I have recently discovered this app from Pizza Express. This hits on my theme a few weeks ago on how apps should be used to develop customer loyalty.
Pizza Express realised that it took on average 10-12 minutes to pay a bill, from personal experience I have found this numerous times. This can be an annoyance and often a slightly awkward time whilst you painstakingly wait for your waiter/waitress to finally come to your table. So they decided to develop an app that speeds up this part of the process.
The app is free and allows users to pay securely via PayPal, the launch of the app was accompanied by the roll-out of free Wi-Fi in all Pizza Express restaurants, this is a nice touch and gives another reason for customers to use this app. The app also allows users to book tables, view menus and store receipts.
The KPI of this activity was to achieve 200,000 downloads in the first 4 months and 10,000 bookings within the first month. The app achieved 100,000 downloads within the first week and 15,000 bookings in the first month. I think it's slightly odd they didn't set a 'pay your bill' target, given the fact that this insight was the reason they built the app. This makes me wonder how successful this element of the app is. Despite this, the app is a great example of developing a key consumer insight into a useful tool for a customer. I like it.
eBay launched their fashion app MWC last week. I have always been a fan of eBay's mobile offering and this hasn’t disappointed. The app allows you to take a picture of an item of clothing and it will give you options of where to buy it online or even in retail shops nearby. With a few taps of a button, you can pay for it and the store will put it on hold for you.
Facebook is building on Facebook Zero in developing markets and has announced they are working with operators to offer its new Java App in feature phones free of data charges. I think this will continue to grow the user base nicely in developing countries who have limited broadband infrastructure.
A key message from operators/carriers at the MWC was that they were facing increasing pressure on revenue from loss of SMS revenue as people are choosing to chat via free services like Facebook or Whatsapp. Many companies admit they need to offer a competing service however they have failed to do so just yet. However we are seeing many operators/carriers look for alternative revenue streams in the form of advertising. This is a nice article from GIGAOM
An interesting infographic on mobile apps and consumer engagement from clickfox. Some slightly ridiculous comparisons, however a few interesting facts:
73% use apps to make a purchase decision or assist with a buying decision
Mobile banking is popular with 30% of people using a mobile banking app
72% would replace some traditional channels with mobile apps if the customer service features were made available
I found the customer service stat particularly interesting, it raises the use of apps and mobile sites (retention VS acquisition), looking at this stat more companies should be using apps to continue customer loyalty and develop a CRM programme rather than using apps as a quick fix.
More and more brands are now listening to their users via social media channels and some are even adapting their brand to what their consumers are saying. Domino's has recently taken this one step further, by launching the 'Think Oven'. This is an innovation app that lives on Facebook that rewards users for their ideas. This is all part of the brands initiative to become more relevant and increase loyalty by engaging consumers in its reinvention
There are 2 parts to the app; Projects and Ideas. Specific projects are set by Dominos with the kick-off project asking users to design a new staff uniform, winning entries can recieve $500. Users can also submit ideas they have for the business, ideas to date have included better French dressing and rooftop gardens. However for this to be truely engaging it would be nice for Domino's to feedback on ideas that users have submitted.
There were many mutterings before Christmas about the money/time/purchases users were making on mobile during the Christmas period, and a few stats got released last week that I found quite interesting:
18% of smartphone owners did up to 50% of their Christmas shopping on mobile
1 in 3 used their mobile to check competitor prices, look for reviews and search ratings of products.This has been actively encouraged retailers themselves, HOF was offering free WIFI instore to customers, and John Lewis, Amazon and eBay are all offering barcode scanners as part of their mobile apps. What's really interesting is that almost 30% of these users when on to purchase those gifts online from someone else's site whilst standing in the shop
It tends to be the over 25's that are more likley to purchase on mobile. The under 25's whilst doing their research on the mobile phone are worried about delivery
It does seem that mobile is transforming the shopping experience, keen to see how this ramps up this year.
Brands are coming out fighting this year with augmented reality campaigns. Companies such as Aurasma and BlippAR are bringing great ideas to the market.
Here are a few thoughts on the AR campaigns I have seen this year:
Mercedes Benz is another auto company that has jumped on the AR bandwagon, it's a nice execution, and I really like the way you can customise your car. However this is probably a cool AR experience when I think they could have made it more functional (whilst still being cool). What would have been great is if people could customise cars in Merc's showrooms, allowing them to see what their new purchase could look like with all the 'added extras' rather than waiting for it to show up on your door step. It would have also been interesting to see how many people would have bought a car if they had added a 'buy it now' option in the AR experience.
National Geographic (Not strictly 2012, but close enough and a bloody great example) have produced a great app that amongst many other good features includes AR. The AR experience allows users to see animals in 3D whilst also telling them key facts about the animal itself via video. Educational and very cool.
