week of back and forth to get all the additional orders credited to my account. Kristy had one of GameHouse’s customer service reps work closely with me throughout the process.

Then — and this one blows me away — about a week later I got a package from GameHouse with a different version of Monopoly inside. Also inside was a handwritten card thanking me “for my patience” signed by Kristy with the note: “A little gift for all your troubles.” My son loves it, and everywhere I go (including a lecture I did last week) I tell of my exceptional customer service experience with GameHouse. With this in mind, I offer up some useful pointers.

6 Customer Service Learnings:

1. I sent my “You Lost Me There” article to Kristy, who said she’d pass it up the food chain. I hope GameHouse heeds my advice and makes it easier for customers to be served by adding a prominent phone number to its website. I’m not sure everybody will use Twitter like I did, however, meaning the potential for a negative customer service experience is present.

2. I was also quite surprised by how seamless the customer service experience can be without “traditional” contact methods being in play. As a “stone age” customer, once I adapted I was happy again.

3. Serve your customers in all channels. Social media is having a dramatic impact as a customer service tool; customers will self-select the channel of their choice.

4 .Exceptional customer service can (and should) be the rule in all channels — online and offline.

5. If your customer service isn’t exceptional, expect to see negative reviews expressed publicly. Also expect to see bad customer service stories spread virally.

6. Had I not been totally satisfied by the work of Kristy and her team, this column would have read very differently.
Upset customers can easily be turned into advocates with proper service. Today’s angry customer is tomorrow’s best customer.

There’s just too much prime opportunity online — e.g.,  Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, blogs, etc. — for brands to get dinged when they screw up. In the few weeks I’ve been back from vacation, I’ve been thinking about this as I go about my day-to-day dealings with companies.

Twice in the last few weeks I’ve gotten dinged: once by a salesman and once by a so-called customer service rep (CSR). But helping to restore my faith in our industry, I also recently had a fantastic customer service experience as well.

But first the negative:

• I have a TV that for the last year has had sound problems. The sound intermittently stops working. With the TV under warranty, I called CompUSA’s warranty company to remedy the problem. It sent someone out who couldn’t find the problem. After another unsuccessful attempt to fix the problem, I again called the warranty company to get a new TV. The CSR told me there was nothing she could do except send out a third company to look at my TV. I calmly explained to her the facts of the case. She calmly explained that there’s nothing she can do. So I asked for her supervisor. The supervisor gave me the same speech — same language, same dull, disinterested, flat demeanor. Like robots, only less interesting. By then I realized that the company is just going to run out the clock on the warranty instead of giving me a new TV. The moral of this story: Some companies teach their frontline people to hold the line, not help customers.
• I recently paid a visit to my local Honda dealership to trade in my son’s car. This will be my third lease with this dealership. The salesman I normally use is busy, so he puts me in the capable hands of “Bill.” I tell Bill that I want the special that was advertised on the dealership’s website because it’s the lowest-priced car it sells. Let the games begin. I know how it works, but I never let car salespeople play. Bill makes three attempts to get me into a more expensive car by asking if I want this or want that on the car. I remind him for the third time that I only want the least expensive car the dealership sells of that model. You know, the one listed on its website. Bill responds to me with the following: “You want the lowest price in that model, OK, but don’t you want a car with air conditioning?” (F.Y.I., I live in Florida.) He says this with actual contempt. One minute later, he’s back waiting for another customer to annoy. The moral of this story: I’d have fired this salesman on the spot if it was my dealership. You cannot risk offending any customers, much less repeat customers.

And the positive:

• One word: Apple! I had to call its customer service department multiple times in the last few weeks with questions before installing its latest operating system. Each time I was greeted by a helpful human who worked with me patiently in a relaxed manner to get my issue resolved. Apple even offered to send me (for free, no less) operating system disks. (Mine were lost, hence the call.) I swear, it was like talking to the Apple guy from the TV commercials. Great job, Apple! You “get” customer service.

I don’t know about you, but every time I have to call a company’s customer service department I get a bit nervous in advance. Most of the time I know I’m going to be treated poorly by poorly trained, poorly managed people who are totally indifferent to me and my plight.

This message is for all of the C-suite people who read my column: Go to your call center now! Listen to your CSRs’ interactions; then do something about them. People are talking about you whether you like it or not. Positive or negative — it’s your choice.

“Unfriend”

As of this week,  unfriend is the word of the year for 2009. What’s my take? Social media is changing our lives, the way we communicate (social media took over the top spot from email communications by the way), and the way we shop (customers now find us via social channels).

So what are your thoughts? Discuss…

These days, that’s anything but typical. The average employee stays at a company about two to three years. Climbing the corporate ladder is now acceptably done by frequently switching jobs.

In essence, there’s no loyalty anymore between employees and their companies — and vice versa — which is a shame. Business continuity, team spirit and other vital relationship ingredients that can provide a positive effect on businesses are all but lost. But businesses are better served by nurturing long-term employees.

Building Your Personal Rolodex

The goal of business today is about adding new and influential contacts daily to your sphere of influence — i.e., building your networking Rolodex.  In fact. it is just as important to in todays business environment to ABN (always be networking) as it it to do your job to the best of your ability.

The current economy, with its impersonal, almost random, premature “because we can!” layoffs, and the need for business networking becomes more evident daily.

Which is why business networking Web sites, especially LinkedIn, are becoming the way of the future. LinkedIn is an amazing tool, and if you’re not currently a user, I suggest you join (it’s free). Right now, you can probably find 70 percent of the businesspeople you know using it. Presently Linkedin has over 51 million members for you to connect with.

