STQ 06

October to December 2012
Colours and
Brand Identity
The Consumer
Generated Funnel
Ethics and Social
Commerce
SocialTechnology
Quarterly
06
06© 2012 Kuliza Technologies Ltd.
All Rights Reserved.
Making Loyalty
Programs Work

2 3
Editorial
With a medley of platforms available to buyers today that
have similar prices and offers, brands are focusing on
generating loyalty. Brands online are no longer fighting
only in terms of price, presence, or product range. They
are battling it out to have influential shoppers and brand
advocates to ensure repeat purchases and build a loyal
community of such shoppers.
In the era of social-defined commerce, a brand that
garners loyalists and not fans alone, runs campaigns
for experiences and not marketing alone, is the most
popular, visited, and shopped-at destination. It is on
these shopping platforms one observes that loyalty is
not a passive activity, but an active one with the kind of
deluge and traffic recorded in information sharing.
Social is the genome of commerce. Social creates
lasting and remarkable relationships that increase
propensity to repurchase and recommend. A loyalty
card is no longer a plastic card for accumulating points
on repeat purchases; there are now designs for loyalty
programs that are based on insights from various fields
that redefine methods of driving loyalty. While designing
and using ‘big’ amounts of data, careful consideration of
code of ethics will determine whether social commerce is
going to be as effective as predicted. Lifestyles, cultures,
and practices too translate into understanding needs of
people influenced by social commerce. All these come
together and contribute to what social commerce aims
at: brand advocacy and loyalty, created through word of
mouth. The brand that has reliable word of mouth is the
one with a large, voluble community of loyal customers
and least number of advertising campaigns.
This is the difference between online commerce and
social commerce done well.
Diarmaid Byrne
Vandana U.
Editors
Social Technology Quarterly 06
The Social Technology Quarterly is a research
publication that distills the signal from the noise in the
fluid social and mobile web domain. From multiple
perspectives it analyzes commerce, campaigns,
and communities through the lenses of business,
technology, design, and behaviour.
Social as a Driver of Loyalty
Vandana U.
Rebrandings of Technology Companies
Amit Mirchandani
Impact of Colours on Brand Identity
Anindya Kundu
The Proof is in the Experience
Vandana U.
06
10
12
19
Making Loyalty Programs Work
Diarmaid Byrne
Thinking Big Data
Siddharth Balaravi
Experience Shopping
Anish Dasgupta
The Consumer Generated Funnel
Diarmaid Byrne
24
30
33
36
Ethics and Social Commerce
Saswati Mitra Saha
The Maker Movement
Payal Shah
Access Greater than Ownership
Kaushal Sarda
Learning by Keeping your Eyes Open
Nehal Shah
38
44
48
50
Campaigns
Commerce
Communities

4 5
Social Technology Quarterly and the STQ logo are trademarks of Kuliza
Technologies Ltd. Their reproducion without the proper permissions is
unlawful.
© Copyright 2012 Kuliza Technologies Pvt. Ltd.
You are free to share and make derivative works of this publication
only for non-commercial purposes and under the conditions that you
appropriately attribute it, and that you distribute it only under a license
identical to this one.
October to December 2012
Published by Kuliza Technologies Ltd.
Printed by Print 2 Last Solutions
#7 Poorvi, 1st Cross, Shirdisai Nagar
Bangalore 560 077
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Subscribe
to Social Technology Quarterly at:
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Contributors
Amit Mirchandani
Chief Creative Officer at Kuliza & MD at Lucid Design
Anindya Kundu
Visual Designer at Kuliza
Anish Dasgupta
Marketing Manager at Kuliza
Diarmaid Byrne
Chief People Officer at Kuliza
Kaushal Sarda
Chief Product Officer at Kuliza
Nehal Shah
Design Researcher
Payal Shah
Co-founder and Maker-at-Large at makesplash.es
Saswati Saha Mitra
Consumer Behaviourist
Siddharth Balaravi
Co-founder of GetJugaad
Vandana U.
Marketing & Communications Specialist at Kuliza
Diarmaid Byrne Editor
diarmaid.byrne@kuliza.com
Vandana U. Editor
vandana.u@kuliza.com
Amit Mirchandani Design
Lucid Design India Pvt. Ltd.
www.lucid.co.in Personal is social,
behaviour is social,
and loyalty is social.
