Flooring The Consumer

Jason Baer On Bridging New & Old: Social Media Series

cbwhittemore@gmail.com (C. B. Whittemore) — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 12:02:00 +0000

This week's guest for Flooring The Consumer's Social Media Series: Bridging New & Old is Jason Baer.

Jason Baer exudes contagious enthusiasm for connecting with people and building communities using social digital tools. As President of Convince & Convert, he offers corporations and public relations firms social media strategy, consulting and training, and advanced email strategy, to assist them in "harnessing the awesome power of social media strategy." His focus, though, is "think social media tools last, not first" -- a message that comes through in Convince and Convert [which just turned one] and in person, as I experienced recently at the MarketingProfs B2B Forum in Boston when we sat next to one another at dinner [and I received the really cool bottle opener business card].

Jason is no novice to the world of Internet marketing and strategy; he's been involved in it since 1994 and has just been named one of 5 Top independent bloggers about email marketing in Top Independent Email Marketing Blogs. Pretty cool!

You'll find Jason actively engaged with Twitter as @JayBaer . Since October 2008, he has bridged the two platforms via the Twitter 20 Interview Series, a thought-provoking interview series on Twitter with luminaries in social media and digital marketing, recaptured on his blog. Imagine, twenty 140-character questions answered in real-time.

C.B.: Jason, how/why did you get involved in social media?

Jason: I've been in digital marketing since the inception of the medium in 1994, with an emphasis on strategy and ease of use. I've seen the transformative power of the Web first-hand. After the dot bomb period, I knew there was another wave coming, but I wasn't sure what it would be. I felt "Web 2.0" was too tools and technology focused, and while providing tremendous information retrieval conveniences, left the user in the cold.

I was always a big networker - I was that guy at different business happy hours five nights a week. As Blackberries and the rest of the craziness that has eaten into our time took root, I began searching for ways to reliably replicate my networking online. I was an early adopter of LinkedIn for that reason. When people started to actually accept my LinkedIn invites and not peg me as a stalker, I figured we'd moved past the "it's all kids hanging out on MySpace" and toward a new means of connection.

I sold my previous digital agency, Mighty Interactive, and almost exactly a year ago started Convince & Convert to help brands and agencies connect authentically and meaningfully with their constituencies.

C.B.: What do you like most about social media?

Jason: I am consistently awed and encouraged by social media's ability to change brand perception and increase loyalty and advocacy. As KD Paine said at the MarketingProfs B2B Forum recently, the real measure of social media success is whether people exposed to you in social media think differently about you than they would have otherwise.

Somewhere in the last 50 years, business and marketing became more about science and quants, and less about people. Every numeral on the spreadsheet represents a real person, with real needs, and real feelings about your product or service. Social media to me is about one thing - humanization. And its ability to bring companies closer to their customers is unparalleled - when fully embraced.

C.B.: What do you like least about social media?

Jason: Like all things digital, especially those that jump the chasm of geekiness and become part of the larger culture, social media today lends itself to purely tactical thinking. "Let's do a Facebook page!" "Let's start a Twitter account!" The good news is that interest in social media among companies has never been higher. The bad news is that many of them are viewing social media as just that - media. A new, tactical place to spread brand messaging.

That's why the two things I most consistently write and speak about are social media being better served as a customer loyalty mechanism than a customer acquisition mechanism, and the critical importance of integrated social media strategy.

C.B.: How has social media changed how you interact with the marketplace as a consumer or customer?

Jason: As a social media consultant, I'm probably a bit atypical in this regard. But, I definitely find myself creating a lot more content about brands that I am pleased (or displeased) about. I'll tweet about a bad hotel experience because I want to see if the brand is listening or engaging in social media. I'm also much more likely to consume brand-generated content if it's interesting, authentic, and tells a story.

It's also very interesting to see humanization at work. When I think Ford, I think Scott Monty. When I think Dell, I think Richard and Lionel. When I think Radian6, I think Amber Naslund. The companies that are making the transition from logo-centrism to people-centrism are the ones doing it right in my opinion.

C.B.: What 5 suggestions do you have for companies to implement so they can more effectively bridge old media with new media and connect with end users?

Jason:
1. Get your house in order. Social media won't solve your problems, it magnifies them. If your product or service aren't dialed in, focus on that before you get involved in social media.

2. Create a helpfulness plan. At its core, social media and humanization remove friction and uncertainty from the customer<>company relationship and transaction. Companies have marketing plans, operations plans, financial plans, disaster recovery plans, and a lot more. But they never have a helpfulness plan. Work cross-functionally within your company to come up with 10 concrete ways to help your customers. Make their lives easier. That's the nucleus of your social media efforts.

3. Develop a social media strategy. It's okay to NOT be involved in social media. It's not a requirement yet. But if you're ready, think through with whom you're going to interact. Prospects? Customers? Repeat customers? Realize that social media users are not homogeneous. Not every customer is going to create a video just because you ask them too. Social media has gotten so broad, and you have to focus your efforts on particular segments of the population that interacts with your brand. Figure out what success look like before you start, and determine how you're going to measure it.

4. Tell a story. Features and benefits don't usually work in social media, because they aren't inherently interesting enough to get customers excited. Do some brand anthropology (actually, it's best to get agencies or partners involved, as it's very hard for employees to see the forest through the trees), and figure out what's the soul of the brand. What's the "one thing" that sets the company apart, and how can you build engaging content and connectivity about it? Zappos is great at this. They aren't in the shoe business or the apparel business. They are in the customer service business. They are Nordstrom's 2.0. That's their brand story.

5. Don't expect overnight success. Yes, social media can change the nature of how brands are perceived. But that happens on an individual or small group basis, not by the thousands or millions. Social media wins hearts and minds one at a time. It's not as efficient as TV or other traditional marketing efforts, but it can be more powerful (due to authenticity), and it's a lot more long-lasting. That's why social media "campaigns" can be very effective and innovative, but they have to be supported by ongoing dialog between the brand and its fans that's more customer service 2.0 than marketing 2.0.

C.B.: Any other thoughts to share about the effectiveness of social media in forging stronger relations with customers and how best to do so.

Jason: Your strongest social media assets are your people. Period. Give them loose guidelines for social media engagement, and then turn them loose. Social capital is accrued by individuals, and loaned to the brands they represent. Each of your employees growing their own networks by being helpful, interesting, and awesome will benefit your company as much or more than any "official" effort. That's why the community manager trend is so exciting. Companies are realizing that sometimes it's better to make the people of the company the stars, not the products or services they provide.

Thank you, Jason!

Comments? Questions? Feedback?

Jason says: "Social media ... is about one thing - humanization. And its ability to bring companies closer to their customers is unparalleled - when fully embraced." How succinct and completely relevant!

What about social media as customer loyalty rather than customer acquisition mechanism?

I love the notion of a 'helpfulness plan' with focus on customers and helping them. Do you have one? How do you focus on your customers?

Then, what about your people? How have you empowered them to deliver on helpfulness to customers?

For additional insights from participants in the Social Media Series: Bridging New & Old, please visit The Entire Bridging New & Old Series.

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Social Flooring Index: Facebook - Beta

cbwhittemore@gmail.com (C. B. Whittemore) — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 12:04:00 +0000

Social Flooring Index Wordle from Flooring The Consumer.
Yesterday's post - The Social Flooring Index - Beta Version: Twitter - introduced you to Flooring The Consumer's new Social Flooring Index.

Via the Social Flooring Index, I plan to capture who in flooring is doing what with social tools. And, there's plenty! In fact, I was delighted to find as much as I did. I can assure you there wasn't much happening a year ago.

This first version of the Social Flooring Index looks at Twitter, Facebook and blogs separately. The focus - at this point - is completeness. If you know of an organization in the flooring industry taking part in social media who isn't listed, would you let me know?

Facebook. Post college age people have gotten very active on Facebook in the past six months. [See Women Over the Age of 55 Are the Largest Growing Group on Facebook and 2009 Facebook Demographics and Statistics Report: 276% Growth in 35 to 54 Year Old Users.]

I originally enjoyed Facebook to stay connected with the amazing people I've met as a result of blogging and the collaborative book project, Age of Conversation. [I also created both a Wear-Dated company page and group.] Only recently have I experienced it to connect with long lost friends [the result of my high school class reunion]. It's definitely a social place. Interaction takes place among friends, via members of a group page [as I set up for my class] and among fans of a company page.

Several brands have successfully connected with fans via Facebook, including Candidate Obama.

Since Facebook is primarily about friends, fans and members, I've ranked the flooring Facebook accounts below according to those numbers. As the Social Flooring Index evolves, I may include other parameters.

What I find interesting here is the range of personal, group and company accounts. Why choose one over the other? Which has worked most effectively?

I welcome your input and suggestions as the index evolves into its final form.

As of 7/5/09
Name	# of	Fans, etc.
Lowe's	881	members
Floor Leaders, Ft. Lauderdale	496	friends
Flooring By Cogdill, Columbia SC	463	members
Lowe's	375	fans
McKay Flooring Glasgow	359	friends
Home Depot	310	members
Oscars C1, NJ	246	fans
Holloway Carpet One Floor & Home	242	fans
Fans of Oscars Carpet One Floor & Home	226	members
Martin's Flooring Inc.	225	members
Kennys Carpet, Poughkeepsie NY	225	friends
Home Depot	197	fans
Tile Magazine	181	fans
Karastan	164	fans
Mannington Commercial	152	fans
Big Bog's Flooring DFW - lkng for gd people	151	members
Palmetto Carpet Company	150	members
Rhodes FA, Gulfport/Biloxi MS	144	friends
The Mohawk Group	144	members
Fans of Floor Décor Carpet One	127	members
Gold Star Carpet One Floor & Home	115	fans
Home Depot	115	members
Mannington Floors	115	fans
The Floor Trader	114	members
BuildDirect	94	fans
Johnson Carpet One Floor & Home	89	fans
Mohawk	82	fans
Carpet One Floor & Home, Panama City FL	80	fans
Abbey Carpet, Philadelphia PA	78	friends
Floor Covering Weekly	78	fans
Alexandria C1, Washington DC	75	friends
The Floor Trader - Jacksonville	74	fans
Bentley Prince Street	72	friends
Carpet One Floor & Home National Green Select Day	72	fans
Bradford Carpet One Floor & Home	69	members
Carpet One Floor & Home	68	fans
Pucci Carpet One Floor & Home	66	fans
Carpet One Floor & Home	64	members
Broadway Carpet NYC	63	friends
Flooring America Supercenter, Grand Rapids MI	60	friends
Home Depot	59	members
Florcraft Carpet One Floor & Home	54	fans
Maritime Carpet One Floor & Home	52	members
Kerns C1, Milwaukee WI	52	members
Hatloes Carpet One Floor & Home	52	members
Century Carpet One Floor & Home	44	fans
Carpet One Floor & Home Welcomes Yr Support	40	fans
Glines Carpet One Floor & Home	40	fans
Mercer Carpet One, Maryland	39	fans
Independent Carpet One Floor & Home	39	fans
Carpet One Floor & Home - Carroll	39	fans
Cramers Carpet One Floor & Home	38	fans
Interiors by Carpet One Floor & Home	34	fans
Kensington Carpet One Floor & Home	34	fans
Ramey Carpet One	34	friends
Floor Trader Indy	33	friends
Home Depot	32	members
Flooring America Supercenter	29	fans
Big Bob's Flooring Outlet Blog	29	members
Premiere Flooring America	25	fans
Berks C1	24	friends
Big Bob's Flooring Outlet Hayes, VA	23	members
Ramey Carpet One Floor & Home	21	fans
Carpet Onew Floor & Home - Ames	20	fans
Carpet One Floor & Home, Loves Park	19	fans
L&M Carpet One Floor & Home	19	fans
Carpet One Floor & Home - Spirit Lake	19	fans
Bay Carpets Flooring America	17	fans
Acadian Flooring America	17	fans
Flooring America of Rapid City, SD	16	fans
Karastan Contract	16	members
Jabro Carpet One Floor & Home	16	fans
Ultron Carpet Fiber	16	fans
Flooring America by CarpetSmart	15	fans
George's Carpet One Floor & Home	15	fans
Home Depot	15	members
Glines Carpet One Floor & Home	14	fans
Colonial Floor Covering Carpet One	14	fans
Coyle Carpet One Floor & Home	14	fans
Majestic Abbey Carpet & Floor	13	fans
SCS Carpet One Floor & Home	12	fans
ProSource Wholesale FL	12	fans
Carpet One Floor & Home Design Center	11	fans
Walkers Carpet One Floor and Home	10	fans
Baileys Carpet One Floor & Home	10	fans
Modern Carpet One Floor & Home	10	fans
Classic Interiors, Stainmaster FC, Idaho Falls, ID	8	members
ProSource of Denver	6	fans
ProSource of Phoenix	6	fans
Mazzulo & Sons Carpet One Floor & Home	5	members
Ramey Carpet One	5	members
Big Bob's Flooring Outlet	4	fans
Olson Carpet One Floor & Home	3	fans
Flooring America	2	fans
Great S.E. Flooring America	2	fans
My Flooring America	2	friends
Emerson C1, Baton Rouge LA	2	members
Cannon Carpet One Floor & Home	2	fans
Kirksville Carpet One Floor & Home	1	fans
Carpet One Floor & Home - Dallas/Ft. Worth	1	fans
Carpet Corner is… Flooring America of Bradenton	1	fans
Aggieland Carpet One Floor & Home	1	fans

Next, Blogs.

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The Social Flooring Index - Beta Version: Twitter

cbwhittemore@gmail.com (C. B. Whittemore) — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 12:02:00 +0000

Social Flooring Index Wordle from Flooring The Consumer.
Social media marketing tools are here to stay. There's no doubt! After all Blogs Are Now Mainstream Media and social tools help us connect and engage with visitors, end users and customers in conversations relevant to them. Even in flooring. Particularly in flooring! To that end, I officially launch - albeit a Beta version - the Social Flooring Index from Flooring The Consumer.

