O2 are taking a pounding for their handling of the new 3G iPhone rollout this coming Friday. Gizmodo UK is reporting an email from an O2 agent to a customer that says there will only be "a few dozen" handsets in each of the O2 shops this Friday.
To get the marketing coverage O2 appeared to have sacrificed concentration of stock. I guess they figure this creates some great PR buzz, but of course the positive buzz would only follow a positive experience and that's unlikely to be the case by the time Friday comes around.
And in a slow-witted online marketing move, despite having switched off pre-ordering on its web site, O2's search marketing team still have paid search activity on searches for "O2 3G iphone". The link lands users on a page telling them they can't pre-order. Smart move.
Wednesday, 9 July 2008
Companies bribing customers to remove negative Amazon reviews
Really interesting snippet from the US Consumerist.com site. Gadgets outfit eForcity responded to a customer's complaint about a car-charger she bought from them by telling her she could have a full refund if she removed her negative comments about their product from her review on Amazon.
An interesting take on the "fake reviews" side of the UGC-business, a company leveraging its refund powers to effect user comment and essentially seek to censor Amazon reviews. Of course, consumer protection kicks in at some point, but it does show the natural progression we'll get as retailers seek to control the comment online.
Foolhardy to try to do such a thing you might think but it's still mighty tempting for some businesses. They would of course be better off trying to wow the customer with the fix to her complaint rather than strongarm her.
An interesting take on the "fake reviews" side of the UGC-business, a company leveraging its refund powers to effect user comment and essentially seek to censor Amazon reviews. Of course, consumer protection kicks in at some point, but it does show the natural progression we'll get as retailers seek to control the comment online.
Foolhardy to try to do such a thing you might think but it's still mighty tempting for some businesses. They would of course be better off trying to wow the customer with the fix to her complaint rather than strongarm her.
Monday, 7 July 2008
Still on the M&S site ...
Question of the day - how many times is it possible to watch the Myleene video on the M&S site and still call it research?
M&S customer "reviews" - hmmm ....
M&S went live fairly quietly with written reviews from customers. I thought I'd have a root around and see how genuine they looked. Here are two reviews from customers straight off the M&S site, both interestingly from the Gifting section of the site:
"This gift is a must..... for any occasion, it's healthy colourful and delightful to receive. The fruit is absolutely fresh and can be enjoyed by all your family and friends."
"My husband and I recieved this as a gift from someone, and it was an absolute surprise, and wow, what a gift. I would definately, and intend to purchase this for others as and when the occasion arises."
The evidence:
- Both reviews are written by people who only have one review each to their name.
- Both gave 5 out of 5 star ratings
- Both had maximum "usefulness" scores - 8 out of 8 found the first review helpful, and 11 out of 11 found the second review helpful.
- The language used "can be enjoyed by all your family" and "intend to purchase this for others".
- Oh and the first quote above was titled "Delightful, colourful gift" - Really? Really? Purlease.
Please someone at M&S tell me that these are kosher and not just badly seeded "home-grown" reviews.
Martha Lane-Fox, non-exec at M&S now, was talking a few weeks ago about the next gen retail winners being those who could build a sensible commercial model around user-content and brand engagement. Fair enough and totally agree. But M&S initial efforts kind of fall far short of looking sensible or even believable.
"This gift is a must..... for any occasion, it's healthy colourful and delightful to receive. The fruit is absolutely fresh and can be enjoyed by all your family and friends."
"My husband and I recieved this as a gift from someone, and it was an absolute surprise, and wow, what a gift. I would definately, and intend to purchase this for others as and when the occasion arises."
The evidence:
- Both reviews are written by people who only have one review each to their name.
- Both gave 5 out of 5 star ratings
- Both had maximum "usefulness" scores - 8 out of 8 found the first review helpful, and 11 out of 11 found the second review helpful.
- The language used "can be enjoyed by all your family" and "intend to purchase this for others".
- Oh and the first quote above was titled "Delightful, colourful gift" - Really? Really? Purlease.
Please someone at M&S tell me that these are kosher and not just badly seeded "home-grown" reviews.
Martha Lane-Fox, non-exec at M&S now, was talking a few weeks ago about the next gen retail winners being those who could build a sensible commercial model around user-content and brand engagement. Fair enough and totally agree. But M&S initial efforts kind of fall far short of looking sensible or even believable.
Facebook getting picky
One to watch for all retailers wondering what they need to be doing on Facebook ... Facebook are really clamping down on apps being developed by third parties. Last week they shut down Superwall from Rock You and also Slide. Both apps enable social interactions based around personalized widgets. The implication for you and me? Beware agencies touting how they could get you "into" Facebook - it's mostly fools gold. Also, beware Facebook who aren't being too clear on what is and isn't ok as far as 3rd party app development goes.
For more on Facebook's recent shut-down activity read this.
btw, top-tip re Facebook for retailers - leave it for your kids to organise getting drunk on - getting commercial on Facebook will only ever be interruptive. You need to stick to better retail basics.
For more on Facebook's recent shut-down activity read this.
btw, top-tip re Facebook for retailers - leave it for your kids to organise getting drunk on - getting commercial on Facebook will only ever be interruptive. You need to stick to better retail basics.
Voucher code sites
Just as a follow-up on the below. I recommend Latestdiscountvouchers.co.uk for codes.
I strongly encourage you not to use Myvouchercodes.co.uk as they seem to think they're on some kind of social justice mission rather than running the affiliate-scheme-skimming operation which is actually their raison d'etre. A little bit of honesty in their PR wouldn't go amiss.
I strongly encourage you not to use Myvouchercodes.co.uk as they seem to think they're on some kind of social justice mission rather than running the affiliate-scheme-skimming operation which is actually their raison d'etre. A little bit of honesty in their PR wouldn't go amiss.
Summer fun
So I'm just back from my summer break, all very refreshed and raring to go. The sales are all in full swing. Was in Bluewater yesterday (we're so very chic ...) and it was humming with people but anecdotally people were looking but not buying the big stuff (TV dept John Lewis).
Lots of discounting going on though with emails hitting my inbox every day last week whilst I lounged by the pool, each email containing succulent High Street offers. Really, do not pay full price online at the moment without first checking a voucher site - lots of 10% offs and free delivery combos out there.
We are of course heading to financial mid-year in the retail sector and the inevitable round of budget discussions and changes. This will surely mean strategy adjustments across the High Street, including the spectre of headcount reductions and the culling of pet projects (anyone like to guess what's going to happen to Plan A come the P&L review at M&S ....?)
Lots of discounting going on though with emails hitting my inbox every day last week whilst I lounged by the pool, each email containing succulent High Street offers. Really, do not pay full price online at the moment without first checking a voucher site - lots of 10% offs and free delivery combos out there.
We are of course heading to financial mid-year in the retail sector and the inevitable round of budget discussions and changes. This will surely mean strategy adjustments across the High Street, including the spectre of headcount reductions and the culling of pet projects (anyone like to guess what's going to happen to Plan A come the P&L review at M&S ....?)
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