Now all commerce is
social.
SocialTechnology
Quarterly
06

6 7
Brands are going social with the right
mix of communications technology and
consumer values. Social is a catalyst that
is driving unprecedented loyalty, built
not at one stage but across various stages
and elements of the shopping process.
by Vandana U.
Photo Credit: zion fiction
Social as a
Driver of
Loyalty
In the age of social commerce, where traditional e-commerce is no
more even a nomenclature, loyalty seems to spell a new pattern with
new trends. With several factors determining shopping- ranging from
best prices, proximity, recommendations, to mood-swings even; it is
necessary to understand not only how loyalty and social commerce
go hand in hand but understand how social is a driver of loyalty. It
goes without saying that shopping has always been a social activity. A
lot of definitions place social commerce under the huge umbrella term
of e-commerce. Currently, as defined by Renata Gonçalves Curty and
Ping Zhang, “Social commerce is broadly considered to encompass
commerce activities mediated by social media where people do
commerce or intentionally explore commerce opportunities by
participating and/or engaging in a collaborative online environment.”
To the process of buying and selling online, social adds layers of
conversations and interactions between consumers, communities,
and businesses. These conversations are the new points-of-sales.
Businesses are leveraging social, making it highly integrated and
highly relevant to see new growth. The assumption is obvious: if
social elements are necessary to drive in engagement, they are vital
to driving loyalty too.
Being Social
The ontology of online commerce now is social as the smart-
technology-driven buyer is no longer merely a buyer nor is passive.
The buyer today is socially nourished through elements such as
sharing, likes, conversations, reviews, and interests. The use of social
Campaigns

8 9
Social Technology Quarterly 06Kuliza
network serves social interaction and encourages user contribution
throughout the purchase process - right from research to activities
for post the purchase. There is a sure transfer of power because
advertising alone would not generate that much needed buzz.
Whether one terms it ‘social’, ‘viral’ or calls it ‘word of mouth,’ sharing
is an unstoppable activity.
A brand that goes ‘social’ brings in the elements that revolve around a
customer not only in a terms of being a part of the ‘target’ market but
include the entire social world of the shopper. Interests, behaviours,
shopping patterns, activities of the shopper and that of the shopper’s
friend circle are all roped in. Customers have varied and new ways
to research, compare, evaluate, purchase, and provide feedback on
products and services. The agenda of engaging a shopper personally
does not mean providing attention alone, but making sure anything
the person needs, would like, and would want help, guidance from
are all available. The superlative bit of it is that it is effortless for
the shopper. After such a shopping experience the brand becomes
the sought-after destination. It is these brands that, irrespective of
whether they have the product the customer is looking for, will be
relied on and people will be loyal to.
Elements of Social
A typical purchasing process begins with awareness- about a brand,
its utility, etc, moving on to being interested in the product and finally
purchasing it. Radically working out commerce includes layers of
social in each of the stages in the process. There are different aspects
on which businesses are creating conversations. Consumers may
end up finding themselves in situations, unable to make purchase
decisions. In such a situation when the next step to take is not known,
advices, recommendations, support all kick in. The people in the
person’s social world around the customer act as guides towards
decision making.
The following are some of the identified elements of being social:
• Content: A great social experience includes presenting the right
content to the right customer at the right time. Curation is a
serious affair in social commerce. From purchase history to what
devices people are on, content has to be new, useful, and that
adds value to consumers.
• Referrals and recommendations: A report made by Nielsen
indicated that 92 percent of people go by recommendations for a
purchase online rather than believing in advertisements.
• Reviews and ratings: Showcasing reviews from satisfied
customers, friends from their social networks adds to the
credibility of the brand and is extremely influential in conversions.
• News feed: Friends see stories as they appear in the news feed.
Any and every activity is again a point of sale. This stream flows
and connects brands to people super fast.
Credits
Top: Stuart Connor
Middle: Aural Asia
Bottom: iBaNe
• Reward: Rewards increase repeat purchases and build loyalty.
Ranking people, awarding points, and offering rewards tempt
people to stick around longer and even work towards it.
• Encourage advocacy: Authentic advocacy influences the
purchase decisions of everyone around.