The Social Flooring Index captures who in flooring is doing what with social tools. I welcome your input and suggestions as the index evolves into its final form.

What I find fascinating from this research is that flooring retailers and manufacturers are getting involved. For example, many Carpet One Floor & Home members have joined Facebook and Twitter. [I'll be interested to discover how effective retailers find these tools, which work better, and how they adapt the tools for their businesses!]

This first version of the Social Flooring Index looks at Twitter, Facebook and blogs separately. I'm particularly interested - at this point - in completeness. Do you know of an organization in the flooring industry taking part in social media who isn't listed? Please let me know.

Also, this version of the Social Flooring Index uses HubSpot's Twitter and website grader to rank efforts. Facebook is more about friends, fans and members. As the Social Flooring Index evolves, I may include other parameters.

I welcome your comments, feedback and suggestions.

Twitter. Here, I list followers and updates. Followers represent other Twitter users who have chosen to follow someone. Updates represent the total number of 'tweets' or Twitter updates published.

To check out any of these Twitterers, simply go to Search.Twitter and enter the Twitter 'handle' starting with or without the @ symbol [mine, for example, is @CBWhittemore]. You'll notice a series of entries [i.e., Tweets]. Click on the @name you entered; you will be taken to that individual's Twitter page where you can read his/her most recent entries and some stats. Note the quality of the 'tweets' in addition to the quantity. Hard sell tweets are generally not considered good form!

I have ranked these in descending order based on the HubSpot Twitter grader results.

as of 7/3/09				Twitter
Name	Twitter @	Followers	Updates	Grade
Home Depot	@HomeDepot	9699	1789	99.7
Find Any Floor	@FindAnyFloor	4964	449	99.1
BuildDirect	@robertbanks	2975	417	99.1
Find Any Floor	@WebBizCEO	7404	299	98.8
FloorsFlorida	@floorsflorida	1159	1223	98.8
Find Any Floor	@FlooringSEOGuru	2458	218	98.4
Bridge of Allen, OK	@BridgeOfAllen	2217	161	98.4
Find Any Floor	@FlooringGAL	1725	521	98.4
BuildDirect	@BuildDirect	1494	549	98.4
Lowe's	@Lowes	2083	117	98
UK Flooring	@ukflooring	1307	396	98
iFloor Team	@iFloor	1153	174	97.7
Hardwood Flooring Oracle	@flooracle	623	318	96.5
Lowe's	@LowesPromos	431	34	95.6
Carpet One Boise	@CarpetOneBoise	477	32	95.3
The Mohawk Group	@TheMohawkGroup	431	68	95.3
Home Depot	@HomeDepotDeals	414	23	95
Bentley Prince Street	@bpscarpet	316	218	94
Southwestern Floors, TempeAZ	@SWNFloors	205	414	93
BuildDirect	@WoodFloors	207	39	92
Shaw	@ShawFloors	173	28	92
Shaw	@ShawTalent	228	12	91
Contract Magazine	@contractmag	214	133	91
T&G Hardwood FloorSpecialists	@DenverFloorGuy	165	85	91
Sara Neely, Alton IL	@DirectFloors	140	393	91
Century Carpet	@CenturyCarpetNJ	118	21	88
Tile Magazine	@TileMagazine	108	30	88
Johnson Carpet Grnd RapidsMI	@JohnsonCarpet	106	17	87
Owen Carpet	@OwenCarpet	98	137	87
Carpet One Floor & Home	@CarpetOneFH	86	38	87
Ramey Carpet One	@ramey_carpetone	75	9	86
Carpet One Lacey WA	@CarpetOneLacey	70	5	86
Floor A 2 Z	@floora2z	60	208	84
Shaw - Lauren Howard	@ShawRecruiting	56	17	84
ProSource Flooring FL	@ProsourceFloors	52	12	84
Shaw	@floorfashiongrl	46	25	83
Voogaly Carpet Care	@voogaly	53	4	80
Design West	@designwest	38	17	79
Area Rugs Online	@AreaRugsOnline	31	131	78
B&D Carpet Cleaners	@bdcarpetcleaner	18	3	70
J Sanders Floors, IL	@jsandersfloors	15	7	63
Bell's Carpets & Floors, NC	@bellscarpets	13	8	61
Europa Carpet One Flagstaff AZ	@CarpetoneFlag	9	2	57
Royal Blue Services	@rbcleaning	10	4	53
CarpetsPlus ColorTile, Alvin TX	@CarpetsPlus	9	3	53

Next, Facebook information...

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Simple Marketing Now - Update for June 2009

cbwhittemore@gmail.com (C. B. Whittemore) — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 12:35:00 +0000

Over at the Simple Marketing Blog, I write about marketing strategy and creative, practical, simple marketing approaches - many of which may be relevant to you and your businesses. The blog also acts as newsroom for Simple Marketing Now. If you haven't already, perhaps you might check it out? Possibly even subscribe? And maybe even tell others?

Here are highlights from this past June 2009.

June's press release announced that I have just been elected to the Columbia Business School Alumni Club of NY Board of Directors. It's a terrific alumni club that puts on top notch events in NYC [I've shared several with you here]. I've been active with the club since 2002 and am really honored to be serving on the Board.

My work with the Carpet and Rug Institute led to an interview on FloorDaily.net which was great fun! The details, including an update on the CRI Blog's progress, are captured in Whittemore Discusses CRI Blog on FloorDaily.net.

I've started documenting in the form of case studies the work I did while at Solutia. So far, I've published three: Flooring The Consumer: Case Study, Wear-Dated Upholstery Transformation: Case Study and Wear-Dated Report Builder: Case Study.

If you read nothing else, do read Sandy Carter Integrates Social Media Into The Marketing Mix from the MarketingProfs B2B Forum in Boston. It will inspire you to consider how social media tools might enhance your marketing.

Of course, if you read about Sandy Carter, you might want to read Let Your Brand Embrace 'Spirit of Simplicity', and you'll definitely want to have your notions about branding turned upside down [or rather right side up] with Jonathan Salem Baskin's 10 Ideas To Refocus Branding.

Two posts offer noteworthy links and references: Social Media Marketing References - Links of Note and Marketing Wisdom & Best-Kept Secrets.

Finally, I share with you my chapter from the first Age of Conversation in The Age of Conversation: The Conversation Age Enabled, and my latest article Creating Community... on MarketingProfs Daily Fix.

Thank you and I wish you, your friends and families a wonderful July 4th Holiday!

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Phil Gerbyshak on Bridging New & Old: Social Media Series

cbwhittemore@gmail.com (C. B. Whittemore) — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 12:05:00 +0000

This week's guest for Flooring The Consumer's Social Media Series: Bridging New & Old is Phil Gerbyshak.

Phil Gerbyshak truly is the "Make It Great Guy." He's a "social media maximizer" focused on helping you connect with customers and employees. Check out PhilGerbyshak.com and his book 10 Ways To Make It Great and you'll be amazed at the wisdom he shares about how best to unleash the greatness inside us all. His recent Twitter advice is worth paying attention to!

What's most amazing is that Phil has a day job - as vice president of information technology for a financial services firm. And, yet, he has time to teach Social MediaSaturdays, and the Help Desk Manager's course [scroll to the bottom for a full description], while also encouraging and supporting us to 'make it great.'

C.B.: Phil, how/why did you get involved in social media?

Phil: I got involved with social media back in 2005 when Scott Ginsberg mentioned I should start a blog to capture my thoughts. It made sense then and it makes sense now.

C.B.: What do you like most about social media?

Phil: I love the ability to connect with amazing people from around the world (like you) who I might never get the chance to meet if it weren't for social media.

I love connecting to amazing ideas and inspiring stories.

I love being able to quickly share what I know with as many people as possible.

C.B.: What do you like least about social media?

Phil: I don't like the mob mentality and the anonymity that some folks hide behind. Mike Arrington recently got into a little spat with Leo LaPorte on the Gillmor Gang for all of us to see/hear. The video on YouTube showed only the 90 seconds where they were duking it out. Word has it Mike got over 600 people telling him what a jerk he was (and probably a lot worse) because of this video. Folks think they "know" Mike and Leo because they are in public, and feel like Mike deserved for Leo to tell him to screw off. If folks had to use their real names, they wouldn't be so bold, and probably wouldn't join the mob of "I hate Mike Arrington."

C.B.: How has social media changed how you interact with the marketplace as a consumer or customer?

Phil: Great question! I definitely always look for reviews of products I'm interested in, and I look for reviews from folks I trust. Celebrity spokespeople have zero effect on me. I want to hear from real people, and see service recovery when things get screwed up.

C.B.: What 5 suggestions do you have for companies to implement so they can more effectively bridge old media with new media and connect with end users?

Phil:
First, have a blog so you can share things and make changes in more real time. The smaller companies like Freshbooks do this very well. Big companies should be able to do this even easier, but most don't.

Second, recognize your employees can be your best brand ambassadors. Set up good policies that your people can live inside of, and provide education so they can do a great job of living your brand.

Third, stop paying for spokespeople and look instead for real stories of folks who use your products or services. If you force this, you will expose yourself for the fake company who doesn't care. Don't force it. Just wait and make something really great that folks can use and love.

Next, let users mix up your products and don't hold them so tightly. Make things that I can interact with, not just use. Even the old soap bottle that Colgate uses can be turned into social media. Let me mix my own soap (with scents you already have), create my own bottle cover (that I can send to my friends and co-workers), and then make me a star by showing folks that it was me that created it.

Finally, if you screw up, own up and say you're sorry. Your company is NOT infallible. Set up Google alerts so you can hear every time someone mentions you/your brand and apologize. Service RECOVERY is really important. Dell used to be "Dell hell" because of Jeff Jarvis and others who had crappy experiences with Dell. Now, Dell is all over Twitter, connecting with users and helping folks who complain get their problems resolved.

C.B.: Any other thoughts to share about the effectiveness of social media in forging stronger relations with customers and how best to do so.

Phil: Focus on the human element and not on automation. The more human you can be, the more folks will connect with your business and your brand. Folks can smell fake people from a mile away, so use REAL people to tell REAL stories that I can relate to. We want to be listened to, loved, and paid attention to. Find ways to do more of those 3 things, and your social media will be way more successful than if you just try to puke content out there.

Thank you, Phil!

Comments? Questions? Reactions?

Don't you just love the notion of looking for the real stores of people who use your products or services? I love the relevance and authenticity of it. What about letting your 'users mix up your products?' That's rather wild. How might you do that in your environment?

What about your human element and employees? Are they your brand ambassadors?

How do you approach 'screw up' situations?

-----------------------------
For additional insights from participants in the Social Media Series: Bridging New & Old, please visit The Entire Bridging New & Old Series.

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The Retail Experience Roadmap

cbwhittemore@gmail.com (C. B. Whittemore) — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 12:07:00 +0000

This article, titled "The Retail Experience Roadmap," appeared in the February 9/16, 2009 issue of Floor Covering Weekly, in my column "flooring the customer."

What serves as your retail experience roadmap? Three resources ground me when I think about the retail experience: Paco Underhill’s "Why We Buy," Raymond R. Burke’s "10 Principles of Retail Shoppability," and Pamela Danziger’s "Pop! Equation: Field Guide to Shops That Pop" from her recent book Shopping.

Paco states that amenability and profitability are inextricably linked. To that end, he applies the tools of an anthropologist to retail environments, examining how shoppers behave and interact with product, displays, signage, and people in stores. The more comfortable and convenient a store, the more likely a shopper is to spend time and eventually buy. Makes sense.

Raymond R. Burke, professor of business at Indiana University’s Kelley School of Business, studies retail including marketing research, retailing, shopper behavior, and data mining. His "10 Principles of Retail Shoppability" represent the common elements he identified across a range of successful retail formats. Although the 10 principles may seem basic, they are critical and yet often aren’t addressed in the retail environment.

Show the product
Provide effective navigational aids
Simplify product organization and presentation
Minimize clutter
Maximize product affordance
Showcase new items and new ideas
Make the shopping experience convenient
Make the shopping experience enjoyable
Speak with authority
Maintain flexibility

Pamela Danziger’s "Pop! Equation: Field Guide to Shops that Pop" captures the soul or magic that great stores infuse into their retail experience. Her equation assumes that the basics have not only been covered, but also elevated to new heights to deliver more for the consumer. Such stores should:

Offer high levels of customer involvement and interaction
Excite consumer curiosity to explore & experience
Exude contagious energy & excitement
Represent a fine synergy between tangible and intangible elements
Capture an authentic concept
Offer superior value at a reasonable cost
Welcome all with an inclusive [not exclusive] attitude

Let’s take a visit to the Apple Store as an example. You position yourself first outside the store and watch to see how subjects approach the store, what they look at, how they enter. You follow. Once inside, what do they do? Where do they go? How do they interact with displays? How long do they stay? Do they buy?

Then, step back and observe the store itself. Remember that a store is about bringing people and product together, so both can interact. Successful store experiences engage the senses, as a store is about the product seducing the shopper into making a purchase.

The Apple Store is a sparse contemporary environment: plain white box; bright ethereal lights; very clean. The product, though, shines! It is available throughout the store on simple, accessible rectilinear tables. Shoppers are encouraged to play with it, interact, consult MapQuest, listen to music, ask questions, consult a Genius, obtain training. Bold graphics celebrate the beauty of the product, its stylishness, its newness.

If you need help in an Apple Store, you can easily consult the Genius Bar or an employee dressed in uniform t-shirt with an identification badge hanging from his or her neck.

Listen to the buzz of the store. It’s alive with energy, excitement, enthusiasm. Not only are shoppers involved with product, but they interact with one another. They are curious about what they don’t know and eager to share with others. It’s contagious! It also demonstrates the value associated with Apple products. An Apple product welcomes you into the Apple community. Whether you buy or not, you are invited to spend as much time in the store as you’d like.

