C3centricity Podcasts

Are you as shocked as I am, to think that there is a free communication channel which most marketers are not using effectively today? So what is this incredible channel? The Internet? No. Social Media? No. It's Packaging!

With the move of most major supermarket chains to offer online stores too, plus a few successful online only stores, such as Amazon in the US and Ocado in the U.K. manufacturers are now reconsidering just how big they could or should grow their online business. Today, supermarkets are scrambling to catch up as start-ups in many developed countries are giving this new type of freedom to consumers. The case for bricks & mortar stores Customers will always need to see and try before they buy in numerous categories. Offering free returns may work for apparel but not for electronics. Several home improvement brands and stores are already offering apps which allow customers to see their potential purchases in their homes. Or their paint and fabric choices "in situ" but actually virtually. The future of retail I decided to summarise some of the key changes which I believe are essential to answer customers needs already today, not just in the future: Convenience: customers have busy lives and prefer less and less t

Whether you believe that 60% of new product launches fail, or the number is 80% or 95%+, the truth is that successful innovation is rare. Why is this? Here are some solutions. Start with the Category rather than (just) the Customer Every customer-centric organisation should start their processes with a review of the customers they are looking to please. However, in order to do this, the actual first step to both insight development and successful innovation is to identify the category in which you are, or want to compete. Another practice I use is to zoom in or out when looking at a category, in order to identify new opportunities. Your business is or will change - fast - so don't depend on your skills alone Many industries have been cloned into totally new businesses as a result of technology and new customer priorities. As just one example of this, Food companies must now adapt to delivering family time, not just ready-made meals. There has therefore been an explosion in meal kits because families want

All marketers know their 5Ps, but do you know what a customer first strategy looks like in each of them? People In addition to knowing and describing your target customers in detail, the other tip I give my clients is to start and end every meeting by asking what your customers would think of the decision you are about to make/have just made. This one simple idea is incredibly powerful in identifying actions which are not customer centric. A customer-centric approach to your customers is both thinking about them in every action you take, as well as knowing them as deeply as you can and keeping this knowledge constantly updated. Product This is often seen as the most important “P” for many businesses. In fact, it is usually the one they think about day in and day out. But it’s not the most important in a customer centric organisation. Think about it. Without knowing the P for people in great detail, you won’t be able to optimise your offer in terms of the other four Ps. That’s why it’s a customer first

A customer first strategy is not hard. Just think customer first in everything you do. So how come most businesses get it spectacularly wrong? I think the reason is because they don't see the immediate return. Reasons for having a customer-first strategy There has been enough research done to prove that the return on a customer first strategy is significant: • 86% of buyers will pay more for a better customer experience. But only 1% feel that vendors consistently meet their expectations. • 89% of consumers have stopped doing business with a company after experiencing poor customer service. • By 2020, customer experience will overtake price and product as the key brand differentiator. • 10% increase in customer retention levels result in a 30% increase in value of a company. Those are numbers that would make any CEO sit up and take notice! But will it make them act? Marketing are too busy building brands With so much information available today, marketing is being challenged to demonstrate its ROI. This mi

What habits have you become so comfortable with that you don’t even notice or question them? These 13 marketing quotes are amongst my all time favourites. 1. “There may be Customers without Brands, but there are no Brands without Customers.” Anon Brands depend on customers and if companies remember this, then they can only succeed. 2. “Nothing can add more power to your life than concentrating all your energies on a limited set of targets.” Nido Qubein One of the biggest mistakes marketing can make is to not appropriately define its target audience. 3. “The more you engage with customers the clearer things become and the easier it is to determine what you should be doing.” John Russell, President, Harley-Davidson Every employee should have regular customer connections added to their annual objectives. Customer connections inspire new thinking, can identify previously unknown issues and excite everyone to think customer first. 4. “If you use standard research methods you will have the same insights as

How can I innovate more successfully? According to Harvard Professor Dr Srini Pillay, "Humans have a natural aversion to innovation because it involves a healthy dose of uncertainty and risk." Unfortunately, we try to reduce this risk by referencing past events to help us to predict the probability of our future success. This is why the customer is the answer! It is only by getting closer to our customers and remaining curious, that we have any chance of increasing our success in satisfying them. Therefore, it makes sense that we involve our customers in helping us innovate. Not as a judge of concepts; we know that consumers don't know what they want, at least not until they see it. However, they do know what their pains are; what is wrong with a product or service and what they would rather have. Another article in the HBR from McKinsey concludes it takes many skills and cultural changes for most organisations to become more innovative: Where do I find out what issues my brand has? The health o

I've been a customer champion for most of my career. But with the likes of Richard Branson saying it's employees first, customers second, my confidence was beginning to slide a little. Thank goodness, therefore, for some new research from Global RepTrak® that has finally confirmed what I have always believed. Customers care about themselves first and foremost! It was a chart I first saw on MarketingCharts.com that alerted me to this work by RepTrak™. I wanted to take a look behind these numbers and try to understand why some influencers have been pushing employee centricity. Products And Services Are Key The first four factors of reputation are all product related. Therefore it's clear that customers think about themselves first. Great customer service won't make up for a terrible product or service offer. So every organisation needs to ensure that what they propose is the very best they possibly can. However, it is also true that the quality and value you offer depend to a large extent on the quality of you