There are applications, tools, and technologies that make all of the
above happen. Tools have been made that measure social ROI rather
accurately: from tracking number of likes, tweets, followers, pins,
re-pins, to influences. Sophisticated analyses, metrics, campaigns
designed based on insights for right targeting, conversions, word-
of-mouth to generate great loyalty have come up. The surplus data
about behaviours, psyche, etc., offer companies opportunities to even
predict shopping patterns.
Comprehend and work on the entire shopping behaviour cycle with
the right suites of applications. Social commerce is about customer-
satisfaction, providing great experiences, and being customer centred
over the traditional sense of being profit and transactional driven.
There is a great deal of focus on relationships; the motive is no
longer sale but repeat sales along with achieving a dollop of loyalty.
To sell better and build loyalty from social audiences stimulate them,
add value, and transfer the power of transaction to them. Create
environments and platforms that actively engage with users, maintain
relationships in a personal manner- that replicates building one to
one rapport. The feminists fought for their rights with the motto “The
personal is political” and social commerce is making its stand with
“The personal is social.”
References
Cavazza,Fred.“The Six Pillars of Social Commerce.” Forbes.02 Jan
2012.
Chaney, Paul. “Word of Mouth Still Most Trusted Resource Says
Nielsen; Implications for Social Commerce.” Social Commerce Today.
16 Apr 2012.
Curty, Renata Gonçalves, and Ping Zhang. “American Society
for Information Science and Technology.” American Society for
Information Science and Technology.48.1 (2012): 1-10.
“Social Commerce.”Wikipedia Inc.10 Sep 2012.
“Starbucks Card.” Starbucks. Starbucks Corporation. Web. 10 Oct
2012.
• Group buying: Just as how news spreads quickly, group buying,
group gifting spread word about a brand, offering convenience
in terms of gaining discounts and making gifting easy. It is no
wonder that group buying can make brands go viral.
• Exclusives: Exclusive fan deals, discounts for sharing,
personalized shopping experiences, pop-up shops, help make
brands stand out. Offering a privilege or a benefit, and a bonus
that no one else offers ensure people stay and the cycle of
recommendations and referrals continues.
• Rewards: Incentives drive people to respond. Through social,
make users perform targeted, marketing actions. Offer rewards
for expressing views, writing a review, clicking a link, sharing a
promotion, referring a friend, etc. Adding game techniques to the
incentives is another brilliant move.
• Socially driven loyalty programs: Starbucks is famous for its
loyalty cards and programs. Making a move to going social with
gifting cards, rewards, and points, the program gets better with
the convenience it offers in terms of technology. The card can be
added to the Starbucks mobile app, there is an app that allows
users to check the level they havee reached in the program
using the “star” - My Starbuck Rewards’ currency, and there are
elements of fun. When one makes a purchase and goes to that
tab on the mobile app, one sees a star actually fall into a cup
and that tracks progress over time. This is evidence enough
to show that loyalty programs are now no longer for ensuring
repeat purchases built around points and rewards and repeat
purchases but built around people: enabling social mechanics
and designing a simple user engagement model.
Going Social
Going social is about redefining engagement. Engagement is not
about interacting with random games and making offers after one
accumulates fans. There are various touch points in all the phases
of the shopping experience where engagement and personalization
need to be driven.
• Acquaint: To drive awareness around a brand that claims being
‘social’ it’s is necessary to reflect that in the awareness drive,
which has to be social in nature to elicit interest. With the plethora
of data available, set up campaigns that involve people together
be it a contest or a basic game.
• Drive: Create a social world where people can participate in
activities together. Be it in the form of extending referrals or group
buying, make the world a personalized one with the help of that
deluge of data available about online behaviours and activities.
• Support: In order to be a core part of people’s lives, engage, talk,
and extend support in forms of content, stories, expressions, etc.
Conversations that will help the community will also build brand
advocates. They curate information, influence other buyers, and
communicate about brands across different social networks.

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3. Mindtree
Mindtree’s original logo looked more appropriate as
the signboard to a less discerning art gallery rather
than a logo for a global information technology
services corporation with 11,000 employees based
all around the world. The revised logo is certainly
more appropriate if not a little expected for what such
a corporation ought to look like. Nevertheless, it is a
very positive step in the right direction, communicating
capability, professionalism, technology, and a global
perspective.