Now, leave that Apple store. Keep that template or roadmap in mind and go back to your store. What do you now see that would improve your retail experience?

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Flooring The Consumer: Three Years Old!

cbwhittemore@gmail.com (C. B. Whittemore) — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 11:59:00 +0000

The Magic of Number Three - A Visual Puzzle originally uploaded by Kornel Mezo.
Blogging continues to inspire and amaze me, particularly as I reach the three year anniversary of Flooring The Consumer.

I can document my reasons for getting started, but that doesn't adequately capture my rich and rewarding personal journey where I have encountered so many unexpected wonderful friends, new perspectives and intriguing possibilities....

As I begin my fourth year, I thought it would be interesting to look back and share with you the posts that have attracted the most interest:

Top 2009 Stories
+ Getting Ahead By Being Local
+ Martin Linstrom's Buyology
+ Social Media, Marketing, Retail & Customers
+ 16 Social Media Tips Relating to Listening
+ Retail Experience Of the Future

Top 2008 Stories
+ A. Alfred Taubman: Overcoming Threshold Resistance
+ Retail Window Displays Matter
+ Meet Kim Gavin Editor, Floor Covering Weekly
+ How Might Flooring Displays Tell Better Stories?
+ Jon Trivers: How To Create Your Own Flooring Empire

Top 2007 Stories
+ Wal-Mart Plano - Like No Other Store!
+ A Store That Floors: Aggieland Carpet One Floor & Home
+ Bathroom Brand Manifestations: Bass Pro Shops
+ How Do You Define Customer Experience?
+ Brand Manifestations in the Bathroom: Advertising

Top 2006 Stories
+ Dove: What is Real Beauty?
+ Atlanta's Atlantic Station - A Lifestyle Center
+ Shelly Lazarus on the Future of Advertising & Marketing
+ An Architect's View of Better Lifestyle Centers
+ Hallowe'en Bathroom Horror Stories

All Time Top Stories [which deliberately do not overlap with links above]:
+ Trader Joe's - Where Values Drive The Brand
+ Southlake Town Square - A Lifestyle Center
+ Hall of Shame Inductee: LabCorp
+ "Sorry Pumpkin" - The LabCorp Saga Continues
+ Engaging The Consumer... Via Store Windows

I'm so very excited about this next year, and I thank all of you who have joined me over these past three years.

A big thank you, too, to those who have taken part in my Social Media Series: Bridging New & Old:

Mack Collier, Ann Handley, Steve Woodruff, Toby Bloomberg, Amber Naslund, Lewis Green, Laurence Borel, Susan Abbott, Arun Rajagopal, Kristin Gorski, Dan Schawbel, Chris Kieff, Alan Woody from Carpets By Otto, Karin Hermans, Mario Vellandi, Jay Ehret, Lori Magno, David Polinchock, Peg Mulligan, Yvonne DiVita, Rich Nadworny, Doug Meacham, Valeria Maltoni, Jeanne Byington, Kristin Golliher from OtterBox, and Andrea Learned. And those soon to take part - Phil Gerbyshak, Jason Baer, Nesh Thompson - and many others whose voices I hope to share with you.

Thank you for being part of my journey and allowing me to be part of yours.

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Andrea Learned on Bridging New & Old - Social Media Series

cbwhittemore@gmail.com (C. B. Whittemore) — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 14:09:00 +0000

This week's guest for Flooring The Consumer's Social Media Series: Bridging New & Old is Andrea Learned.

Andrea Learned, a "marketing dot-connector with a focus on gender and a longterm view on coming trends," is a wonderful practical source of marketplace wisdom. Simply spend time on Learned on Women and you'll understand.

I got to 'know' Andrea because of my interest in marketing to women. Her insights on how women [and men] buy are wonderfully grounded and reflect cultural trends. Take her most recent post On Nurturing A Fresh Gender Perspective and note her generational observations, or Marketing to Women for the Common Man.

In fact, Andrea has evolved 'marketing to women' by focusing on right- and left-brain traits and gender perspectives, thereby avoiding the "gender trap and instead serv[ing] the highest consumer standard represented by 'women's ways' but serving everyone." [I'm certainly aware that, depending on the circumstances, my left-brain traits will take over; at other times, you had better not get in the way of my right-brain demands!] This evolution captures the value that comes from 'bridging new & old.'

Andrea co-wrote Don't Think Pink: What Really Makes Women Buy -- and How to Increase Your Share of This Crucial Market, writes for The Huffington Post, and her most recent post on MarketingProfs Daily Fix is Targeting' Women Indeed: Satirical Widsom. Oh, and be sure, too, to read her Cool Friends Interview with Tom Peters.

C.B.: Andrea, how/why did you get involved in social media?

Andrea: I got pulled in, kicking and screaming, by my business friends - first to Facebook and then a few months later to Twitter. Their pitch was that it'd be a way to get my blog posts and my personality/brand in front of a lot more people with similar interests. I was skeptical... still.

C.B.: What do you like most about social media?

Andrea: I have seen that my old friendships were made richer via FB/Twitter, and I have made a lot of new friends, specifically in my local Vermont area, via Twitter - which I never expected. I like that it's an immediate way to share the random interesting articles that come my way but that I don't have time to think/blog about. I also like that I see immediate referral of my blog posts out to a broader world. I guess it sort of maps out the spread of my "influence" and also is a way that I gather even more cool articles/things to look at - many times from famous writer/editors of the publications I love. So, I can even get into conversations with people that otherwise would seem so out of my reach. I'm a natural connector, so this whole thing enhances that ten-fold.

C.B.: What do you like least about social media?

Andrea: That so many people post about how great they are (which are interestingly mainly male marketing types.. as in "I just met with the CEO of Microsoft and he's going to pay me $1 mill to do a presentation.") or to demonstrate how busy/high-flying they are. ("I just landed at SFO. So tired from my trip back from Hong Kong...") I have also seen people get way too intimate/personal with what they share, and they are a lot more free with their four-letter words and mis-spellings (which fascinates me because Twitter, especially, seems to be mainly about business use).

C.B.: How has social media changed how you interact with the marketplace as a consumer or customer?

Andrea: I feel like I have more "back story" from the few brand Twitter presences I see. I don't follow or join any "fan" clubs on FB, though. Random interactions work best and most resonate with me. (I'm a very deliberate shopper, so it's hard to "get" to me.) I haven't given this much thought though...since I really use Twitter (and I mainly use that, over FB, now) for business research and connecting purposes, not personal business.

C.B.: What 5 suggestions do you have for companies to implement so they can more effectively bridge old media with new media and connect with end users?

Andrea:
1- Don't make it a bigger deal than it is, or you'll never get started. Get onto the various platforms and follow a few people you already know you respect and see how they do things.

2 - Don't assume "social media" as next big thing is truly a good fit for your brand. It may not be - just depends who you are trying to reach.

3 - Do share, share and share... links and helpful information you'd pass along to your best buddy in your work-world. Then, when you have a blog post of your own or announcement to make, more people will see it as authentic and helpful rather than self-promoting.

4 - Don't be afraid to engage a bit with those who seem to question or take issue with your perspective. Interesting conversations and connections usually emerge.

5 - Select 3-5 (tops) key topics you want to be known for sharing about and those parameters will help you decide when to send a tweet or post something on FB. Make 1-2 of those topics the ones that are personal to you. For me, I don't have any significant work in socially responsible business, but I am personally passionate about it (and would love to someday work within that realm). I also have a thing for fitness/health so occasionally those Tweets will squeak out of me too.

C.B.: Any other thoughts to share about the effectiveness of social media in forging stronger relations with customers and how best to do so.

Andrea: My "customers," I guess, are my readers/prospective clients - and I find that the more you interact, or that they even see your name with an interesting Tweet, the more you will be remembered and sought out - beyond social media. If you are a cool, helpful person via social media and show integrity in all things - that, just like in the offline world, will bounce back as great connections/goodwill for future work.

Thank you, Andrea!

Comments? Questions? Feedback?

I love the notion of the 'back story' on a brand. That's what I consider 'texture' or 'dimension' - understanding what the greater context is and how it is relevant to me.

What do you think about what Andrea shares in her 5th suggestion: selecting 3 to 5 key topics that you want to be know for sharing about, with 1 or 2 of those being personal? Do you have approaches that work similarly?

For additional insights from participants in the Social Media Series: Bridging New & Old, please visit The Entire Bridging New & Old Series.

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Retailers Shift Strategy, Sync With Seasons & Other Novel Approaches

cbwhittemore@gmail.com (C. B. Whittemore) — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 12:14:00 +0000

Fashion, Family Circle 1960
originally uploaded by jackie 121467.

The front page of the 6/20/09 New York Times featured a fascinating article titled In Recession, Strategy Shifts for Big Retailers. According to the author, Stephanie Rosenbloom, the country's largest retailers "are seizing the moment to reinvent their business strategies."

More specifically, "high end stores... will offer more midpriced merchandise. Many chains ... will carry less inventory and fewer brands. The likes of Sears and J.C. Penney will put self-service computers in stores so customers can browse collections or buy out-of-stock items. And retailers of all stripes will offer more exclusive merchandise and more attentive customer service... One of the biggest changes... is greater personalization and regionalization of merchandise."

On one hand, I consider this exciting news. On the other, I'm amazed that so many retailers have been asleep at the switch and not paying closer attention to their customers - especially when other non-US retailers [e.g., Zara and H&M] and US non-apparel retailers like Trader Joe's have.

Zara uses hand-held devices to immediately communicate product feedback. Macy's intends to send its merchandisers and other planners into stores each week to learn from the sales staff, who will "keep logs at the sales registers", and fine tune product offerings to meet the specific needs of a locality. Getting Ahead By Being Local makes sense, especially in an age where everything looks the same.

The article says that "at high-end stores, ... consumers will still be able to buy chic brand names, but at a wider range of prices." Furthermore, brands will be streamlined. "Consumers are 'time-starved' and looking for simplification in the entire shopping experience." I've walked away from purchase decisions where the choices were too many. It's exhausting to have to sift through so many choices, and I hate the negative emotions.

I'm particularly intrigued to read that "seasonal transitions for apparel will probably have shorter lead times." Makes sense to me. Retailers have been jumping the gun on too many seasonal fronts [see The Grinch Who Stole November's Christmas and Elmo Saves Christmas... But, Not From Retailers]. It's time to get back in sync as Retailers keeping clothes in sync with seasons by Anne D'Innocenzio explains. She brings up an interesting point in her article: that the change in strategy leads to a change in product quality in favor of innovations that enhance wear and durability. I'm hoping that means we can say goodbye to disposable products and instead focus on acquiring better quality products that last longer. That's sustainable.

Back to the NYT article. It brings up more designer - retailer collaborations for exclusive products, more blurring between on- and off-line store experiences with more opportunities to do research [including competitive research] in-store, and cellphone shopping [something already well established in Japan].

It also addresses an increased focus on customer service.

That's right, a lot more effort on improving the customer's retail buying experience and having knowledgeable, customer-focused sales staff on hand.

Music to my ears!

Now, although the article focuses on apparel [with a few Sears and Home Depot comments], it in every way applies to retail stores across the board including flooring.

1. Listen to your customer. Observe your customer. Pay attention to the trends that are relevant to your market place. What products styles, attributes and colors matter to your customer base? What problems can you help them solve?

2. Simplify your product offerings. Make sure they make sense to your customers. Can customers readily determine the value each offers?

3. Are your on- and off-line experiences fully integrated? Can you help customers do research within your store? Do you offer them all of the information they need to make the decision that matters to them both in-store and on-line?

4. Is your retail buying experience absolutely top-notch and memorable? From beginning to post-installation? Do you create long-lasting relationships?

Retailing is in for interesting change as strategies shift and we re-adjust to truly focusing on how to add value to our customers' lives.

Do you agree?

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Meet Jim Gould - Floor Covering Institute Series

cbwhittemore@gmail.com (C. B. Whittemore) — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 17:41:00 +0000

In this series, I introduce you to the members of the Floor Covering Institute. This post focuses on James C. [or Jim] Gould, president and founder of the Floor Covering Institute.

I first met Jim in mid 2004 shortly after he joined CCA Global Partners as chief product officer. Very quickly, I realized that his product knowledge and marketplace perspectives were unlike any I had encountered so far in the flooring industry. Not only had Jim developed a comprehensive perspective of the flooring industry, in terms of product categories, end uses possible, marketplace success and how to distribute products effectively, but he also brought a global understanding of industry dynamics. Plus, he spoke French!

Many in the flooring industry consider Jim a “visionary.” You see, he has the ability to envision opportunities before others do. Examples: Pergo laminate, Casa Italia ceramic, Resista fiber at CCA [see below for more details]... Jim examines a problem and comes away with a totally different perspective and solution. And, not just in the flooring industry...

Take St. Louis Children's Hospital on whose board he has served for the past 15 years and where he heads the Patient Care and Quality Committee. St. Louis Children's Hospital has just made U.S. News Honor Roll of Top Children's Hospitals in America - the only children's hospital ranked in the Top 10 of every measured category and it ranks #5 nationally in a study by Parents magazine.

Jim is also a past Chapter Chairman of the Young President’s Organization and chaired a week long International YPO University that included such notables as Presidents George W. Bush, Shimon Peres and F.W. de Klerk aboard Cunard’s QE2...

C.B.: Jim, please tell me about yourself.

Jim: I started my career in the family business, Misco Shawnee, in 1969. When I joined Misco we were a Mohawk Carpet distributor serving the Midwest. In those days a Mohawk distributor was only allowed to carry Mohawk carpet so that represented 100% of our business. By 1979, we had grown to be their largest distributor with warehouses in St. Louis, Chicago, Louisville and Columbus, Ohio. It was then that I was promoted to president of the company and Mohawk agreed that we could expand into Armstrong vinyl. Next to Mohawk, Armstrong was the best known name in floor covering and it wasn't carpet, thereby broadening our product selection.

