Wednesday, June 26, 2019

What Consumers Do Not Trust About Technology

COMMENTARY

What Consumers Do Not Trust About Technology

by Laurie Sullivan , Staff Writer @lauriesullivan, 3 hours ago

Many consumers do not trust technology, suggesting that search marketers may need to rethink the use of bots and services that send consumers through an automated loop where they eventually end up talking to a bot built on artificial intelligence. The strategy creates a disconnect and fails to emotionally connect the person with the brand.

Consumers have not bought into interaction with brands through digital-only systems. Many still value human support, especially after leaving an online ad.

In a survey commissioned by Invoca and conducted online by The Harris Poll, 58% of the more than 2,048 U.S. adults participating in the survey admit to feeling frustrated and 18% felt angry when not given the chance to reach a human.

Only 36% of those participating in the survey believe that an entirely automated transaction process would be just as effective as completing the same transaction with a human, and only when it’s for a product or service they have purchased in the past.

Of those who participated in the survey, 87% of respondents said they have reached out to a company and experienced the option to only communicate with AI or automated communications.

The study explores consumer attitudes toward AI and automation in the brand experience, and suggests consumers remain wary of trusting information or advice from AI-based interactions, especially when it comes to more complex information.

Some 49% of consumers would trust an AI bot for retail advice, but 20% would trust an AI bot for healthcare advice and 19% would trust an AI bot for financial services advice.

Trust differs from industry to industry. Some 38% of consumers say they would trust AI for advice check-in or compare flight and hotel options or restaurant recommendations.

Age also makes a difference. Of those between the ages of 18 and 34, 80% would trust advice from AI in at least one industry -- finance, healthcare, retail, hospitality, insurance or home improvement. Some 49% of those ages 65 or older would not trust AI in any of the categories.

While 49% of consumers would trust AI-generated advice for retail item information, only 20% would trust AI-generated advice for healthcare information and just 19% would trust AI-generated advice for financial services advice.

Some 38% of consumers say they would trust AI-generated advice for hospitality advice, such as checking in for a flight or comparing flight and hotel options or restaurant recommendations.

When it comes to healthcare, consumers would rather pick up a phone to make a call or complete a transaction. Some 32% of consumers prefer to complete a transaction on the phone, compared with 30% in-person and 25% online.

Many consumers also prefer to complete retail transactions in person. Some 46% prefer to purchase clothing, electronics, and home goods in the store, compared with 35% who say they prefer to complete these types of transactions online.

Some 51% prefer to complete a transaction in person when dealing with financial services, compared with 27% who prefer to make the transaction online.

For home maintenance and improvement transactions, in-person tops the list at 39%, followed by online and phone calls at about 24% each.

How to Sell Radio Advertising

BY GLENN HALBROOKS

Those are just two advantages anyone working in radio sales must tout when selling radio advertisements over other forms of media. The key to selling radio ads is to convince your clients that they need them. The best way to do that is to show them the bottom line.

The Price Is Right With Radio Ads

Inexpensive or free production costs can seal the deal with a client. At many stations, the person who sells the spot writes the script. Most ads need only a solid radio personality to act as the announcer. You might add some bells and whistles with background music and sound effects, but stations can obtain stock versions of both at low cost.

Since the salesperson and announcer already draw salaries as part of the staff, the production cost to the station is minimal. That means the station can waive any fees it might charge for the ads if the client agrees to purchase a certain number of spots.

You also can save money for your client by acting as a consultant. If they want to lavish money on some well-known voice to make the on-air pitch, remind them that the expenditure won't automatically boost their sales result if people don't recognize the high-priced vocal talent.

If the client wants to play a more active role and produce a spot that you know will fail, gently explain what will work for them. You might point out how the best radio ads incorporate the six types of media advertising.

Advertisements Can Air Quickly

Television or newspaper advertisements can take weeks, if not months of production before the target audience ever sees them. Radio advertisements can be written, produced and aired all in the same day if a station has open advertising slots on its program log. Those availabilities or "avails" are hard to get during the December shopping season but should be easy to offer during the rest of the year.

You can use expediency as a key selling point. If it's late August and a clothing store is late launching the Labor Day sale for its fall fashions, it still has time to mount a successful radio advertising campaign. Getting a TV commercial on the air or in the print media on such short notice can be mission impossible. Make that work for you.

Radio Advertisements Hit a Target Audience

Many potential clients may be confused by the term "target audience" because they want to sell their products to everyone. That's why they often waste money on ineffective newspaper or TV advertising that doesn't reach their potential customers.