1. Microsoft
Microsoft has taken a page out of Apple’s mandate on
simplicity to reveal this new logo. Referring to some of
its consumer logos from the past, the new logo does
away with the differentiation between the corporate
and consumer logo: a silly idea to begin with. While
the applications of the new logo are very clever
considering how Windows 8 is composed of an array
of functional squares, the execution is a bit weak. The
logo looks nondescript and simple rather than unique
and simple.
2.Twitter
If a company has been able to replace its name with a
symbol, that can be considered a huge sign of success
in my view: think Nike, Mercedes, Shell, and Apple.
Where twitter makes this success even sweeter is in the
tightness of it all - not only does the symbol represent the
brand name and the company’s mission statement, but
also the very action that the company’s product enables
you to do. This sort of clarity in the messaging of the logo
comes by once in a generation!
Focus
5
5. Shutterstock
The old logo shown here is not exactly the oldest logo in the
history of Shutterstock. In the last ten years the company
has rebranded itself at least four times, starting with a rather
likeable camera with a film strip rolling out of it with the words
Shutterstock on it. As the logo evolved the camera became
more and more abstract and the type became an arbitrary
continuation of letters where ever possible. I am happy to say
that the new identity is a beautiful and refreshing departure
from that line of thinking. The two corners of the frame
that define the “o” can be used in myriad ways across any
materials, highlighting what ever the company wishes to call
attention to. Bold, inventive and cleanly executed!
4. StumbleUpon
StumbleUpon’s new identity represents a healthy evolution from
the dot com era logos of the early 2000s. The new colours are
reduced to just two, both bold and vibrant. A graphic reduction
sees unnecessary gradients and shadows eliminated, giving the
logo a clean minimal feel. The interplay between the mark and
the type is more harmoious. This has a knock down effect to
the website, and that is where massive strides have often been
made: gone is the light blue and white machine language based
functionality that has typified so many sites built in the last ten
years.
Rebrandings of
Tech Companies
by Amit Mirchandani
Photo Credit: Underconstruction.com

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Colours are crucial for brands, especially because of the
visual impact they can create in terms of establishing
values and ideas a brand would want to project.With
their aesthetic properties and psychological impact
colours can turn around a brand’s identity.
by Anindya Kundu
Illustration Credit: Anindya Kundu
The roots of the word ‘brand’ can be traced
back to the old Norse word ‘brandr’ which
denotes the ancient use of hot iron to mark
cattle of one farm from another. The word
‘maverick’, which originally meant unbranded
cattle has its origins in the story of a Texas
rancher, Samuel Augustus Maverick,
whose neglected cattle were rounded up by
neighbouring ranchers.
Branding also found its expression in
markings on bricks, watermarks on paper,
and signs on barrels to distinguish products.
Even the signatures of master artists such
as Leonardo da Vinci’s on paintings can be
considered as a form of branding. Much after,
branding was done with the use of logos on
printed posters and product packaging. With
the advent of radio and television slogans,
jingles, and mascots started appearing with
brand advertisements.
Today, a brand is a voice that gives a
unique identity to an organization or entity,
distinguishingitfromothers.Itoftencomprises
the name, corresponding typography,
shapes, symbol, logo or any other design
elements including the colours used by the
organization. Great branding is effective in
driving loyalty, bring to limelight the products
or services offered by a company and boost
sales or transactions in unparalleled ways.
Colour is a prime visual element people
perceive. Hence it plays a crucial role in any
design. It is extremely important in branding
because not only does it add aesthetic value
in terms of art but also because different
colours have different psychological impacts
on viewers. Thus the choice of colours in
brand identity requires to be made according
to the vision of the company and the impact it
wants to create on its specific audience.
A Glimpse into Colour Theory
Colours can be fundamentally described
Impact of Colours
on Brand Identity
Campaigns

14 15
using two models – the additive model and
the subtractive model. The additive model of
colour mixing is based on the behaviour of
light mixes. Here red, green, and blue light
combine to produce white light. The behaviour
of mixing of colour pigments like any dye,
paint or ink give rise to the subtractive model.
In this case, any colour can be generated by
mixing the colours cyan, magenta, yellow,
and black, and is the foundation of colour
printing and photography. Colours can also
be defined using the three attributes of hue,
saturation and lightness.
Based on the traditional “Colour Wheel”
that dates back to Goethe’s Theory of
Colours published in 1810, red, yellow, and
blue are the primary colours. By mixing the
primary colours, secondary colours such as
orange, green, and purple are produced.