Where to Start (Even if You’re Already a User)

Consider this: There are people who are on LinkedIn (they’re listed), and then there those who are proactive in taking advantage of its many powerful features. Regardless of which type of user you may or may not be, I suggest you do four things immediately:

1. Contact everyone you’ve worked with in the past (who is already linked to you) — as well as present — and request to be endorsed.

2. Join as many LinkedIn groups as you can. You’re allowed to join up to 50.

3. And if you haven’t done so already, add “link” requests to all your contacts in all of your address books (and ones who you have worked with, ask them to endorse you).

4. Add your linked in URL to all of your outbound emails, both personal and business.

You also can link to me at www.linkedin.com/in/jimwgilbert. And if you aren’t a LinkedIn member already, by all means spend a few minutes to join.

Want to become a Linkedin Power User?  Contact us at info@startsocialnow.com for details.

From its earliest days, relevance has been the goal for most direct and database marketers.  Today however, relevance is not nearly enough.  Today, we are closer than ever in actually realizing the power of 1:1 level relevant communications.  Some might argue that the capability for 1:1 has been around for some time and that many companies are already successfully practicing it, but to some extent I have to disagree.

When you do the breakdown, it comes down to four competencies; the technology, the vehicles, the smarts and the “missing link”.

We have the technology!

On one hand we have plenty of data processing capability to produce direct marketing campaigns with 1:1 granularity.  The complexity with which we can massage data is readily available, becoming simpler to use (even for a non technical person) and relatively inexpensive.

We have the vehicles!

We have also made major inroads in being able to turn that data into actionable campaigns through triggered mailings, print on demand (POD), variable data printing, Personal URL’s (PURLS) and landing pages to name a few.

We have the smarts!

In my career, I have met thousands of super-smart direct marketers.  Strategists, number crunchers, creative’s alike, all with the singular focus of driving ROI for their companies.

But is this enough?

The question is this: Does the ability to crunch the numbers and personalize a marketing vehicle really qualify as relevant?  This whole concept of relevance is flawed to begin with.  We assume that since we have the data, the smarts, and the methods for connecting the data to a vehicle that we are doing 1:1 marketing.

For example, just because we have date of birth in the database, and a great birthday offer to give away, is it relevant?  Is past purchase behavior relevant?  Sure, maybe to 1%, 2% or maybe even 10% of our database it is?  Let’s even go so far as to say that the perfectly executed birthday offer can get as high as 20% response.  But wait, doesn’t that means that 80% to 99% of our most relevant marketing is still being seen as irrelevant?

So what does all this mean for database marketing, and how does that tie into NCDM?

I have to say that as a direct marketer, from the first day I heard the sacred words “relevant” and “1:1 communication”, I’ve always been a little suspect.  To presume that we know exactly what our customers want, need and desire may be even a trifle arrogant, don’t you think?

To further muddy the waters, the level of message overload our society receives, combined with all of this semi-relevant communication, has in part created a suspicious, jaded consumer who is quick to dismiss any marketing vehicle it deems as disingenuous.

And therein lies the challenge:  a new context is needed for consumers to feel good about the offers they are receiving again.

So from that context, I believe that we are entering the age of implementing true 1:1 relevancy.  And this is where NCDM comes into the picture.

At NCDM 2008, the missing link was discovered!

As I attended session after session at NCDM, the concept that popped up, the central thesis this year was engagement.  Truly it was this year’s buzzword.  During his keynote address, Tom Boyles, SVP of CRM for Disney, put forth the notion that you can use your database to create an emotional link between what you sell and your customers.

In a keynote that was equal parts inspiration and case study, Boyles spoke of how Disney’s “customer focused journey” uses data and personalization to engage their customers (called guests) by capturing data at any point and time in all channels, including: online, agents, room and check in.  From the data they collect they can provide detailed recommendations on parks and attractions (more on that later).  In order to accomplish this they use analytic models, and “automated decision engines” to ensure a seamless customer experience that connects on their guests terms.  This has been their number one challenge; how to understand and connect the customer experience on all channels, and do so in a genuine way.

Their view of their guests is that no one or department in their organization owns the customer, but it is the customer who owns the moment using what they call their “real time engagement model”.

According to Disney’s Boyles, each step/contact with each guest is seen as a hurdle to get past in order to optimize their consumer promise.

On a tactical level, some but not all of the programs they implement are a free DVD available from their website that converts in the 10% range and offers custom park maps and experience based personal to-do items.  They also send out a completely personalized welcome mailer 24 hours after an online visit or call center interaction, with the mailer being customized to the guest’s life stage and past history with appropriate messaging and photos.

Beyond marketing campaigns, extending the 1:1 experience:

Other user experience benefits Disney offers their guests, and this one really hits home if you are a seasoned traveler, is the Disney Express.   Disney Express among other things Boyles described has the ability to drop off ones luggage at an airport, and find it in their room waiting for them at the resort hotel when they arrive.  This also holds true in reverse, that guests can leave their luggage in their room and find it (magically!) at the airport baggage claim when they arrive home.

In conclusion, Boyles recapped that at the end of the day Disney strives and meets it’s 1:1 goals of connecting on an emotional level, data accuracy, real time, through all channels and having a true relationship with their customer.

To me, that’s as close to relevant, 1:1 communication that I have seen.

Editors note: This article originally written by Jim Gilbert for All About ROI Magazine (formerly Catalog Success).  Jim is a weekly columnist there.