Last but not least, and quite an unexpected one, is Saga, yes the travel company specialising in over 50's holidays. Thinking about it I am quite shocked that Saga are the first holiday company to trial AR. The experience allows users to virtually visit cruise ships in Norway or Safari's in South Africa, content is delivered by video, audio giving the user a great experience all round. Obviously we know that the Saga target audience may not be as au fait with mobile functionalities compared with the slightly younger generation, so I am keen to see results on this one. Despite this a great example of AR.
18% of users who scan a QR code go onto to make a purchase, whilst 21% will share the information they recieve from a QR code with someone else
Despite more and more advertisers using QR codes, only 21% actually know what a QR code is by name, however 70% say scanning is an easy process
41% say that the information they got from a QR code is useful, this links back to my previous comments about many brands not being able to use QR codes properly
There has been alot of chat about how 2012 could be the end of QR codes now that AR is pushing the boundaries. I'm not sure this is the case given the stats above. If phones start coming with pre built QR readers in the camera functionality then there is no reason why they shouldn't have a future.
Here are a few more brands that have got QR codes right over the Christmas period. What I like about these examples is that the brands are making it easier for people to buy relatively low priced items on impulse.
This is not the most innovative campaign I have seen, however what MillerCoors have achieved is building great association against a subject that most alcohol brands struggle to deliver on.
This is a US based campaign where MillerCoors are celebrating the Christmas season with a series of programmes and partnerships with restaurants and bars in Seattle. The click-it-2-ride programme features special QR codes at POS that allow consumers to scan the QR code and speed dial a taxi and view responsible drinking information. They are also implementing the Miller Lite Free Rides programme across 6 cities, which is is offering free public transport during the key Christmas period.
QR codes are something which many brands fail to deliver on well, Red Bull is an example of this, they put a QR code on a tube where there was no phone signal to access the content. There are also many examples where QR codes led to a dead URL, it can put people off if a QR code doesn't do what it is supposed to do, too many bad experiences and people will not bother scanning them again. QR codes should be used as a quick response mechanism, a way of catching people while they are on the move, the message/content a brand is delivering should be bite sized. MillerCoors have not only got this principle right, they are are delivering on their key brand message 'Great Beer, Great Responsibility'
Following on from one of my previous posts about social commerce I have come across this really nice infographic from Tab Juice. Psychologists have defined 6 traits that have been seen is shoppers that are now being seen in social commerce.
Social Proof - 81% of consumers receive advice from people over a social networking site
Authority - 77% of online shoppers use reviews before they buy online
Scarcity - 77% of people like getting exclusive offers that they can redeem via Facebook. ASOS is a nice example of this, last week they ran the ASOS Get Lucky Sale, via their Facebook page. ASOS gave Facebook fans virtual scratch cards which gave lucky winners instant wins, users could win anything from top sale items to £500 to spend on ASOS, all of which could be redeemed via their Facebook store.
Like - 50% of shoppers have made a purchase based on a recommendation of people they follow and like on a social network
Consistency - 62% of shoppers are brand loyal due to online satisfaction
Reciprocity - 25,000,000,000 pieces of content are shared on Facebook daily. Users have a desire to share exclusive deals with people in their social network
Taking all this on board means there is a strong case for brands to keep an eye out for social commerce opportunities.However it is also important to understand that social commerce is not just limited to Facebook. Brands should take into account that conversations do work differently in different social environments whether this be blogs, Twitter, messageboards or Facebook, so conversation should be tailored for these environments. Brands also need to understand where users are consuming social commerce, is this on a mobile, desktop or even via a gaming platform again conversation should be tailored to the platform.
I'm a big fan of the social media strategy employed by Heinz, and this campaign is another example of some of the great work they do. The Heinz soup campaign allows fans of the Heinz Facebook page to send a personalised can of soup (either Cream of Tomato or Cream of Chicken) to a poorly loved one. Soup is apparently one of the nation’s ultimate comfort food and research carried out by Heinz found that over half of Brits turn to soup when feeling ill.
What Heinz do well is generating direct sales off the back of their campaigns, and generally the products they are selling direct through Facebook are at a higher price point than the products sold in Supermarkets (£0.67 for a can of Cream of Tomato Soup compared with the personalised version on Facebook which costs £1.99). Yet their Facebook fans are going mad for the product and comments so far have been extremely positive. But why is this? Heinz does have great brand heritage and the brand is a staple in the average household. Yet what they have done particularly well is translating their brand values and making them relevant to social media. They have separated out their products on Facebook, having an individual page for Heinz beans, ketchup etc. What this achieves is a distinctive identity and personality for each product, which considering the growth of their Facebook pages has proved successful.
