Crafting the Customer Experience for People Not Like You
Changing Customer Expectations • The “Impossible Triangle” is history
• • • •
Low cost High Quality Fast An “experience”
Customers Have Changed We Want: • Personalized experience • To feel valued • Relationship
Understanding Someone Different from You Means Understanding Their Life Their priorities Their values The experiences that define them
Try This Exercise! • When asked to name how Kennedy died… • Matures & Boomers – Gunshot in Dallas
• Gen X – Plane crash near Martha’s Vineyard
• Gen Y – “Kennedy who?”
Who is Ron Howard? • Matures
• Boomers
• Gen X & Gen Y
Matures, Boomers, Gen X, Gen Y Key emotional drivers and icons
Matures (age 69 and older) • • • • • • • • • • •
Iconic entertainer: HHI: Defining Idea: Style: Work is: Education is: Reward because: Home stuff: Money: Family: Technology:
Frank Sinatra $40,400 Duty Team player an inevitable obligation a dream you’ve earned it Timex, milk and cookies put it away, pay cash traditional nuclear slide rules and rotary phones
Boomers (age 50-68) • • • • • • • • • • •
Iconic entertainer: HHI: Defining Idea: Style: Work is: Education is: Reward because: Home stuff: Money: Family: Technology:
Mick Jagger $59,800 Individuality Self-absorbed an exciting adventure a birthright you deserve it Casio, milk and Oreos buy now, pay later disintegrating calculators, touchtone phones
Generation X (age 37-49) • • • • • • • • • • •
Iconic entertainer: HHI: Defining Idea: Style: Work is: Education is: Reward because: Home stuff: Money: Family: Technology:
Madonna $49,500 Diversity entrepreneur a difficult challenge a way to get there you need it Swatch, milk and Snackwells cautious conservative: save, save latchkey kids spreadsheets and cell phones
Generation Y (age 18-36) • Iconic entertainer: • HHI: • • • • • •
Defining Idea: Style: Work is: Education is: Reward Home stuff:
• Money: • Family: • Technology:
Lady Gaga control $160 B in spending Authenticity Worldly a chance to do some good an incredible expense because you can share it use phones to tell time, iPads, Xbox, PS3, Wii, organic earn to spend merged families all access, text messaging
No More “Joe Consumer” "The concept of an 'average American' is gone, probably forever. The ‘average American’ has been replaced by a complex, multidimensional society that defies simplistic labeling.” – Demographics expert Peter Francese Source: New U.S. Census to Reveal Major Shift: No More Joe Consumer. AdAge, October 12, 2009.
Connecting with Those “Not Like You”
1. People Need What They Need 2. Relieve Pain 3. 6 Ways to Deepen Customer Experiences
People Need What They Need
Not Just What, But How • Public storage payment options
Not Just What, But How
Relieve Pain
Different Customers Care About Different Things
• Women want security & great personal service
Men Hate Ironing • Omni Hotels learned that men hate ironing • Their “Select Guest” program now offers free ironing of two garments
Texas Medical Association
Your Turn Think of a Customer “Pain Point” & How You Might Relieve It
How Do You Know What People Not Like You Want? Ask Them Get Employee Feedback Hire Diversity
Ask Them! • Formal methods, such as surveys, reveal insights – Omni Hotels, Safelight Auto Glass
• Informal conversation with customers • Soliciting feedback from front-line employees
Informal: Just Talk to People Church at the Gym
Employee Feedback • Front desk clerk at boutique hotel
Hire Diversity • Bilingual or multi-lingual associates to serve diverse customers • State Farm agency hired Gen Y agent • Agent works leads through social media and texting, not phone calls
8 Ways to Deepen the Customer Experience
#1: Ask Stakeholders What They Want • Surveys are good, but conversations are better
#2: Cultivate Your “Pilot Fish”
#3: Use Consumer Insights
Consumer Insights: Women • The truth can never hurt you
• No pressure – ever • Value expansive choices, seeing all options
Consumer Insights: Men • Want choices simplified • The “magic number” is 3
Hispanics/Latinos • Good customer service is more important than speed or efficiency • It trumps mistakes
• Appreciate being given all the time needed to ask questions
African-Americans • Show people of color in ads, on your website or any marketing materials – Diversity of skin tone is important
• Don’t try to connect on a superficial level
#4: Ensure You Can Walk the Walk
#5: Pay Attention to Trends… • Social is everything
New Products Meet Demand for Connectivity
#6: Be Fearless • It may feel weird and unconventional to you, but if it’s what the customer wants, then it’s the right thing to do • “Tweet Seats” at the symphony
Strategy #7: Be the Good Guys • Demonstrate & market social consciousness – Green efforts – Community involvement
#8: Helping Beats Selling “We don’t need information. We need advice.”
Relevance + Experience + Relationship = Feeling the Love
My New Book Can Help!
#5 on the list of Bestselling Business Books of 2013
For more information about consumer trends, contact Kelly McDonald at 214-880-1717 or kelly@mcdonaldmarketing.com
Š2014 McDonald Marketing 7820 Enchanted Hills Blvd. Ste. A-199 Rio Rancho, NM 87144 214-880-1717, Fax 214-880-7596 kelly@mcdonaldmarketing.com All rights reserved. No part of this material may be reproduced In any form without permission by the author.