We became an Armstrong distributor first in Chicago, then expanded into our other markets. In 1985, Mohawk still represented 60% of our volume when they made the decision to eliminate all distribution and service retailers direct. We had a one year transition period during which we concentrated on growing the Armstrong business and bringing in new lines like Bruce Hardwood. As a result, we never lost money!

In 1991, I started a company called Distribution Services Inc. [DSI] which took Misco’s distribution expertise and offered those same services to foreign manufacturers trying to enter the US market. With additional warehouses in Dalton and Los Angeles, DSI was ready when Pergo wanted to enter the American market.

The decision to launch DSI came about from asking ourselves two critical questions:

+ What is it that we do that is really needed by the industry?
+ If we disappeared would anyone say, ‘Gee, I sure miss Misco'?

As a result, we identified as a unique strength our market and product knowledge, combined with warehousing and logistics.

Next, we asked: who really needs that and quickly came to the conclusion that it was a foreign manufacturer with great products and no understanding of the US. For that we needed to be national, behind the scenes and a great partner. Lars von Kantzow would tell you today that we saved him millions of dollars and years of time launching Pergo because of our expertise. What I do today is no different: I guide foreign manufacturers on how to get their products into the US market.

Pergo is an interesting story. I first noticed Pergo laminate flooring in Germany in the early 1990s. It struck me as an ideal flooring product for the US market because it easily exceeded consumer expectations in performance and maintenance. In fact, consumer word of mouth became our most important advertising vehicle.

I returned to the US with samples and proceeded to talk to everyone in the industry about this new thing called laminate flooring. Through DSI, I was able to bring Pergo to the U.S., provide the parent company with the logistics and administrative services they needed to get started and took on the line at Misco before anyone else. That pushed Pergo into the U.S. market and literally changed the face of the hard surface industry.

In 1997, Color Tile, the largest ceramic flooring retailer in America filed for bankruptcy. I believed that ceramic would become another important segment of the floor covering retail offering and purchased the company.

Some history to put this into perspective. If you go back to the 70s, wood and ceramic were not sold by specialty floor covering stores. They were unique products that were sold through their own, unique channels. However, when “prefinished” wood was introduced, it was easier for the store selling carpet and vinyl to add in wood. No artistic expertise for sanding and staining was required.

Ceramic remained outside the norm for floor covering stores until owners realized that some customers “walked” when they couldn't get all flooring products from a one stop shop. Color Tile had tried to expand into carpet -- unsuccessfully (one of the reasons they went bankrupt) although expansion made perfect sense. I became partners with an Italian resource and created the ceramic line Casa Italia specifically targeting the full line floor covering retailer. My distribution network helped this unique ceramic line and other regional distributors get a foothold in that segment well ahead of others.

I sold Color Tile, DSI and Misco in 2003 with the expectation of starting a consulting business. Long time friend and business associate, Alan Greenberg convinced me to become the Chief Product Officer of CCA Global Partners instead. I was intrigued by the size of CCA and the opportunity they had to dominate the industry. I was also involved with Alan since he first thought of the concept and, like everyone else, was astounded by its success. I believe that retailers can share the cost of marketing and buying resulting in not only great savings in time and money, but also giving them peace of mind that they end up with a fair price from the supplier and receive expert advice on how to sell and merchandise. While at CCA, I saw the opportunity for a proprietary fiber to further differentiate CCA Global retailers. That's how Resista came about.

But, in 2007, after Alan’s tragic death, I left CCA Global to start my consulting business, the Floor Covering Institute LLC, where I share my expertise in flooring products, international sourcing, and channel strategies for distribution and marketing.

C.B.: How did you get started in the flooring business?

Jim: Our family business was started by my grandfather in 1912 as a second hand furniture store and auction company. With today’s modern marketing, it would have been called an “antique store.” I worked summers at the family business and attended the week-long Mohawk Carpet school in 1966 when Mohawk was still located in the Mohawk River Valley in Amsterdam, New York. Following a little time in law school and the Air Force, I joined the company as a commercial specifier for Mohawk in Chicago; one of the best jobs I have had. My father was my mentor and the Young President’s Organization was my training ground.

C.B.: What do you like most about flooring?

Jim: I love the relationships. I worked retail part time while I was in college, but was frustrated that I might never see a satisfied customer again. As a wholesaler, I created lifelong friendships with retail customers, manufacturer/suppliers and fellow distributors. Helping friends and keeping up with changes in products and companies make this an exciting and personal business.

C.B.: What do you like least about flooring?

Jim: In the absence of knowledge, the consumer has only price to differentiate between products. I am very bothered by those people who commoditize products due to lack of product knowledge or interest. The reason manufacturers make different qualities are to meet the varying needs of consumers. It is a disservice to the consumer and the manufacturer to say the difference between a $4 wood floor and an $8 wood floor is $4. By ignoring subtle differences in product it cheapens our industry and its ability to make a fair profit margin for what we provide.

C.B.: What 5 opportunities do you see for the flooring industry?

Jim:
• Better education and product knowledge of the people interfacing with the consumer as well as an appreciation for product differentiation.

• Improved product attributes regarding maintenance, installation, acoustics and performance.

• Better stewardship of the environment. Engineered wood instead of solid, recycling carpet fiber, establish networks of collection centers

• Commercial market for laminate

• Export from the US into emerging markets

C.B.: What do you see being the greatest advantage that the Floor Covering Institute offers?

Jim: With the combined expertise of the Floor Covering Institute's consultants, we offer a very broad source of knowledge, specific problem-solving abilities and unique insight on the global flooring industry. Many in our industry focus on a specific product segment and lose sight of the big picture. That’s where the Floor Covering Institute can truly help. We have the ability to bring the industry together, to address problems affecting all segments of the floor covering industry and share best practices from outside the industry. Bottom line: we can help industry participants become better informed, resulting in greater profitability.

C.B.: Is there anything else you’d like to add?

Jim: The floor covering industry is my home; the Floor Covering Institute was a dream and is now reality. My hope is that the Institute will help build my dream home.

Thank you, Jim.

Previous post in this series: Meet Carl Ruland

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I attended NeoCon... Virtually!

cbwhittemore@gmail.com (C. B. Whittemore) — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 12:15:00 +0000

That's right! I attended NeoCon 2009. I'm not kidding and here's the proof [note the @cbwhittemore] drawn on this awesome new "white board with Tabrasa by IdeaPaint - a dry erase paint that turns any working environment into a high-performance writing space" from MDC Wallcoverings.

Talk about a brilliant way to create conversation around a new product! Just look at all of the images that Tabrasa by IdeaPaint generated. That's how I got in on the act and attended NeoCon.... virtually. Thanks to Twitter. Here's how.

In TweetDeck, I set up a search for carpet early Monday morning and came across a reference to #NeoCon09. I draw your attention to the # symbol [i.e., hashtag] which, according to the Twitter Fan Wiki, are "community-driven convention for adding additional context and metadata to your tweets." In other words, it's a terrific way to track Twitter conversation around common themes.

Once I discovered #NeoCon09, I created another search and came across a Tweet from fellow blogger @DarrylOhrt, author of BrandFlakes For Breakfast. I thought Darryl was attending NeoCon and hoped to live vicariously through his tweets.

He wasn't, but I did learn from his Tweet that he knew of something exciting going on. The Tweet pointed me to his post on whiteboard anywhere where I got the lowdown...

The MDC Wallcovering showroom [#10-155 in the Chicago Merchandise Mart] had artist Phil Lubliner illustrating live at their booth. The scoop? Tweet your request to @mdctabrasa with the hashtag #mdctabrasa and he would draw it.

My request was for "simple, beautiful, inspiring flooring."

The result was the photo above, tweeted back to me, which you can enjoy in larger format via this TwitPic link. An unexpected bonus.

[BTW, seems that for those there physically, you could get a free stuffed monkey, too, and some extra freehand doodling.]

For those of you interested in what Twitter contributed to NeoCon, I suggest that you read through the #NeoCon09 coded Tweets.

[Note: they will appear in reverse order, with the most recent Tweet first.]

You'll notice plenty of situational exchanges: who's where; the elevators; no cell service; getting started, etc.

You'll find what I consider broadcast advertisements "come to my booth to see my new product."

Links to photos.

Lots of immediate reactions to new products.

Also, announcements about special recognition and awards.

But, you'll also find links to more detailed observations and reviews:

Furniture Goddess
NeoCon Impressions
3rings - A Product Blog for Architecture + Design
Ponoko Blog - with pictures of the NeoCon Twitter board

With more sure to come.

And, don't forget to check out #NeoCon09 on Flickr [note the monkey]. It's fascinating.

The energy is palpable. The reactions are immediate.

This is what makes social media so magically potent. It allowed me to attend NeoCon virtually!

Thank you, Darryl!

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Kristin Golliher, OtterBox on Bridging New & Old - Social Media Series

cbwhittemore@gmail.com (C. B. Whittemore) — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 12:13:00 +0000

This week's guest for Flooring The Consumer's Social Media Series: Bridging New & Old is Kristin Golliher.

Kristin Golliher is the Public Relations Executive for OtterBox, a company I discovered when I wrote Press Releases, Newsletters and Otterbox on the Simple Marketing Blog. Otterbox manufactures laptop, PDA, smartphone and other protective cases and has been experimenting with non-traditional marketing to promote its business.

C.B.: Kristin, how and why did you get involved in social media?

Kristin: Handheld technology has rapidly become the preferred gateway for communication. People worldwide are absolutely obsessed with using the iPhone™, BlackBerry® and Treo™ smartphones and other devices to keep in touch. Whether it’s in a business meeting, on the subway, at the airport or while you’re in the middle of a conversation, handhelds can be found everywhere. Since OtterBox makes protective cases for these devices, it was a no-brainer for us to get involved with social media as a way to connect with our customers.

We started with our blog - the Otter Blog - in September 2005 and have recently expanded that with a Facebook page, Twitter account and Planet OtterBox, a site where people can share their OtterBox adventures. Social media is an excellent way for us to communicate and engage with our customers; it’s cutting edge!

C.B.: What do you like most about social media?

Kristin: I absolutely LOVE how it is always changing! You know the Forrest Gump line, “life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you’re gonna get,” that’s totally social media! There are always new and different ways of communicating which keeps it exciting (and keeps us PR people on our toes).

Twitter is a perfect example. This relatively new social media platform has grown exponentially and has become an incredible resource for sharing information and gaining first hand accounts of breaking news. It’s a great way for us to connect with our customers and media by sharing cool stories, OtterBox happenings, answering questions and following other companies and individuals to offer our support as well. I’ll admit it’s rather humorous to go into a board meeting and tell the CEO we are now “twitterers” and will be “tweeting” and attending a “tweet up”— we promise this is perfectly legitimate (even though the lingo sounds somewhat questionable).

C.B.: What do you like least about social media?

Kristin: Although it’s awesome people can speak their minds, sometimes social media sites are host to extremely offensive comments! I’m amazed with the posts a select few people have made over the years. The cardinal rule to, “think before you speak,” should be applied to social media too. It seems a small percentage of people have absolutely no filter whatsoever to their comments. Criticisms are always appreciated and serve as building blocks for growth and change at companies like OtterBox, but downright vulgar, degrading or otherwise unprofessional comments fail to be constructive.

C.B.: How has social media changed how you interact with the marketplace as a consumer or customer?

Kristin: Social media has definitely allowed us to connect to customers on a more personal level. Before it was a very “transactional” experience—they placed the order, received the product and used our cases to protect technology and valuables. Now, through social media, it’s more of an “interactional” experience—customers can chat on forums or interact with other customers on Facebook to decide if our cases are right for them. Once they buy the case, they can share their experiences and photos on Planet OtterBox, join in on the OtterBox culture, check out our Blog, ask questions on Twitter, etc. By offering these platforms, we can engage with our customers in conversation and create a lasting relationship. It’s all based on the OtterBox experience, once people buy a case they become part of the “OtterBox family” and connect with us in dialogue. We get some awesome stories too, so it’s definitely fun on our end to hear how customers are using our cases in the real world!

C.B.: What 5 suggestions do you have for companies to implement so they can more effectively bridge old media with new media and connect with end users?

Kristin: No doubt about it, this whole social media thing is confusing and you’ll hear 50 million people tell you 50 million ways to approach it. Here are my top 5 suggestions:

• Understand your customer: Contrary to popular belief, social media is NOT for everyone. Are your customers even using social media outlets? If not, social media is probably not a good fit, if so then it’s definitely worth checking into.

• Investigate: Read articles about the social media outlet, check out other sites for ideas, follow forum comments before piping in to see what’s being said and if it’s appropriate for you to dialogue. Basic research can go a long way!

• Make a plan: How do you want to handle the social media outlet? Who will be in charge? How does the platform work and are you ready for the commitment? We do this a TON in our PR department at OtterBox. Carefully laying out a plan ensures there will be no surprises and everyone knows what their responsibilities are with the social media outlet. For example, if someone asks a question on Facebook you need to determine who responds or who is in charge of blog entries and forum comments.

• Be open to change: Social media is always changing which is the exciting part. If a social media site isn’t working out for you, becomes too overwhelming or takes a nose dive in popularity then it’s time to re-evaluate. Try putting multiple people in charge—we have several voices that contribute to our blog and have “behind the scenes” people working on the design of the landing page as well. At some point, you may find you need to switch outlets. We did this at OtterBox from our MySpace page to a more popular, more interactive Facebook page.

• Have fun: Social media is definitely not your typical kind of communication. You can tell if people are too serious in their posts and portray a corporate façade. Trust me, we’ve made this mistake! While it’s great to generate sales, it’s also important to connect to readers, followers and friends by interacting with them. Sharing insider scoops, exciting happenings, linking to interesting information or sharing details about the industry as a whole show you care about more than just the bottom line.

C.B.: Kristin, any other thoughts to share about the effectiveness of social media in forging stronger relations with customers and how best to do so.