Consequently, by mixing a primary colour
with its adjacent secondary colour the tertiary
colours - vermilion, marigold, chartreuse,
aquamarine, violet, and magenta - are
derived. Colours can also be divided based
on their relative ‘temperature’, based on both
nature and cultural norms. Warm colours
include red to yellow including orange, pink,
brown, and burgundy. Cool colours include
green to blue including shades of violet. Cool
colours have a calming effect and appear to
recede, while warm colours represent heat
and motion, pop-out and create emphasis.
Hence cool colours are often used for
backgrounds and warm colours for making
headings or graphics to stand out.
While choosing a colour scheme or a
combination of colours that work together,
relative positions of colours in the colour
wheel offer an advantage. Thus some
of the basic colour schemes which exist
are: monochromatic (tones of a single
colour), analogous (colours closely related),
complementary (colours opposite to one
another), split complementary (when
complementary colours are split to two
close and equidistant colours), triadic (three
colours equally separated in wheel), and the
tetradic (also called double complementary).
The Functional Impact of
Colours
The functional aspect of colours is to create
emphasis or prominence, which is a primary
goal of branding. Thus along with using the
other principles of placement, continuity,
isolation and proportion, contrast between
colours is the factor determining readability
and attention of the viewers. Black on
white is the easiest to read on both paper
and computer screens. Other most legible
combinations include black on yellow,
green on white followed by red on white.
As mentioned earlier, warm colours tend to
pop-out more compared to cooler colours,
which appear to recede. This can be used
effectively to emphasize branding.
The Psychological Impact of
Colours
Different colours have different emotional
impacts associated with specific moods.
Red is the colour for passion. It is known
to increase human metabolism and has an
exciting, dramatic effect. Even the richer
colours- burgundy and maroon find their appeal
amongst wine and fine living enthusiasts.
Orange is an active and energetic colour. It
promotes enthusiasm and creativity. It has a
less formal and more inviting appeal to it. It
works well for anything related to food and
cooking. Being hard to find in nature they
it also stands out and hence used in life-
jackets, road cones and hunting vests.
Yellow is a highly active colour and fosters
happiness. Hence it is the colour of smiley
icons and is commonly used to evoke
friendliness.
Green is the colour for nature and freshness.
It is also associated with currency and hence
wealth and prosperity.
Blue is the colour of tranquillity, peace and
stability. It symbolizes openness, intelligence
and faith. The negative connotation
associated with it is melancholy as expressed
in blues music.
Purple has both the stimulation of red and the
calmness of blue. It is the colour of royalty
and extravagance. This association stemmed
from the difficulty in preparing purple dye in
ancient times. It is also commonly seen in
gemstones, flowers, and wine.
White is the colour associated with purity and
perfection. In some Asian cultures it is the
signifier of death.
In spite of all its negative connotations with
darkness, evil and death, Black is also the
colour of elegance, power and strength if
used appropriately in certain contexts.
Colours and Aesthetic value
The aesthetic values of colours are derived
from the choice of colours according to the
context it has been used in as well as from
the harmony in the colour palette. This
harmony can be obtained from the use of
the basic colour schemes – monochromatic,
analogous, complementary, split
complimentary, triadic, and tetradic. Adobe
Kuler is a great resource for finding and
creating sophisticated colour themes based
on these basic colour schemes.

16 17
Red
Turquoise
Nature & Freshness
Currency & Prosperity
Friendliness & Happiness
Energy & Dynamism
Green
Spring Green
Yellow
Orange
Cyan
Ocean
Stability & Intelligence
Calmness & Peace
Passion & Drama
Increases Metabolism
Blue
Violet
Magenta
Raspberry

18
Kuliza
Use of colours across different
sectors
Different business sectors show particular
preferences towards certain colours:
Food and Beverage Industry
It has an affinity towards the colours red,
yellow, and orange. This is apparent in the
branding of Coca Cola, McDonalds, KFC,
Taco Bell, Café Coffee Day and almost
any other fast food chain. Red stimulates
appetite, while yellow and orange impart
friendliness. Green is also used as in Subway
branding to indicate freshness and nature.
Pepsi and Dominos introduce a relatively
uncommon blue, but it again has red to offset
and contrast it.
Automobile Industry
Automobiles look for a classy appeal and
usually use black and chrome textures.
