Being direct... AdVantage Nov 2003
Which is better in the long run: Deserving someone's loyalty or trying to buy it ?
Many of the things that I have learnt about direct marketing over the years have come from attending a number of US DMA Symposia. Since sending my previous column off to the editor by e-mail, my wife and I have boarded a plane or two and enjoyed something of a nostalgia trip to the United States. Even though the DMA was not the specific purpose of this particular trip, I am always interested - each time that I visit - to observe the US market changing.
The United States economy is simply not in very good shape, right now. On all the occasions that I have been there, I have never seen the retail shops so completely devoid of customers. One gets the distinct impression that consumer attitude is generally one of 'wait and see', and that many people are living in a state of 'limbo' - only spending money on necessities, and food!! It's really scary!
As someone very involved in the world of retail - where the commercial rubber meets the road, so to speak - some changes are quite obvious. Most (if not all) chain stores have some form of loyalty card programme, although one gets the distinct impression that these programmes have more to do with locking customers into long-term discounts, than they have to do with creating a genuine sense of 'Caring For Customers'.
A relatively new kid on the block: The Electronic Gift Card - gives added support to my observation about the promotional discount motive. These are the equivalent of a gift debit card, where value is loaded into an account (accessed through the card) before it is given to a third party. After activation, it can be reloaded with more discounted value at any time, and continuously used as tender - to make purchases.
The business idea is simple: get the money upfront, with a discount as motivator; provide ongoing real-time access to the value; - and it's all about buying brand-loyalty in the name of giving! I have doubts as to the long-term benefit of this approach - except perhaps in 'commodity'-type product categories.
Talking about Loyalty - my column in the September issue attempted to describe my disappointment at the lack of compliance on the part of some of the entrants to this year's Assegai Awards. Well, the other night (a couple of days after returning from the US) together with around 550 other people, I attended the actual Assegai Awards event at the Vodadome.
The ceremony - the first Assegais under the auspices of the MFSA, was a slick and highly entertaining affair, and full marks should go to the organising team for an Advertising Awards event that did not manage to bore the pants off the audience. I was particularly happy that the judging committee chose not to make awards in certain categories - a vindication of some of the comments in my column.
At the same time, it was refreshing for many of us who have perhaps been at the 'bleeding edge' for many years, to see the extent to which the so-called mainstream agencies have now embraced the technology-driven nature of modern marketing communication, and who submitted entries for the first time. At last, the early signs of integrated communication - for real!!
While sitting at the table of my host Nici Stathacopolous, another thought went through my 'naked' head (the decision to adopt the shaven no-hair look, rather than develop a 'Robinson-Sweep' over my fast-balding dome, seemed to cause some degree of interest at my first public outing thereof - see pic above) - What about the psychological dynamics of peer-group affirmation, and the lessons that we could learn from these behaviours - and maybe, even apply to the complexities of customer relationships?
People really do enjoy being acknowledged by their peers for the work that they do, and so, I submit, do the people with whom business does business. Being made to feel special, and even important (as a customer) doesn't take a lot of effort, and doesn't even cost very much - often just a modicum of focus.
Sadly, when humanity seems far too busy worrying about how to get: laid; drunk; successful; rich; etc, most people do not appear to have time to think about anyone else - let alone expend energy to do something for someone else.
Business strategists are willing to spend literally 'anything' when they believe that they can control or manipulate a process (trying to buy loyalty through Electronic Gift Cards), but they seem to balk at the idea of encouraging the loyalty of customers - simply by making customers feel appreciated.
Just how did the shopkeepers of my youth manage to build successful businesses? They focussed on delivering value, in an environment of being NICE to people. You don't need any technology to be able to do that!!