Kristin: At OtterBox we have a unique and exciting culture that we enjoy sharing with others and since it’s all online we can communicate on a local, national and worldwide scale. Social media is different from traditional media outreach, so there’s definitely a learning curve (especially since many of us PR practitioners were not taught this in school). Embracing this new medium, however, can bridge the gap between companies and customers and prove to be extremely successful in establishing a people oriented, personable and helpful company.

Thank you, Kristin!

Comments? Questions? Feedback?

How have social media tools changed how you interact with companies? What do you like most about hearing other people's experiences with products?

What about Kristin's top suggestions? I love her suggestions in 'be open to change' and the notion of have several people and voices involved for a variety of perspectives on writing and interpreting feedback.

For additional insights from participants in the Social Media Series: Bridging New & Old, please visit The Entire Bridging New & Old Series.

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Rethinking the Mall & Uncovering Retail Creativity

cbwhittemore@gmail.com (C. B. Whittemore) — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 12:14:00 +0000

Mosaic Mall originally uploaded by /\ltus.
What's next for retail? How to reinvent the mall experience? How to adapt to 'changing consumer attitudes about consumption' and the desire for more sustainable environments? Start by reading the article Allison Arieff from The New York Times wrote on 6/1/09. It's titled Rethinking the Mall and reviews entries to the inaugural ICSC Future Image Architecture Competition.

In addition to touching on some of the retail frustrations I've encountered in Las Vegas, she expresses disappointment that so few of the entries "paid [attention] to things like sustainable architecture, alternative transit or changing consumer attitudes about consumption."

However, Arieff highlights intriguing concepts around rethinking the mall, looking at human behavior in conjunction with physical space and at "technology not as some sci-fi fantasy, but as something that could enhance not only the shopping experience but environmental and social conditions as well."

One example reexamines the relationship between customer and retailer, to offer services like:

- "assist[ing] consumers in budgeting for purchases"

- how to deal with the "brilliant dilemma of 'after-wear' management"

- allowing customers to "donate a percentage of their purchase price to charity"

No surprise, "walkable mixed-use community" comes up -- enhanced for "multi-modal access [not just car but rail, transit and pedestrian]." Social center, too [the author brings up The Ainsworth Collective in Portland Oregon's Cully neighborhood as successful interpretation of a local, cause-oriented retail mall]. Another concept refers to "self-sustaining, self-generating scenario of distributed shopping experiences" that work hand-in-hand with iPhones for easy purchase online. And, yet another concept specifically addresses the "powerful forces shaping a retail renaissance... Internet, social networking, women, food, energy, sustainability factors will determine their [i.e., surviving retailers'] functionality, form and location."

In addition to validating previous posts like Injecting New Life Into Dead Malls, Getting Ahead By Being Local and Retail Experience of the Future, what I appreciate from this article is that there's wonderful creativity yet to be uncovered at retail. And, although about malls and rethinking the mall experience, the learnings, observations and possibilities from this article are much wider-reaching. They are relevant to any retail experience.

David Polinchock makes that same point in his post Rethinking the Mall - Allison Arieff Blog - NYTimes.com, touching on the growing trend to "socialize the retail environment instead of just merchandising the real estate space."

I don't think that the Sears new test concepts [see Sears tests MyGofer prototype store in Joliet] is the answer.

But, look at how museums are socializing their spaces. Intriguing, don't you think?

The question then becomes: how do you socialize YOUR retail space -- regardless of the product category?

----------------------
Other posts that address 'Rethinking the Mall':

+ From Labelscar: The Retail History Blog, see New York Times on Rethinking the Mall.

+ From Greater City: Providence Blog, see Rethinking the Mall.

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Meet Carl Ruland - Floor Covering Institute Series

cbwhittemore@gmail.com (C. B. Whittemore) — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 12:14:00 +0000

Back in April, I announced in Whittemore Joins Floor Covering Institute that I've become part of the Floor Covering Institute - Jim Gould's global flooring consultancy. We've started discussing, planning and imagining exciting possibilities and I'm discovering how talented my fellow members are. So much so that I thought you might enjoy 'meeting' them and learning more about them. I plan, then, to introduce each one to you individually, starting with Carl Ruland.

Carl Ruland is president of Global Flooring Consulting, based in Bonn, Germany. A true European, he speaks many languages in addition to his native German [an opportunity for me to brush up on the German I learned many years ago in my French-speaking school in Abidjan, Ivory Coast! Luckily, he also speaks French...]. He also has an affinity for cultural and marketplace differences that can make products like flooring challenging to sell -- as you can appreciate from his responses below -- if you don't know the lay of the land.

C.B.: Carl, please tell me about yourself - your business, your expertise, etc.

Carl: Yes, indeed, I am a true European and Europe is a fascinating continent with 27 countries, 25 Languages, 500 million people.

Consumers in Italy like tiles and natural stone; in the UK they install broadloom carpet even in bathrooms; in Austria they buy mainly wood floors.

In Germany you have the highest density of DIY stores in the world; in the UK the majority of flooring is sold through wholesale and in the Netherlands you have the small shops-around-corner.

There is a CE mark, which marks the European conformity of products; however if you want to sell to the public building sector in Germany you need additional certifications which are different from the ones you additionally need in France.

I have gained considerable experience from 25 years in senior positions in companies that produce solid wood, engineered wood, laminated flooring, broadloom carpet, vinyl sheet and vinyl tiles and can help flooring manufacturers that want to do business in Europe better understand the marketplace. Perhaps they need help with a market survey, market research, M&A, strategic sales network, portfolio strategy, or even product certification.

I speak 5 languages [see Carl's LinkedIn profile: German, English, Dutch, Danish and French], I have worked and lived in three European countries; I have travelled to all of them and done business in most of them.

Some examples of my work: I have established original equipment manufacturing business for a European manufacturer in the US, pioneered laminated flooring in China, realized a multi-million Euro investment in a manufacturing plant in Europe and help different management team positions including product management, sales- and marketing management and general management.

C.B.: How did you get started in the flooring business?

Carl: 25 years ago as a manager of retail sales at a wood wholesaler and retailer in Bonn I noticed a growing demand for engineered wood floors. This growing demand was driven by consumers while the installers still wanted the traditional stuff: 1 inch thick, 2 inches wide and about 24 inches long solid parquet.

So I began to realize that the core of contention was not between industry with pre-finished products but with installers with their experience and craftsmanship. It was the beginning of a new business model for my traditional wholesale company: we began to import directly from producers in Sweden, Finland, Italy and Malaysia and started distributing this in Western Germany to installers. I had left sales and was in business.

C.B.: What do you like most about flooring?

Carl: Unlike most other industries where you always meet limited users, literally everybody on this beautiful planet stands on a type of flooring. So this will be a never ending learning curve about differences in climate conditions, architecture, engineering, design, taste, application..... (this sounds a little bit like Bubba in Forest Gump).

C.B.: What do you like least about flooring?

Carl: Poor quality that destroys consumer acceptance, leads to no-profit and produces even poorer quality.

C.B.: What opportunities do you see for the flooring industry?

Carl: The biggest opportunity for the industry is that flooring provides the biggest surface in a building that remains unchanged and unmanipulated. Flooring will be installed as manufactured and supplied by the industry. In other terms: the industry itself determines the quality, design, life cycle, etc. of the floor. This is a huge opportunity and a huge responsibility. I see, and maybe this is a very European vintage point, the opportunity from three main areas:

Ecology

In the future not only the use of ecologic material is important but the ecology along the entire value chain, from raw material, production, transport to the point of sale. What seemed to be the whim of a relatively limited group of LOHAS consumers will be more and more KO criteria for the entire business model. Reach, Leed, Low Carbon, etc. are regulations that force the industry to look at things through green glasses. Those companies that realize the importance of this approach and that are able to adapt their current business to this future model will not only survive but will make profit. It offers the chance to reformulate the business strategy to either differentiation with low volume and high profit or penetration with high volume and high profit.

Quality, Design and Sustainability

I see a big opportunity in the respite of this current crisis. Product quality, design quality and architectural sustainability should be big drivers for the flooring industry in the future. Value for price should matter again, world class designers should create appealing floors and all application should be sustainable in the sense of: if I am installing this can future users continue to use this or change it with reasonable efforts?

Re-cycling

A German professor, now teaching in the Netherlands, asked the question why most people mean downcycling when they speak about recycling. We all know that recycling cost money both in landfill and re-use. Other than in the past where the value chain for the flooring industry stopped at the cashier the chain should continue, as all flooring removed from a building can be converted into another flooring. This costs money, but could generate contribution for our industry.

C.B.: What do you see being the greatest advantage that the Floor Covering Institute offers?

The big advantage of the Floor Covering Institute is the versatility of the expertise you can find there. Where else outside a company do you find a group of experts in flooring that go from 'is the subfloor good enough for installation?' to 'how do you think should I approach the market for my high end product?', and from 'can you help me to find a source in China?' to 'do you think this would sell in Russia?'

Danke schön, Carl!

Comments, questions, feedback?

I am fascinated with the glimpse that Carl offers us of the European marketplace and its complexity as well as his perspective on the opportunities ahead for the flooring industry.

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Jeanne Byington on Bridging New & Old - Social Media Series

cbwhittemore@gmail.com (C. B. Whittemore) — Wed, 10 Jun 2009 12:24:00 +0000

This week's guest for Flooring The Consumer's Social Media Series: Bridging New & Old is Jeanne M. Byington.

Jeanne Byington, an accomplished public relations and marketing consultant, is principal of NYC-based JM Byington & Associates, Inc.. She's also passionate about excellent customer service, a topic she addresses in her blog, The Importance of Earnest Service. Look for Jeanne on Twitter as JMByington.

I met Jeanne through David Reich of My 2 Cents who thought we would have plenty to talk about given our common home furnishings background. He was right! But, there's more as you will discover when you read what she has to say about Bridging New & Old.

C.B.: Jeanne, how and why did you get involved in social media?

Jeanne: I’m involved in social media to communicate--for the same reason at one time I learned to use a computer, BlackBerry, e-mail as well as a few phrases of Turkish when I lived in that country for two years. I feel claustrophobic when I can’t. Guess that’s why I’m in communications.

I started with a blog and coordinating web site. I did for my business precisely what I advise clients to do: increased its visibility. This is no time to shut down communications initiatives. Invest time and money to promote your business, its products and services, in spite of less than spectacular economic outlooks and income projections. Might as well close shop if you don’t let others know what your company is doing.

Today’s information comes faster and faster in tinier and tinier bytes. Pelted by it night and day, people’s attention spans/memories shrink. Participating in social media keeps your conversation in play and your business in focus in potential and actual customers’ lines of vision in cost-effective ways.

I use my blog as an evolving case history, an effective way to illustrate many ways to dice and slice a single concept. The blog gives dimension to my web site.

People have promoted and publicized products and services in a range of lights for eons using traditional PR methods from press releases and speeches to PowerPoint slide shows, newsletters and bulletins.

The same core PR technique applies to a blog or to tweets: They can’t be too commercial or self-serving.

The blog led me to explore LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook to promote my business, bring traffic to the web site and blog.

Web sites in combination with blogs are today’s business cards. Twitter allows a company to speak directly to its clients. It doesn’t require passing through gatekeepers.

C.B.: What do you like most about social media?

Jeanne:

+ I’ve met great people through my blog, some are strangers and all take precious time to share their expertise with me in guest posts and comments. I’m surprised at how simple it is to publish and illustrate posts [though it can be complicated to comment on some people’s blogs. I wonder why they make it tricky as there are simple, effective ways to control what’s posted].

+ I’m always thrilled when I find someone on LinkedIn whom I couldn’t otherwise locate or when a former contact finds me. And the groups, such as public relations and communications professionals on LinkedIn, hold promise.

+ From my Tweetdeck, I get news-as-it-happens from the New York Times and am often first with what may be an important development for a client or colleague.

+ Google Alerts act as a free clipping service and monitor.

+ iPods are amazing and promise marketing opportunities we can hardly fathom. Turn pages of a downloaded book with your finger in a far more realistic simulation than changing pages on a Kindle. Speaking of realistic, I watched beer fill the screen as if in a glass and was waiting for it to leak on my hand.

+ I’m fascinated by YouTube and its potential marketing applications. Social media tools link to some great video segments.

C.B.: What do you like least about social media?

Jeanne:

+ It’s a time-gobbler. Like wild hair, it needs to be tamed. I don’t want to receive tweets on my BlackBerry, so apart from direct messages, I don’t. I resent the hours it takes to identify people I should follow on Twitter for my business, though I wouldn’t mind spending that time on behalf of a client.

+ Some of the tools have multiple personalities, with applications for business, pleasure, the trade and consumers all at once. I’m so used to targeting messages. This was a recent tweet: “WOW, upstart bit.ly is now bigger than tinyURL: http://bit.ly/18Dghk - maybe its bc bit.ly is 6 char. & tinyURL is 7.” I know what it means, but do I care?

+ I’m awestruck by how self-centered some people are to think I’d be interested to know that they attended a meeting or trade show or film or were planning a vacation, returned from the beach, landed in Chicago and the like. I’m not their Mom. Is this spam-like sharing on LinkedIn, Twitter and elsewhere a lack of judgment? People should more carefully target who gets what information. It’s no different than sending out information to the press. News of a new flooring collection doesn’t go to a fashion accessories editor. If someone’s attended a trade show and they have something important to tell me about it, then write me, not all of their 328 contacts.

+ In addition, there are too many social communities. Who can participate in them all? I don’t like having to reject someone by refusing their invitations to join so I write a polite e-mail as to why I can’t. It’s like belonging to too many associations: Impossible to take advantage of the many updates and opportunities that seem to grow geometrically.

+ Finally, I have a big problem with trust these days. I am reluctant to use Facebook or LinkedIn to initiate and reply to messages. You want to reach me? Send me an e-mail or call. [I’ll get used to it. Some considered risky the first ATM machines.]