Radio formats make targeting an audience easy. Most business owners instinctively know if the people they want to reach; listen to hip-hop, country or sports radio. If a car dealer wants to move pickup trucks off the lot and you sell radio advertising for a country music station, you likely won't have to spend time convincing the dealership that your station is the right place to advertise. However, you may have to show other prospects why matching the client to a target audience is critical to getting results.

If you work for a cluster of radio stations, you can work a deal with the pickup truck dealership for the country station, and then go next door and sell ads for a sports bar on your sports radio station. Radio is ideal for that sort of smaller, targeted campaign.

Love Those Low CPMs

Another advantage of radio advertising advantage is its low CPM, or "cost per thousands," rate. Explain to your clients why the world's slickest, most creative advertisement won't boost sales if it runs only one time unless it appears during the Super Bowl. An ad must repeatedly air if you want the sales message to stick in the audience's brain.

Radio advertising provides the opportunity to repeatedly air the client's message multiple times throughout the day at relatively minimal cost. By the time a listener hears the same ad five times on the way to work and another five times on the way home, she will know the car dealership is great deals on the most rugged pickup trucks that money can buy.

Simple Message

Advertising rarely works when the sales message is muddled. Readers will overlook a newspaper ad that is lost on whatever clutter crowds the rest of the page. TV ads often have so much going on -- music, pictures, flashy editing -- that viewers don't know where to place their focus.

Radio advertising demonstrates that a simple message is usually the most effective. A restaurant offering 99-cent tacos on Tuesdays can use the 10-, 15-, or 30-second ad to simply state, "Come get great-tasting tacos for 99 cents every Tuesday. Here's where to go." The listeners can't see the tacos, but that's where effective advertising copywriting can use words to paint the mental image of fresh, hot, spicy, crispy, tacos filled to the brim with delectable goodies.

Radio advertising offers a wealth of advantages over other forms of media. Emphasize each of them, and you'll persuade clients to buy spots on your station that will increase sales and decrease their expenditures.

Tuesday, June 25, 2019

Is Customer Service The Same As Customer Experience? I Debate Myself

COMMENTARY

Is Customer Service The Same As Customer Experience? I Debate Myself

by Steve Olenski , Yesterday

Like many others, I’m sure, I talk to myself quite frequently. And these conversations very often occur out loud versus internally — which apparently means I’m quite intelligent, as research has found that speaking out loud to yourself was found to be a trait of higher cognitive function.

So I’ve got that going for me, which is nice.

Ask Questions/Get Answers

A few weeks ago, I posed the following query on LinkedIn: Do you think customer experience is the same as customer service?

The results were all in the no column, with responses ranging from just plain No to “No. Customer service is an element of the overall customer experience but it is definitely not the same thing.”

I also got some replies that attempted to make the point that one is part of the other:

“Part of, yes. The same as, no. Instead, customer service is a component of customer experience because it is often a repetitive touch point throughout the customer journey that influences overall satisfaction.”
“Ingredient of, not the same as...customer service is to customer experience as flour is cake!

Customer Service IS the Same as Customer Experience

Remember the scene in the film “A Few Good Men” where Kevin Bacon’s character is giving his opening monologue to the jury? Of course you do. One of the things he does is plant a seed in the mind of the jury about what they’re going to hear from the other attorney, AKA Tom Cruise.

“Their attorney, Lieutenant Kaffee, is going to pull off a little ‘magic act.’ He's going to try a little misdirection. He's going to astonish you with stories and rituals, and dazzle you with official sounding terms.”

I bring this up because my learned opponent, AKA me, will surely attempt to “dazzle” you as well with statistics and quotes and who knows what else to attempt to persuade you to believe that customer service is in fact NOT the same as customer experience.

Well I'm here to tell you it is.

And I’m going to make this really simple and easy. Here are the three different definitions of the word service when used a noun, adjective and verb:

(n) an act of helpful activity; help; aid.
(adj) of service; useful.
(v) to supply with aid, information, or other incidental services.

Now, you tell me. Don’t ALL of these definitions tie directly into customer experience? Isn’t CX the act of being helpful, providing aid and information? Of course they are! I think this proves conclusively that customer service is in fact the SAME as customer experience.

The defense rests.

Customer Service is NOT the Same as Customer Experience

My knowledgeable opponent is right. No, not that these are the same. He’s right that I will reference stats about CX for the simple reason that the numbers don’t lie.

But before I “dazzle” you with numbers, allow me to share some exceptional quotes that encapsulate my thinking:

“The difference between customer service and customer experience is that while customer service is one piece of the puzzle — focused on human interaction and directly supporting customers — customer experience is the sum of the entire customer journey with your business.”
“Customer service is not the totality of customer experience.”
“Think about customer service as reactive. And think about customer experience as proactive.”