Prominent examples include Nissan, Honda,
Jaguar, and Mercury. Red is also used
sometimes to evoke passion as we can
notice in Toyota, Audi, Suzuki, Fiat, and many
others. Reliability and stability are evoked
by BMW, Ford, Mazda, Volvo and Saab.
Even the sporty yellow and orange find their
expressions with Ferrari, Renault, Opel, and
Chevrolet.
IT Industry
Computers and IT services companies have
a preference towards blue as it gives the
sense of clarity and stability. DELL, HP, IBM,
Intel, Microsoft, Facebook, and eBay have
blue as the foundation to their branding. In
case of electronics both red and blue find
prominence. Samsung, Phillips, Sony, and
Panasonic use blue while others like LG,
Canon, Toshiba, Hitachi, and Bosh are based
on variations of red.
Telecommunications Sector
Organizations in the mobile and
communications sector have similar colour
preferences in order to represent energy,
dynamism, reliability, and friendliness. Hence
colours such as red, blue, yellow, and orange
are common. For example, the blue branding
of Nokia, Samsung and Ericsson, the red of
Vodafone and Virgin, and orange used by
Orange are examples that stand for these
attributes.
Retail Sector
This sector too uses a lot of red to capture
energy, yellow and shades of orange for
friendliness, and a splash of blue and green
to denote freshness.
Toys
Since children are attracted by primary
colours, logos of toy companies often use
bright primary colours. Children tend to prefer
primary colours and hence clothes and toys
typically have primary colours.
Fashion Industry
The colours associated with luxury are
black and richer shades of red like brown,
burgundy, maroon, and forest green. Hence
most designer labels use either black or
these colours to make their statement to
their niche audience. This is also the case
with most wine, liqueur, and other premium
products.
Colours have a deep impact on the
branding of a product or service due to its
psychological, functional, and aesthetic
properties. Although there are no fixed rules
for choosing colours for a specific brand,
certain trends and patterns according to
the industry and audience profiles can be
mapped. While there are certain norms and
rules based on colour theory, exceptions also
exist and have alternative appeals to stand
out of the crowd.
Selling technologies by providing the space to any customer to experience
a device before purchasing adds to the whole experience of buying a great
device. With this idea replicated for purchasing most goods and not only
devices, the verdict is clear. It is the experience that closes a deal. However,
in the age of social when with a click an experience can be made exclusive,
only a handful of experiences online really follow the key word: exclusive.
Here is a portfolio of events and experiences enhanced by technologies.
These represent the incredible results and outcomes achieved through a
mix of behaviours, activities, and technology.
Smart businesses are using technologies to create integrated physical,
digital, mobile, and social shopping experiences and events where customers
can access plethora of information while they shop. Such events that go
across all marketing and shopping channels provide the insights and data
one can innovate with. Stores are rolling out apps that help accomplish rich
experiences with each customer. These events, activities, and experiments
are great examples of embracing the smart customer with smart technologies
and provide meaningful cohesive customer experience. This ensures that
online and offline experiences are not separate but integrated for holistic
shopping experiences that lead to repeat purchases and brand loyalty.
Technology enables and experiences win!
The Proof is in
the Experience:Enhancing Experience by leveraging technologies
For brands, apps serve as a lasting
marketing channel that enables direct
contact with target audience.They offer not
plain engagement but holistic experiences.
Here are some activities conducted by
brands combined with online, offline and
augmented reality elements that can awe
any marketer.
by Vandana U.
Photo Credit: Micurs

20 21
A phenomenon that has driven crazy online
sales and engagement is augmented reality.
Virtual reality is a simulation of a real
environment; however, people get into a
different reality defined by the virtual space
and goes beyond physical reality. On the
other hand augmented reality, as Wikipedia
describes it, “is a live, direct or indirect,
view of a physical, real-world environment
whose elements are augmented by
computer-generated sensory input such as
sound, video, graphics or GPS data.” Erick
Schonfeld opines that Augmented Reality
enhances the real world with digital data,
and therefore it is more interesting than a
fabricated environment.
An experiment that caught my eye was the
mix of apps and augmented reality with pop-up
stores. The concept of pop-ups is not new any
longer on the social commerce space. With the
success of pop-ups soaring, adding augmented
reality to them seems a clever move.