Meanwhile, don’t you ask a person you’d like to do business with whether they’d prefer to communicate by phone or e-mail?

C.B.: How has social media changed how you interact with the marketplace as a consumer or customer?

Jeanne: While the Internet has totally changed the way my family interacts with the marketplace—buying and selling stock; buying airline and train tickets; finding the nearest branch of a store; specking out the styles a store carries; buying books on Amazon.com; using for other things the space formerly taken up by printed directories and so forth, I can’t say that social media has changed how I interact with the marketplace as a consumer or customer.

Feeling insecure about being so out of it, I asked a 23 year old friend who works for a website—her second job in that industry. She thought of one instance—she admired a friend’s photos on Facebook and hired the photographer to take her wedding pictures.

I continue to get a tremendous amount of information from traditional media. From The New York Times I read that only 40 percent of Twitter users in February returned to the site in March and about Stephen Wolfram and his search tool, WolframAlpha. [On the other hand, my husband reads 98 percent of his news on the web.] I also hear about travel bargains on the radio.
C.B.: What 5 suggestions do you have for companies to implement so they can more effectively bridge old media with new media and connect with end users?

Jeanne:
1) From medical to marketing, ours is a country of specialists. You don’t have to explore the world of social media yourself if it holds no interest or you have no time. Just as you’d hire a video expert to produce and place a satellite media tour [SMT] or graphic designers to create fabulous merchandisers, web sites and logos, there are experts, such as Christine Whittemore, [Thank you, Jeanne!] who can hold your business by the hand and guide you to select new media options.

2) Speaking of video experts, you don’t want your YouTube videos to look like loving hands at home. Best use a professional. A company that conducts excellent SMTs would be the place to start. Staff has a nose for news and marketing as well as the video expertise to advise and provide a topnotch product. Paul Gourvitz, Gourvitz Communications in New York is A++.

3) Hire professional writers for your new media marketing materials otherwise you’ll lose readers as quickly as a click of a mouse. Ideally, the writers should be succinct and clear and sensitive to marketing and public relations issues. Faux pas travel fast.

4) When the Internet became popular as a marketing tool, many businesses largely dropped everything else and spent the majority of their marketing budget on their web site. Trouble with that was that nobody knew that they had a web site. Consumers weren’t Internet-savvy and didn’t Google. A company still needed to promote its site in traditional ways—through newspapers, radio, TV, trade and consumer magazine publicity and advertising.

No different today. You need to orchestrate your options to remind people that you are there and tap more than one note. Zagats does a good job. They have a 30th anniversary contest going on that you can participate in daily, but who remembers? They help remind with e-mails along with traditional and more innovative bells and whistles that direct you to their web site. Some restaurants, hoping you’ll give them a good review, provide handouts to the site. I passed a bagel shop on Third Avenue in NYC with a handmade sign on its front door, asking you to vote for them for “best bagel” on zagat.com. [They actually do have the best bagels.]

Like the early web days, some customers aren’t up-to-the-minute on technology. They still read, see and hear newspapers, TV and radio respectively. Don’t forget them. And now that we don’t get that much anymore, mail stands out.

5) Minding the basics is critical because consumers know how to spread news of their discontent through social media and the Internet as efficiently as a company can boast of its benefits. It’s easier to erase words etched in stone than to eliminate negative news from Google and other search functions.

Social media is exciting, energizing, efficient and relatively inexpensive, but toll-free number operators still need to be informed to provide accurate information, sales staffs must be knowledgeable and courteous, products have to work and customer service teams must be patient and compassionate problem-solvers or you’re wasting your time focusing only on social media to show how hip your company is.

C.B.: Any other thoughts to share about the effectiveness of social media in forging stronger relations with customers and how best to do so.

Toss out your calculators and cost per million stats. You’re communicating with clients and customers in a different way and traditional measurements—that some dispute, especially in PR, in any case--don’t apply. For example, tweets are conversations, not midget advertisements or endorsements. You can also use the technology to hear what’s being said about your brand while remaining silent with your brand’s ear to the ground. And as you’ve always done, understand the benefits and limitations of each option you decide to pursue so you know what to expect.

Thank you, Jeanne!

Comments? Questions? Reactions?

I love that Jeanne approaches social media tools with her clients specifically in mind.

She brings up an interesting point with respect to Twitter: how to target information effectively given one's audience. As Twitter transitions from a narrow-cast medium to a broadcast one [I am stunned by the number of folks with 20K+ Twitter followers deciding to follow me lately. What gives? How can anyone make meaning from the tweets of so many?], Twitter will need to evolve and offer users more effective means of truly receiving and sharing relevant content. I'm curious, though. What kinds of effective work arounds have you developed?

For that matter, how do you deal with the onslaught of communities and groups to join?

What about Jeanne's suggestions for more effectively bridging old media with new media? How might you implement some of those ideas?

For additional insights from participants in the Social Media Series: Bridging New & Old, please visit The Entire Bridging New & Old Series.

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Digital and the Retail Experience

cbwhittemore@gmail.com (C. B. Whittemore) — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 11:57:00 +0000

Times Square (NY City) digital signage originally uploaded by POPAItaly.
Have you considered how digital technology and signage might affect, even radically improve, your retail experience?

I recently became re-acquainted with Andy Edelman from Trimco, a New York based visual merchandising display company whose organization has enhanced the in-store experiences of many major retailers - e.g., Ann Taylor, Bloomingdale's, Harley-Davidson, Disney, JC Penney, Victoria's Secret, Macy's, etc.... - around the country. Andy and I had both been invited to sit in on Brand Experience Lab's David Polinchock's FIT class final presentation and listen to, react to and evaluate the students' retail makeover recommendations.

Andy and I got to talking -- how often do you get to interact with someone who has single-handedly 'touched' in some way just about every noteworthy retail experience? -- about retail displays and the role they play: to capture the attention of a public that expects retail to be an experience, yet has less time and wants to get in and out of stores rapidly.

Digital, you see, can radically improve a retail experience by educating, entertaining and creating a consistent and up-to-date visual environment. Digital can do that despite inconsistent in-store sales assistance.

Take mannequins. It takes a great deal of manual effort to change them and re-dress them [!] to reflect new seasonal items. Consequently, they don't change frequently. Digital mannequins, on the other hand, can be updated at the push of a button to coincide with different day parts or different shopper patterns.

Here's a frightening bit of information: only 60% of point-of-purchase materials actually ever get set up in-store. Talk about waste! Digital guarantees that updates take place.

[By the way, I can attest to the truth of that statistic. If we ever had in-store promotions planned to coincide with the launch of new Wear-Dated display programs, we had to send our Wear-Dated Representatives out ready to go into warehouses, dig out cartons, extract the display parts, get them set up and the product samples properly organized within the displays. Otherwise, the displays and associated products never saw the light of a retail store - or the inside of a consumer's home.]

To illustrate what's possible, Andy shared with me this video link to an interactive retail window. It's new technology, definitely cool and fun and brings to life how digital displays can enhance the retail experience, engaging consumers and inviting them to interact with displays at a higher level of involvement than traditional displays do.

What do you think? Pretty cool, no?

Contrast that with WSL Strategic Retail's visual virtual tour of Target's new Beauty Department concept being tested in several stores in and around Wheaton, IL. Note the oversized, visually captivating and attention getting photos and graphics. I don't see much digital technology involved here... although the visuals create an eye-catching effect. [Imagine, though, bringing in-store via digital technology the online DailyCandy experience - see Target Offers Taste of DailyCandy - to enhance the strong visual presence.]

Questions for your consideration:

How would you apply this kind of technology to your retail environment? What if a consumer could design a room on-screen or on a store window? How would you use it to enhance the value of the products and services that you offer? How might you completely redefine, re-imagine and re-value the flooring retail experience - or any other - as a result?

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LMNOP: An A&D Networking Community

cbwhittemore@gmail.com (C. B. Whittemore) — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 00:50:00 +0000

Back in my Wear-Dated, Ultron and Carpetology days [to think it's only been 2.5 months since those days!], I came into contact with A&D or Architecture and Design professionals. After all, Solutia [now Ascend Performance Materials] was actively engaged with that segment via the Ultron carpet fiber brand, the yearly Doc Award Competition, a permanent showroom at NeoCon and other programs. So, when I learned from a former NYC-based Ultron representative about LMNOP - Leadership, Mentoring, Networking & Opportunity for A&D Professionals and a new organization specifically for the A&D community, I was intrigued.

In A&D Professionals Form Networking Society in Interior Design magazine, you can learn more about the organization, its efforts to prevent a 'talent gap' in the architecture and design industry, and the events being offered.

The press release announcing the organization's formation is available at Contract Magazine in "Disaster Relief: Leadership, Mentoring, Networking & Opportunity for A&D Professionals (LMNOP) is Born." From that release:

"LMNOP is composed of several different factions; Jennifer Graham heads the "Leadership Group" with co-founder Stephanie Chiuminatto who is charged with setting the vision and agenda for all group events. The core unit and reason for the group's establishment is the "Opportunity Group," made up of unemployed architects and designers ranging in experience from 2 years to 20 plus years. Employed professionals are "Networkers" who can assist other members in connecting with possible employment opportunities and provide support and encouragement as well as notify members of industry events. All members can participate in the "Mentoring Group," professionals that donate their professional expertise to the group either individually or in a workshop setting.

Workshops are regularly held for Opportunity members and include topics such as "The Job Search Checklist" and "Your Personal Professional Brand." Topics are chosen based on the timeliness of the subject. Accessibility to similar workshops in professional development and leadership training may only occur in a handful of the largest architecture and design firms, and similar business workshops are not specifically tailored to the A+D community. All workshops are held as small round-table discussions at various showrooms around New York City. Because of the intimate and interactive nature of the workshops, the Opportunity Group is kept small; new members are referred in by existing members. Networking events are open to all LMNOP members and often double as fundraisers in the group's overall objective to develop into a fully-realized non-profit organization."

I really like the notion of employed networkers and unemployed opportunity group members interacting. Imagine the knowledge exchange and learning opportunities possible for both groups!

I reached out to co-founder Stephanie Chiuminatto, Associate IIDA, LEED AP. She explained to me that membership has been coming primarily through word of mouth. Leadership members are actively networking, and oftentimes people approach members at events asking how they can get involved.

She expects the LMNOP website to be up and running in the next month or so.

In the meantime, if you have questions or know of NYC architect and designers - employed or not - wanting to get involved, please contact Stephanie directly at schiuminatto [at] gmail [dot] come.

On a related note, I learned that The Mohawk Group has established Re:work program. Per FloorDaily.com "Mohawk's Re:work seminar series designed to provide unemployed designers and architects help in securing future employment. In this 10 city tour, Mohawk, the IIDA and Interior Design Magazine have teamed up to provide A&D professionals with outplacement assistance that includes portfolio evaluation, financial planning, resume writing assistance and job opportunity networking services."

You can learn more from an 8 minute interview with Al Kabus, president of The Mohawk Group, who discusses The Mohawk Group's Re:work Program with Kemp Harr from FloorDaily.

Given these terrific programs and organizations, have you considered how you might support networking in your community? Could you host events in-store? What about sharing meeting space or even offering your own expertise? I bet you will be pleasantly surprised at what develops.

I've been sharing my expertise in networking groups and am astounded at what I'm learning.

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Valeria Maltoni on Bridging New & Old - Social Media Series

cbwhittemore@gmail.com (C. B. Whittemore) — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 12:18:00 +0000

This week's guest for Flooring The Consumer's Social Media Series: Bridging New & Old is Valeria Maltoni.

Valeria Maltoni - aka Conversation Agent - redefines conversation and community by connecting ideas and people. She carries those conversations over to a multitude of venues, both online and offline, further nurturing and developing them. Read her biography and you'll understand. Better yet, read her blog, Conversation Agent, learn What does Conversation Agent do? and you'll realize what an amazing Renaissance woman she is.

"How do You Say "Just Do It" in Marketing 2.0?" represents Valeria's chapter in The Age of Conversation 2 - Why Don't They Get It? - the book that 237 authors from around the world collaborated on to benefit Variety, the children's charity. [Per a previous post, The Age of Conversation 2 - Why Don't They Get It? is now available on Amazon for purchase.] The advice she shares in her chapter captures the essence of bridging new and old: "The one thing you can definitely control is how you relate to your customers and what actions you take to respond to their needs. That is Marketing 2.0."

Valeria brings an unique perspective to conversation -- not just because of her bi-cultural experiences -- but also because she is both corporate marketer and active in Marketing 2.0, epitomizing what bridging new & old is about.

C.B.: Valeria, how and why did you get involved in social media?

Valeria: I didn't really or specifically think bout the media part, to me it was about getting social and online was a way to do that. At the time I was working in Northern New Jersey and had this long commute to and from where I would have plenty of time to think about organizing my day's activities. Since I was driving the 80 or so miles each way, I would also listen to fiction books on tape. Remember this was almost 10 years ago.

I'd discovered Fast Company magazine through my managing director who then became CEO and is still my mentor. When it comes to learning I'm a sponge, and having so much actionable information was ideal to me. FC was also the first publication I read that really believed in the power of helping people make connections with each other. It was probably the work of a team, but Heath Row became the living proof that it could be done and the main contact for the community.

I got involved because to me learning is about putting skin in the game and growing up in a culture that values and encourages (at least at that time) conversation and the free exchange of ideas (have you ever talked to an Italian?) that was a natural step. Fast Company was new media in beta since 1995.

The rest, so to speak, is history. The social network I helped develop and then curate in Philadelphia grew to 500 people and 98 free events. Roundtables with idea people on technology and innovation, networking boot camps, conversations with authors like Ben McConnell, Dan Pink, Bill Taylor and Polly LaBarre, in depth visits with CEOs like Pernille Lopez of IKEA or Glenn Senk of Anthropologie kept things interesting. We partnered with local business schools - Villanova, The Fox School of Business at Temple U., LeBow College of Business at Drexel U., and even Wharton.