Rest assured I could go on — but you get the point.

Now as for statistics, here are just three of what could surely be 100 that speak, no, SCREAM, to the vital importance of providing the best customer experience each time, every time.

86% of consumers will pay more for a better brand experience.
67% of consumers say their standard for good experiences is higher than it’s ever been before.
64% of consumers find the customer experience to be more important than price.

I will stop here out of respect for my defeated opponent. I think you will agree my case is overwhelmingly compelling and undeniable and irrefutable. But don’t worry about my opponent. I’ll buy him a cup of coffee and he’ll be fine.

Aging Is About Living in the Moment

Author

Peter Hubbell

Publish date

June 21, 2019

Channel

The Age of Aging

Just when you think you understand Baby Boomers, you don't. They are a living paradox and as they live longer, their behavior becomes even more perplexing.

Just as we've established that the Boomers have an irrational expectation of a future of ageless living, they're also demonstrating a penchant for living in the moment. How is it that the generation with a notoriously long-term view of life is simultaneously fixated on the short-term of life?

While we have defined aging as the future of living, it's also true that the plan for the future begins today. Viewed in this context, aging is a series of todays and one's outlook for a life well lived thus becomes numerous todays lived to their fullest potential. Albert Einstein summed this up brilliantly: "Life is a preparation for the future; and the best preparation for the future is to live as if there were none."

The duality of the Boomers' life view is a real conundrum if you're a marketer. Think of a financial services firm that's selling long-term retirement products to Boomers. Why not? This is the generation that plans to live forever and to live well, so naturally they would be smart to set more money aside for the future, right? Well, not so fast. These are the same people who are living for the day with a "buy now, pay later" mentality. For all of the businesses that are wrestling with this same challenge, here's some perspective to help make sense of it.

Life Accelerates. Ask any aging person and they will tell you that time goes by faster as we get older. Growing up in the '60s and '70s, schools would empty each summer to the sounds of Alice Cooper's "School's Out" and our lazy, carefree days of summer felt like weeks, almost as if we were living our own version of Hollywood's Endless Summer. Now, summer feels like a rushed span of four weeks between Memorial Day and Labor Day, remembered more for the things we regret not doing than the things we did.

There are many explanations as to why life seems to accelerate as we age, the most popular being mathematical -- i.e. the more days you have lived, the less each new day represents as a percentage of your total life. Regardless of the explanation, as it becomes ever more obvious that life is accelerating and that we can do little to slow it down, we're responding in the only way we know how: We're putting more into every day to get the most out of life.

If you're a marketer, you need to do the same thing. Look for the ways that your product or service can improve the Boomers' sense of daily productivity and the personal satisfaction that comes along with it. An easy one is to help simplify an aspect of their lives that's getting in the way of more time spent on quality time.

Hedonism. The Boomers' hedonistic tendencies (remember disco?) are now manifesting themselves in more self-centric ways. They've worked hard to get to this point in their lives and with the newfound freedom that comes with age the pursuit of pleasure is taking on a much higher priority. With it is coming a sense of entitlement that has them putting their own needs ahead of others'. Estate planners are on the front lines of this, with many of their clients opting to spend the money they earned on themselves instead of leaving it for others. The prevailing attitude is one of "it's my life and I'll live it the way I want to." You probably have a point-of-view about this narcissistic outlook on life but put it aside. If you want to win with Boomers, you've got to play into their hands. Help them with their pursuit of pleasure and acknowledge that they've earned the privilege to enjoy themselves at their age. A brand that demonstrates that they truly understand Boomers will always earn their admiration.

New Materialism. After a lifetime measured by financial success and the accumulation of material things, the Boomers' priorities are shifting and they're now opting for experiential materialism. Travel is a great example of this. Now that the Boomers have more time on their hands and they're largely free of job and family responsibilities, they're finally able to take the dream trips that have been on their minds for years. True, at a certain point in life, experiences bring more joy and satisfaction than possessions, but there's something else at work here. The Boomers are keen on new experiences, but they also want to discover them before others do. Discovery has social currency to it and with that comes materialism. Why not be the first in your circle of friends to travel the Ring Road in Iceland? As a marketer, your goal is to get them to try new things for the first time but to also help them believe that they're the first ones to discover them. Personalization and exclusivity go a long way here.