Here at C3Centricity, we have been measuring marketing priorities with our blog followers for several years. So here are this year's top marketing needs. Insight Development Insight development has moved from fourth position last year to first place this year. Even though we’ve been talking about it for decades most marketers are still struggling to find insights in their information. Insight development takes time & far more information than just market research. Major CPG companies spend weeks or months with a team of experts from different specialities including psychology. Don't leave it to just marketers and marketer researchers to work out. Understanding the Category and its Users These are the foundations of marketing, so it may come as a surprise to you to see them in the top five priorities for this year. Not to me. Our customers are changing dramatically, as we ourselves are too. Regularly update your brand personas & follow the changes in your customers as closely as you can. Also, don't forget

Brand image is expressed in many ways, which can also help brand recognition. Which of them have a face, a voice, an aroma, a unique packaging, a slogan or a sound that immediately identifies them? If they do, what does it bring in addition to the brand in terms of brand recognition? Face One of the first faces I think of for a brand is Flo from Progressive. She has won the hearts of Americans over the years, with her helpful but quirky discussions with potential customers. George Clooney has been the face of Nespresso for many years now. He started as smooth and superior, but over the years he has become more approachable, even funny. There are many other examples of "faces" that we now immediately recognise and associate with their brands. Even if some have been dropped over the years, they still maintain their strong connection: SC Johnson's Mr Clean and the muscle man Quaker Oats and the Quaker. Coca-Cola and the Polar Bear Marlboro and the Cowboy - Darrell Duracell / Energiser and the Pink Bunny So

My seven learnings about excellence in customer experience: 1. Introduce yourself In business, we often forget to introduce people in meetings and when we do, we don't explain their responsibilities. Perhaps if we did this, there would be far fewer people in meetings, as only those with a real reason to be there would attend! Direct contacts with customers, whether by phone, email, chat, social media or in person, deserve the same detailed introduction. This moves the connection from a somewhat cold, professional exchange, to something far more friendly and personal, if not actually personalised. 2. Confirm that you know me Most businesses could benefit from confirming who their customers are. Whether by careful targeting for marketing purposes or by reviewing notes of previous interactions with customer services, a company needs to immediately recognise a (returning) customer Personalisation has become essential in all engagements between companies and their customers. In fact, this is one of the most impor

Review of the top 2016 marketing posts on customer understanding, connection and engagement. These highly popular posts confirm their value & topic importance. A must-listen podcast for all marketers, brand builders and customer centricity champions. Filled with ideas, tips and cheak-lists to optimise your business in 2017.

What does a business need to do to increase their customers’ satisfaction? There are seven facts that become apparent from this podcast: 1. Businesses should always provide a positive customer experience and do whatever it takes to satisfy, but ideally delight. 2. Companies need to go beyond the mere process of customer centricity, to truly put their customers at the heart of the organisation. 3. Customer centricity adds demonstrated value to a company; it should be a no-brainer. 4. Customer centric improvements are happening too slowly in most industries, especially when customers are becoming increasingly demanding. 5. Providing customer service doesn’t guarantee customer satisfaction. 6. A positive customer experience increases loyalty and advocacy. 7. Excellent customer service enables differentiation and even higher prices. In summary, people want businesses to listen and understand them. Learn how in this podcast.

Businesses often make the mistake of trying to sell more to everyone. Why is this a mistake? Well, if you try to please everyone you end up delighting no-one. This is why best-in-class marketing works with best-practice segmentation. Whatever method you use for segmenting and choosing your target customers, the results of your exercise of customer grouping needs to meet the following five conditions, known collectively as the MIDAS touch. Measurable: The individual groups need to be clearly defined and quantifiable using KPI’s such as size, market share, value share. Identifiable: Each segment must have a distinct profile and each customer must be attributed to only one segment. Definable: Every cluster must be easy to describe and share with others so that you have a mutual understanding of each of them. Actionable: The groups must be easy to identify, in order to be able to target your actions and communications to them. Substantial: The chosen segment must be financially viable to target, which means

Peru is a remarkable country whose image is dominated by Machu Picchu. But it deserves so much more. This post uses examples experienced by Denyse Drummond-Dunn during her visit, to show how Peruvians are experts in customer delight! It includes how Peruvians welcome and truly value the business of its guests. From travelling in the luxurious coaches between cities to the excellent, if sadly old-fashioned service on the Andean Explorer, Denyse shares the inspiring customer centricity she witnessed everywhere. The examples will inspire every listener to improve how they treat their customers with examples to steal with pride.

There are many articles on advertising testing, but this one answers IF you should be testing at all! It covers the when, what & how of ad testing. In summary when it comes to testing your advertising: 1. Know with whom you want to communicate. 2. Know what your target audience wants to hear. 3. Know why you are communicating, what the message is that you want to send. 4. Know which concept(s) or ideas have the most resonance with both your target audience and objectives, and why. 5. Know how the concept(s) will develop into a campaign across media. 6. Know how you are going to communicate, the most relevant medium and channels for your target audience.

Checking a website is often the first step a customer makes when they are interested in a brand or manufacturer. Therefore we should ensure ours responds to their needs, whatever the reason for their visit. This podcast shares the nine essential elements of a customer centric website.

Many companies create great new products and services – from their perspective – but they fail! In such a situation, it is almost always due to an outdated innovation process, in which the customer has not been involved. I know it can be difficult to innovate in this new age of technology, but it remains vital for growth. This podcast shares some of the latest ways to improve your innovation success rate.

Have you been working with the marketing 5Ps but still don't seem to know your customers any better? Try these 7Qs and see a real difference! This post gives you the questions to ask yourself and the actions to take to build your brand.