That's how I also developed an understanding of digital group dynamics, and learned about facilitating discussions with an online community. Starting my blog was a natural outcome of all of these activities. I wanted to share more information and content, and I love writing while I learn. The blog also allowed me to distribute what I know more widely so that more people can (hopefully) find what they are looking for - a connection to someone else, or to an idea that helps them execute on theirs.

C.B.: What do you like most about social media?

Valeria: In many ways social media has made it easier for us to be social, to share, learn, find information, communicate with each other, connect, etc. without boundaries. The freedom it gives us, which comes with some fundamental responsibilities, is liberating (no pun intended).

As a native Italian, relationships are very important to me - and they are for life. I'd also like to stress that it's not about the tools. I can give you lots of tips about how to use Twitter or LinkedIn but I cannot teach you how to bring the best out of people, or how to change your attitude if you want to or feel the need to adjust it. Those are decisions and choices you need to make.

That is also part of the beauty of the social Web. It brings out the potential of human kind and often the best way online is the best way offline - leading brands just lead.

C.B.: What do you like least about social media?

Valeria: Well, these are permanent digital records, and sometimes people forget that there are consequences to their actions. In the same way as positive gestures are amplified, so are negative ones. Peer pressure, or general dissatisfaction can manifest themselves in unpleasant ways online.

Lack of critical thinking, or not allowing fair discussion bother me. Then again, it's not my place to try and change others, all I can do is improve my own attitude and behavior.

C.B.: How has social media changed how you interact with the marketplace as a consumer or customer?

Valeria: I've become more frugal, actually. Maybe I'm going back to my roots. In Europe we have so much less of everything, or maybe it's that way in my family. And we don't resent it, we feel we have enough. I've always sought connections with people and with ideas and having more of those thanks to the social Web has made me realize I already have all I need.

As a marketer, I pay attention to how people like to receive information, when they seek to be educated or entertained, where they see value, which is not necessarily where the company projects it. I was always the odd duck in school and in corporate America - the one asking more whys than teachers and teams were willing or able to respond to. It's natural curiosity and I bring that to my job. So I question the official role and let relationships and what I learn in conversations with customers guide me on better approaches.

Then again, I was not trained as a traditional marketer. I come to the profession from communications, linguistics to be exact. The Liberal Arts education I received is worth gold today. Think about it - sociology, history of language and communications, philosophy, even anthropology and ethnographics and psychology all teach us about people, us.

Those companies that get my business long term are available to interaction. Period. You may not tweet or blog, like Apple, but if your product rocks and your customer support is superb I don't care. I think many companies are confusing the tools with the business they're in. If your business is to provide a product or service, then that is your starting point for interaction with customers. Social media is the cherry on the top, it's not going to make a product or service that is lacking better.

C.B.: What 5 suggestions do you have for companies to implement so they can more effectively bridge old media with new media and connect with end users?

Valeria: I should have held my advice for this question.

1. Start with your product or service - what do you need to do to make it a valuable use of your customers' budgets and time? If you feel you need to improve it, but do not know where to begin or what, do open up the communication lines with your customers. This is the same deal as the employee suggestion box, it cannot be just lip service, you'll need to walk the talk.

The main difference between old media and new media is the filter - with new media you have none. That can be really good, or really bad for you. You decide.

2. Integrate CRM with social to build long term relationships - the fundamental shift between your CRM system and the social Web to build relationships is that CRM is really a process where you capture and manage customer information. The social Web allows you to act publicly on that information to benefit your customers as well and not just you. Big shift in thinking.

If you want to connect with end users, begin by not seeing them as something you can use and broaden that definition to include how they can use your content to become smarter, do their job better, look good with their boss, etc.

3. Educate your company on new media - don't take for granted that just because everyone's on Facebook they know how to put these tools to good use for business. Set up training classes for your authors and content owners to help them see the possibilities. We're doing that in my organization as part of the media training program we offer. We share information on how we talk about what we do, our stories, what we've published in traditional media, what resonates with our audience (their readers). That kind of intelligence allows subject matter experts to build on existing conversations.

Teach people how to write for the Web and you'll be able to publish more content that is of value to your customer community. It's the old adage of teaching people how to fish. All those who are in customer-facing jobs should be empowered to assist customers wherever they choose to communicate with you.

4. Listen, test, adjust frequently - don't wait until you have the perfect answer. Start testing small initiatives by integrating them to existing programs and keeping them modest. What you want to do is set up realistic objectives, communicate them to your team, and measure against them. Keep listening for changes in behavior and adjust your tactics or strategies accordingly.

This may feel a bit squeamish for those who are classically trained in marketing. They tend to have very specific ideas of what needs to be done. Yes, gone are the days of perfect mass marketing campaigns. Today it's more about micro interactions - personal, relevant, and meaningful exchanges of value. You capture someone's attention when you stop thinking of them as eyeballs and start thinking in terms of exchange.

5. Know where your customers are and why they're there - you may think that having an ad on Facebook is a good idea, after all many of your customers are there. Before you go ahead and find a new way for them to ignore you or piss them off, do take the time to find out why they're there, what they do. Many of the customers I talked with say they signed up to share photos with their grandchildren and find old college room mates. That is a very personal reason and although personal and professional are bleeding into each other more and more, they are in the driver seat here, they decide.

Digital and online media by its very nature feels more personal. People have come to expect interaction and exchange. Instead of ignoring you, like they did off line when you interrupted them last, they may tell you what they think about your ad and they may tell all their friends, too.

C.B.: Any other thoughts to share about the effectiveness of social media in forging stronger relations with customers and how best to do so.

Valeria: Make things easier for your customers. Give them more ways to reach a human being at your company. Especially now that things are tight, whether you're in B2B or B2C, be responsive, get the whole organization on the same page on delivering superb customer experiences, wherever your customers decide they want to talk with you.

Social media is the modern version of the telephone. You've still got to deliver on your promises.

Thank you, Valeria!

Comments, questions, reactions?

I love Valeria's recommendations for educating your company on new media. Are you doing anything along those lines? How is your company using the information to improve the customer experience you offer?

For additional insights from participants in the Social Media Series: Bridging New & Old, please visit The Entire Bridging New & Old Series.

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Retail Innovation and Urban Outfitters

cbwhittemore@gmail.com (C. B. Whittemore) — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 12:09:00 +0000

[Anthropologie] Salt Lake City Utah store window for bees
originally uploaded by Anthro_Creative.
When you think 'retail innovation,' what comes to mind? I immediately think of Urban Outfitters. I routinely refer to them in presentations about the retail experience and strongly encourage retailers to spend time visiting any of their stores - Urban Outfitters, Anthropologie, Free People, Leifsdottir, Terrain... - for inspiration.

Inspiration of all sorts. In terms of how to create a retail experience within a store, how to be truly customer-centric, and how to celebrate events both locally and nationally.

Take Anthropologie and Earth Day and marvelous displays calling attention to honey bees across Anthropologie stores around the country. In San Jose, CA, in Boise, ID, Rockefeller Center, NY, Salt Lake City, UT, Georgetown, DC, San Francisco, CA, ...

[Note: Imagine having a store concept so engaging that photos of your windows get posted and viewed online.]

You see, as is typical of Anthropologie and Urban Outfitters stores, no two stores or store windows look the same, nor are they laid out the same. And, yet, the commonality of theme in a variety of interpretations only strengthens the message, drawing visitors into stores.

This WSJ.com article titled "Urban Outfitters Fashions Growth Plan" by Jennifer Saranow from 8/27/2008 highlights what differentiates Urban Outfitters from a plethora of mostly colorless retailers.

Per the article "... employees create their own displays."

Urban Outfitters' CEO, Glen Senk, intends to "cap growth for each division at approximately 250 stores... rather than saturate the market with cookie-cutter stores." Additional expansion would result from new retail concepts instead.

Concepts like We The Free as described in DDI Magazine's "Urban Outfitters launches We The Free" from February 2009, or Terrain [see August 2008 DDI Magazine's "Retail offshoots abound despite tough economic environment"] the goal of which is to "transform the local garden center into an experience that celebrates the beauty and abundance of nature while offering an eclectic mix of garden-inspired products tailored for the contemporary consumer." [Note: digital copies of articles no longer available. Check out PSFK's Store Visit: Return To Terrain from 3/26/2009].

[Another PSFK article - Urban Outfitters gives artists a window for a message - further describes the company's commitment to creativity and community.]

This Fast Company interview with Melinda Davis and Glen Senk: Do You Offer Your Customers What They Really Want? further puts Urban Outfitters into perspective. Senk considers his organization 'customer experts' rather than 'category experts.' What a major difference. He refers to his stores as offering a sensorial experience and telling a story. His stores are like a community where people come to connect.

Customer experts.

Stores are places where people come to connect.

Wow! I consider that not only inspiring, but really unusual. Imagine if flooring stores became customer experts rather than flooring experts. If people came to connect in these flooring customer stores, how would that look?

------------------------
For additional perspective on CEO Glen Senk, read Vignette on Urban Outfitters' CEO Glen Senk from Effortless Anthropologie; 1stdibs Introspective - Style Compass on Glen Senk and Keith Johnson; and from Conversation Agent Valeria Maltoni, No Advertising... and Thriving, Retail Style.

For historic perspective on Urban Outfitters, read Forbes' Urban Cowboy by Heidi Brown from 11.01.04; it refers to Glen Senk's appointment as CEO. Finally, Metropolis Magazine published "A Stitch in Time" in the May 2007 issue describing the company's new headquarters in Philadelphia's decommissioned navy yard.

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A Simple Marketing Now Update - May 2009

cbwhittemore@gmail.com (C. B. Whittemore) — Sun, 31 May 2009 13:52:00 +0000

Have you had a chance to explore my other blog, Simple Marketing Blog? It's the blog and newsroom for Simple Marketing Now and it's where I explore marketing strategy and creative, practical, even simple marketing approaches -- often with social media.

Would you consider subscribing to it, too?

Here's a snapshot of what I wrote about during the month of May 2009.

Given that the site is also my company Newsroom, I posted my latest Press Release: Whittemore Re-Appointed to SURFACES '10 Education Advisory Council.

That release generated an email from my friend and former Solutia boss and colleague, Gary Petersen. His comments led to What About The Consumer of the Future? Do read it and let me know -- what are your thoughts about consumers of the future?

The news release refers to an upcoming marketing strategy workshop taking place at Surfaces 2010 that Paul Friederichsen - BrandBiz Inc., Scott Perron - Big Bob's of America, and I will present. I guarantee that this will be a memorable session. We've already started working on it as you can read from Connecting With Retail Consumers - Marketing Strategy Series. In fact, I'll be documenting our entire planning process. You don't want to miss any of it, right? Plus, I might need your help...

Simplicity In Communication focuses on the core questions that effective communications must focus on. Do other questions come to mind?

I'm fascinated with the ideas in Marketing Effectively During An Information Revolution. Imagine that we are marketing in the equivalent of the 1500s when the Gutenberg press made its appearance. It kind of puts things into perspective, doesn't it?

The Humble News or Press Release discusses what I appreciate about press releases: they are vehicles for content creation. What's exciting, though, is to encounter a company that no only believes in press releases, but has developed a creation solution for enhancing that content. Read Press Releases, Newsletters and OtterBox.

Don't miss the wisdom in Links of Note: Practical Marketing Lessons. You Can No Longer Ignore Social Media offers additional perspective on how to make sense of social media for your business. For practical perspective, read How Marketers Grow Their Business With Social Media; it's based on an industry research report.

Thanks for reading and subscribing - you will consider subscribing, right?

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BitBriefs For Bits of Fascinating Research Data

cbwhittemore@gmail.com (C. B. Whittemore) — Fri, 29 May 2009 12:34:00 +0000

I love research data. And, when Joshua Dreller, director, media technology & analytics at Fuor Digital LLC contacted me asking if he could submit research data for Flooring The Consumer, I felt strong interest.

But, I had questions.

Josh's note explained that his agency 'clips' great stats and charts on the marketing industry that might be useful research or supporting data for blogposts.

Very interesting. But, how does it work? I checked out the site he referred me to - BitBriefs - and wondered how best to use the site.

By the way, the site bills itself a "clog" or 'clipping log' made possible by Amplify [i.e., web clips for Twitter] , "a new service from the company that created Clipmarks [this from the Amplify About page] to share not just links, but the exact parts of web pages that matter most and the conversation that surrounds each of them".

Josh responded as follows to my questions.

How does BitBriefs work?

Josh: Well, BitBriefs started as an internal “knowledge base” tool for our agency. Each of us “clips” interesting stats/graphs/charts/etc from sources we want to share with each other. We try to clip as little as possible to keep them brief (thus, “BitBriefs”) and to not blatantly “scrape” content from other sites. Over time, we started telling our partners and clients about it and started getting some solid SEO traffic. We figured bloggers like you would be interested in finding supporting data for their posts, reporting on interesting stats, or even browsing through for story starter ideas.

What's the best way to use BitBriefs?

Josh: I think the best way to use us is to subscribe to our Twitter feed as you’ll get the headlines and can dig deeper if interested.

In addition to following BitBriefs on Twitter @bitbriefs, you can also enter search terms.

For example, enter the search term "women" and you'll discover [majority of results will appear on left sidebar]:

+ Older Female Demographic Dropping on Facebook

+ 20% of Online Population are ‘Power Moms’

+ US Affluent Internet Users by Gender, Age, Region

+ Women over 55 on Facebook Grows by 175.3% in 5 Months

+ Demographics of Americans With Social Networking Profile

You can click the “Older” link at the bottom and delve even deeper.

What's the value of BitBriefs?

Josh: BitBriefs is a simple way to stay abreast of the industry. There’s so much content out there it can be tough for marketers to read everything. The value of BitBriefs is you can read 5-10 posts in a few minutes and dig deeper to the source material/case studies if it has a direct interest to you. We try to make sure to get “coverage” on all major studies so our users don’t miss anything important.