If the Boomers' penchant for living in the now feels a bit like a generational carpe diem, then consider what the Roman poet Horace intended when he originally wrote those words as part of a longer phrase: "carpe diem, quam minimum credula postero." Translated this means "seize the day, put very little trust in tomorrow." By viewing aging as the future of living, they are bringing positivity to a future that is uncertain and prone to be unpleasant. By living in the now, they are hedging their bet on the future.

The generation that has shown no intention of slowing down is living life in fast-forward and going places that other generations never dreamed possible. Even though they're still unpredictable, one thing is for sure -- their lives are getting more interesting by the day.

Should More Retailers Open Up Shop On College Campuses?

FN

Footwear News.....

Should More Retailers Open Up Shop On College Campuses?

Boston College students Alli Urbon, left, and Eddie Dols, shop for back-to-school supplies at the CityTarget store in BostonBack to School Shopping Target, Boston, USA — Boston College students doing their back-to-school shopping at a CityTarget in Boston.

CREDIT: MICHAEL DWYER/AP/SHUTTERSTOCK

As retailers continue to make adjustments amid a changing landscape, some have set their eye on a new target: college campuses.

College students are buying than ever before, per the National Retail Federation, with back-to-school spending last year reaching a record of $55.3 billion ($942.17 per student).

“College shoppers are prioritizing and increasing their spending budgets in essential categories including clothing, furnishings and shoes,” explained NRF vice president of research development and industry analysis Mark Mathews.

But the payout goes beyond move-in season, with students continuing to buy food, toiletries and seasonably appropriate clothing throughout the semester. All year round, retailers have an exciting opportunity to tap into a captive audience — and to potentially create lifelong customers.

“Campuses employ people [as well as] bring in [shoppers] through the student population, so they basically create their own community. That’s a built-in customer base for many retailers,” said Steve Niggeman, executive vice president and principal for Metro Commercial, which manages real estate deals between schools and retailers like Target. “When you look at a college campus and [its potential] customer base, you’re talking about college students from 18-23 years old. Retailers have a very good chance of now creating [long-term] loyalty around their brands with that customer base.”

Over the last few years, Target has added around 100 small-format stores, which are about a third as big as its traditional locations. Around 25% of those are on college campuses with inventory that caters specifically to those populations. Walmart has also experimented with adding stores directly at schools, though not on as large a scale.

Meanwhile, Amazon has opened a number of fulfillment centers located on or near college campuses — allowing students to place orders online for convenient pick-up. The e-tail giant is also targeting college kids through its new Off-to-College e-store, which lets shoppers browse through moderately priced dorm decor, apparel, textbooks and more in one convenient location.

Still, Niggeman said he hasn’t seen many apparel and footwear companies opening up shop at schools.

“I think shoe brands are [a category] that would be successful on a college campus,” Niggeman noted. “And as it relates to branding, you also think how the shoe brand can incorporate the university. There’s a lot of ways I think those types of retailers can be real successful.”

But for now, big box retailers like Target and e-commerce giant Amazon may be most poised to tap into the college market, according to Nick Egelanian, founder and president of SiteWorks Retail; he also noted the rise of fast-casual restaurants on campuses.

“The last thing on [college students’] minds is shopping,” Egelanian said. “You’d probably find a higher internet sales concentration at college campuses, partly because there aren’t as many stores and partly because they’re using their parents’ credit cards. That said, if you put a Target on a campus that has 35,000 students, you’re going to make sales.”

While a 35,000-student strong campus can support a Target, not every school is the right fit. Two big factors to consider are size and location (urban vs. suburban, for example) explained Niggeman and Egelanian. Major public universities like Penn State, UT-Austin and Ohio State — all homes to small-format Targets — are thus best-positioned to handle retail.

“When you drill down on a campus setting and the students and even the faculty, understanding their needs and understanding what’s there is really what [retailers] need to do,” said Niggeman. “There are campuses that have 3,000-5,000 people; that’s not the right setting for a retail store.”

The rise of campus retail might not be a rise as much as an expansion, Egelanian noted. For years, urban campuses, like Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. and Northwestern University in Evanston, Ill. have been centered around shopping areas including apparel and footwear stores — but a rise in student affluence at private universities and selective public schools could more opportunity than before for some retailers. A 2019 Pew Research Center report showed an uptick in the percentage of high-income dependent students at selective schools — although the levels of students in poverty at public universities and other colleges are rising just as much — if not more.

“Do I think you’re going to see shopping centers built just to serve campuses in most cases? Probably not. But I think you’ll see more Targets — that makes sense,” Egelanian said. “You might even see some specialty stores like Adidas and so forth.”

LeNoble's Media Sales Insights

Wednesday, June 26, 2019