I'm definitely intrigued! What about you? Have you tried BitBriefs? How do you integrate this data stream with Twitter? How do you use these fascinating bits of research data in what you do?

Thanks, Josh!

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Doug Meacham on Bridging New & Old - Social Media Series

cbwhittemore@gmail.com (C. B. Whittemore) — Wed, 27 May 2009 12:17:00 +0000

This week's guest for Flooring The Consumer's Social Media Series: Bridging New & Old is Doug Meacham.

Doug Meacham has a passion for the customer experience, innovation, brand engagement and social media. That's what his blog - NextUp - is about, and it's something he has considerable experience in given his current role as Multi-Channel Retail Consultant for IBM and a rich history with Circuit City Stores.

I love how practical and relevant Doug's advice is. Take the retail experience wisdom he shares in The Flooring Display Challenge - Part I. Or his post, Your Blog is a Cabin in the Woods which gives you a feel for how best to use social media to create a worthy customer experience and bridge the old with the new.

Doug contributed "The Digital Playground" to The Age of Conversation 2 - Why Don't They Get It? - the book that 237 authors from around the world collaborated on to benefit Variety, the children's charity. [Per a previous post, The Age of Conversation 2 - Why Don't They Get It? is now available on Amazon. Would you consider purchasing it, if you haven't already?] His chapter explores how social interaction on the web comes naturally to millennials...

For those of you in the Richmond, VA area, I have wonderful news for you! Doug has been busy since February launching a local Social Media Club chapter for Richmond, VA. The group is on http://twitter.com/SMCRVA and Facebook with a website coming as soon as socialmediaclub.org rolls out its new web platform.

As Doug explains "the first event took place last month. It was more of a mixer to introduce the local chapter to the attendees and to provide information about what we were planning to do with the club over the coming months. Around 140 people attended. The next event takes place on June 9 and will feature a panel of local journalists from a variety of media channels to discuss the impact of social media on the news business. It sold out (150 seats) in 6 hours! Lots of demand for social media guidance in Richmond!"

C.B.: Doug, how/why did you get involved in social media?

Doug: I first got involved while at Circuit City in 2006. I was working on developing a strategy for getting the organization more engaged in idea creation. I saw social media tools as a great way to engage 36,000 employees across a highly distributed organization. The tools were primarily used for insight sharing and idea generation.

This was a bit of a skunkworks project. Initially sanctioned as part of a larger innovation team effort to try to make the organization more adaptive, I proposed a series of "Insight Sharing" initiatives, all of which involved some sort of social media or collaboration tool. The innovation was subsequently shut down, but I went ahead with building in internal blogging platform using Wordpress and recruiting people across the organization to participate. It was strictly a word of mouth thing flying under the radar to avoid pushback from management. The idea was to generate interest and create value before showing it to decision makers. Unfortunately, my position was eliminated before we could reach that level.

C.B.: What do you like most about social media?

Doug: From a personal standpoint, social media has allowed me to tap into a network of amazing people. I learn from them every day and often apply those those insights in my day to day work. From a business standpoint, I am a bit obsessed with great customer experiences. Social media, when used in the right way, gives organizations powerful tools to engage with and get feedback from both customers and internal associates.

C.B.: What do you like least about social media?

Doug: Unlike traditional media that tends to be controlled and managed, social media is in the hands of people. As more people are getting involved, the volume of content being produced keeps growing making it increasingly difficult to find the really valuable content in the noise. I am also a big fan of Twitter. As its popularity has increased, so have the spammers.

C.B.: How has social media changed how you interact with the marketplace as a consumer or customer?

Doug: I often look to Twitter first to get product recommendations or to discuss an issue directly with a representative of the business. I don't usually read company blogs. I haven't found any companies that offer content which is compelling enough to get me to add them to my read list. For many retailers, the company blog looks a lot like a promotional email telling me about products and services that they offer.

C.B.: What 5 suggestions do you have for companies to implement so they can more effectively bridge old media with new media and connect with end users?

Doug:
1. Whether you have started using social media or not, the first thing companies must do is determine what social media channel (if any) is going to help them connect with their customers. A denture adhesive doesn't need to establish a presence on Facebook, at least not yet. Go where your customers are.

2. Listen

3. Listen some more. What do you hear. Are people talking about your brand? If not, then why? If they are, then what are they saying? Do they love you? Do they hate you? Are they helping you to increase your customer base or lose it? There is a lot of value in those conversations. Use it to your advantage.

4. Offer something of value. Companies often make the mistake of treating social media like another advertising channel. Remember, these are places where your customers spend time with friends. Imagine if it was a physical place. Would you go in shouting your latest offer? Would you plaster your ads all over their walls? I don't think so. Instead, look for ways to add value for your customers. Find opportunities to turn bad experiences into good ones, but then take it one step further and look for ways to address the sources of problems your customers are talking about. Engage with people who are singing your praises; they are your biggest cheerleaders.

5. Lower your expectations. Social media is not a magic bullet. ROI is difficult to evaluate and for that reason, it may be a difficult sell to the C-level execs. Don't expect to see material results immediately. Your 3000 Twitter followers are not going to raise you stock price next quarter. You're talking about a cultural change for your organization and that takes time.

C.B.: Any other thoughts to share about the effectiveness of social media in forging stronger relations with customers and how best to do so.

Doug: Active participation in social media is rapidly growing across key demographics. Your customers are forging on-line relationships with each other and sharing stories about their experiences with you. Company participation in social media is no longer optional. Its effectiveness at forging stronger relationships is highly dependent on who your customers are and how you engage in the space. Leveraging social media to add value for you customers and to promote transparency is the best place to start.

Thank you, Doug!

Comments? Questions? Feedback?

Are you participating? If not, how are you experimenting? What's working? What's not?

How do you offer your customers value?

For additional insights from participants in the Social Media Series: Bridging New & Old, please visit The Entire Bridging New & Old Social Media Series.

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MyVetwork - The Veterans Networking Site

cbwhittemore@gmail.com (C. B. Whittemore) — Mon, 25 May 2009 11:09:00 +0000

My friends, John R. Campbell and Susan W. Bird, are actively involved in MyVetwork, a social networking site for Veterans. John is the founder of the site; I spent time with both during last year's Blogger Social.

The site's goal is - per the About Us page:

"1) To provide our US military and those who care about them with a means to interact with and support each other in ways that range from the lighthearted and entertaining to deep and meaningful connections that they wish to sustain.

2) To create an interactive exchange where a broad variety of experts – including veterans of earlier conflicts – provide timely news of particular interest to military personnel, distributed in sophisticated, graphically exciting format; job and career advice; information about educational opportunities, advice regarding health care, access to coaching and mentoring services, and a variety of other resources valuable to recently separated veterans demobilizing from the military, whether they are recuperating from injury, moving on to further their education, or planning careers in public or private sectors."

Listen to this Good News Broadcast where John explains the benefits that MyVetwork offers. You'll be amazed at the vision, scope and matching capabilities of this network. I certainly am.

My Vetwork needs our help. I share with you this message in case it sparks ideas and possibilities...

"MyVetwork needs to graduate to its own office space....

MyVetwork's dream is to find an individual or organization that wants to do something special for the US Military and their families, and will trade unused office space in Manhattan in exchange for recognition as a MyVetwork sponsor (priceless!). MyVetwork is a 501 (c) (3), in case that's helpful. An alternative could be space available on a short term sublease basis. Either way, I'm hoping you may have a thought for the MyVetwork folks. They're doing great stuff for our vets. In case you want to see for yourself why we're so fired up about MyVetwork's progress, check out their latest exec summary here."

Could you help get the word out?

Thank you.

Happy Memorial Day!

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MarketingProfs B2B Forum 2009: Boston June 8-9

cbwhittemore@gmail.com (C. B. Whittemore) — Fri, 22 May 2009 11:44:00 +0000

I am excited beyond belief: I will be attending MarketingProfs Business-to-Business Forum 2009 taking place June 8-9 in Boston, MA. What about you?

If you're still on the fence, will you join me? If you use discount code EPRT9, I can offer you - on behalf of MarketingProfs - a $200 discount. Not bad, eh? Now, you have no excuse. Please come!

As is the norm for MarketingProfs events, this one will be chock full of valuable learnings, insights, interactions and inspiration.

For one thing, we get to hear Barry Schwartz [remember the The Paradox of Choice: Why More Is Less ? I've only addressed that topic a few times here... in Are There Too Many Choices?, The Problem With Too Many Choices - And The Opportunities,A Transcultural Perspective On The Retail Experience, Musings on Choice, Culture and the Retail Experience, and Lost in the Supermarket] and learn about The New Model of Innovation from Steven Berlin Johnson.

The B2B Forum will focus on three key areas - all equally relevant given the environment, the state of business and the rapid pace of change we are living with:

1. Integrating your marketing programs for better results,
2. Measuring and evaluating your marketing programs to prove ROI, and
3. Keeping your customers and prospects engaged.

Check out the program for yourself. As usual, I will have to make some tough decisions....

But, if you join me we can make the tough decisions together and divide and conquer so we don't miss out on a single aspect of this amazing event.

MarketingProfs, here I come and I can't wait!

Are you with me?

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Social Media Series: Rich Nadworny On Bridging New & Old

cbwhittemore@gmail.com (C. B. Whittemore) — Wed, 20 May 2009 12:22:00 +0000

This week's guest for Flooring The Consumer's Social Media Series: Bridging New & Old is Rich Nadworny.

Rich Nadworny writes the Digital Strategy Blog for Digalicious, the company he founded, which offers "delicious digital marketing strategy." In other words, strategies that provide customers, prospects and employees with reasons to become engaged in what we create. Once engaged, they are more likely to interact with us.

The reasons shouldn't come as a surprise to any of us at this point: the consumer is in control and one-way shouting no longer works. Digital, on the other hand, creates opportunities for dialogue, as Rich explains in Social Media Makes One-Way Media Two-Way.

By the way, if you are in the Burlington, VT area on June 1, 2009, consider attending the Burlington Social Media Breakfast that Digalicious and The Communication and Creative Media Division at Champlain College have organized. For more information and to register, visit the Burlington Social Media Breakfast site.

You can find Rich on Twitter @RNadworny. That's where I met him. His post about being a hybrid, renaissance person or even polymath beautifully captures why bridging new and old matters...

C.B.: Rich, how and why did you get involved in social media?

Rich: I would say I've been involved in social media a long time. Back in the early 90s social media was Usenet News groups, one of the best social tools of the early Internet. One thing I've noticed is that the new tools do a lot of what Usenet did, they just do it much better and much more personally. I've been involved in developing online marketing and Web sites since 1996. I remember creating one program in 2000 for an anti-smoking campaign where we developed something we called MySpace to let teens create their own space and connect with other teens! Should've taken out a patent on that one.

For current social media, I've been playing with it for the past 4 or 5 years, although I have to say that I haven't gotten into any of them (Second Life, MySpace, Facebook, LinkedIn etc.) to the extent I've gotten into Twitter. For the past 8 months I've been totally obsessed with it and I think it's the best thing to happen to the Internet since Free Shipping!

[Note: read Rich's post Is Twittter the New Usenet?]

C.B.: What do you like most about social media?

Rich: I love the fact that I can connect with people I've followed and admired for a long time and build a two-way relationship with them. In general, that's one of the best things with social media: It's an amazing way of turning one-way, broadcast media (TV, radio, news) into a two-way discussion.

C.B.: What do you like least about social media?

Rich: 1. It takes up too much time 2. There's a lot of noise and chatter which can ultimately make some good channels not so good. This is what happened to MySpace and the risk is that it's going to happen to Facebook and Twitter soon, too.

I think, though, that while the names may change, there will always be innovators to take the tools to the next level. They're not going away anytime soon.

C.B.: How has social media changed how you interact with the marketplace as a consumer or customer?

Rich: As a consumer, I totally rely on strangers' opinions for almost everything I buy, from electronics, to household goods, to cars and vacations. It's kind of crazy when I say it like that, but it's true. Social media has started the undeniable shift in marketing control from the producers, or brands, to the consumers. And thank God for that! It's about time.

[Note: check out Rich's post How Do You Buy?]

C.B.: What 5 suggestions do you have for companies to implement so they can more effectively bridge old media with new media and connect with end users?

Rich:
1. Listen. Most companies are pretty bad at this anyway, but they have to start being very good at it. It will make them much better at what they do.

2. Use social media to solve problems. This is, I think, the silver bullet. If you listen to the complaints and use social media to help fix things, you win. It shows that you take people seriously, that you connect with them personally, and that you care about them. Companies who do this will find that their word-of-mouth marketing will grow substantially.

3. Be generous. Most companies have content that people are interested in. Share it without asking for something in return. The return will come, but it's hard for companies to get in the habit of giving something away, even if it has little value in the company's eyes.

4. Connect social media to the rest of your outbound marketing. See above about making one way two way. Integrate this into everything (print, TV, direct and online).

5. Tap into existing constellations rather than building your own. It's easier, cheaper and more authentic. You may have to give up control, but that's what it's all about these days. If you build it, they probably won't come.

Extra Credit 6. You have to connect social media with both the marketing and customer service groups in your company. It can't survive without support of the other two groups. The other two groups will also become much better themselves when they're connected with social media.

C.B.: Rich, any other thoughts to share about the effectiveness of social media in forging stronger relations with customers and how best to do so.

Rich: Think of the best person you know, and then use that persona as your social marketing model. It works.

Thank you, Rich!

Comments? Questions? Reactions?

What about using social media to solve problems? Have you considered doing that? What about tapping into 'existing constellations rather than building your own?' Is that scary to you?

I love the notion of connecting social media with marketing and customer service. That to me is what makes social media tools so very powerful...

For additional insights from participants in the Social Media Series: Bridging New & Old, please visit The Entire Bridging New & Old Social Media Series.

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