A leading shoe brand dedicated to sport
culture, Airwalk set up invisible pop-up shops
in New York and Los Angeles. Inspired by
the idea of a treasure hunt, 600 pairs of
shoes were hidden. People who wanted a
pair of Airwalks - the Ladies Jim Plastic and
the men’s Jim Tennis - had to download the
GoldRun app on their smart phones. People
headed to Venice Beach, Los Angeles, or
1 Washington Square, New York City, to capture
virtual versions of the sneakers and GPS-
links to each location were provided. As soon
as people located a shoe on their phones and
took a photo of the shoe, they were directed to
Airwalk’s e-commerce site and given a pass
code link to pre-order the exclusive shoes.
For Airwalk, hangouts and famous locations
in the two cities turned into their stores.
Without a brick and mortar shop, 600
pairs of shoes were sold in a day. Airwalk
witnessed the highest amount of traffic on
its site during this event.
Airwalk:
Augmented Reality Campaign
Credit: Piermario
Another experience leveraged with social
media (not with an app, but a map) is
by Volkswagen Brazil. The motor brand
sponsored the Planeta Terra Festival in Sao
Paulo and promoted its car, the Fox, through
a mix of Twitter, Google Maps, and real
locations where prizes were hidden. Similar
to a treasure hunt, ten tickets to the festival
were hidden across the city and these were
displayed on a microsite using Google Maps.
However, one couldn’t zoom in to spot the
exact location unless it was tweeted about.
The more number of tweets containing the
2
hashtag “#foxatplanetaterra” were sent,
meant the closer the zoom on the map.
The first ones to arrive at a location where
tickets were hidden would win. It is reported
that in less than two hours after it began, the
campaign became the number 1 trending topic
in Brazil and the event stretched to 4 days.
With a mix of online and offline strategies,
Volkswagen generated a huge amount of word
of mouth. The campaign played on behaviours
through gamification, such as the desire to
win. With tweets acting as gates to levels of
zoom, the excitement of crossing each level
and being closer to the ticket pumped in the
required adrenalin.
Although Volkswagen did not offer an
experience directly in relation to the car,
which perhaps would have been more
relatable, the outcomes of this campaign
nevertheless were phenomenal.
Volkswagen:
#foxatplanetaterra

23
22
Kuliza
4Speaking about motor companies, Fiat
too stepped onto the bandwagon of
experiences. Catalogues can be heavy
to read. Instead of making a boring read,
Fiat made people experience its catalogue
as a part of its Street Evo campaign. Fiat
broke the old pattern of visiting a showroom,
checking a catalogue, and test driving the
car, by creating a new gamified experience.
Promoting Punto Evo to its evolved and tech
savvy audience, Fiat came up with a mobile
app that read road signs as QR codes.
Instead of merely reading the features of the
car off a catalogue, after capturing a road
sign, one could get a visual on the feature of
the car on one’s phones. So if one scanned
the stop sign, the user would get to know
all about the new breaking system; a curve
ahead sign would inform the user about the
car’s intelligent lighting system that guides
the driver in curves. Now that sounds like a
regular app. However, Fiat added a game-
like experience by hiding hundreds of prizes
in the traffic signs, the first ones to discover
them won the prize. The campaign saw
1,000,000 traffic signs being spotted on
week one, an 82 percent increase in test
drives, and it is Fiat’s most-seen catalogue
in the company’s history. What made this
campaign a success was the incentive
part of it. Incentives and rewards make the
experience all the more fun and worthwhile.
The app and the experience manage to
satiate any visitor’s curiosity. Anyone buying
a car will have numerous questions, and
what better way than this to answer, through
a game-like experience.
3
Fiat:
Street Evo
Credit: Bokeh Burger Lynx’s fallen angel campaign used
augmented reality to reflect itself as a
brand that brings a man’s fantasies very
close to reality. With the objective of
raising awareness and driving purchase
of the Lynx Excite range, Lynx exploits
social media to engage its target
audience - 18 to 24 year old males - with
angels seemingly falling from the skies
for them at London’s Victoria Station. A
live broadcast, yet highly personalized,
it bent towards the angle of literally
fulfilling fantasies. It talks to men in
an exciting way, making them feel that
they are attractive, by making a woman
‘literally’ fall for them. Also, combined
with a Facebook game in which Lynx
challenge users to try and release one
of the angels - model and actress Kelly
Brook - the campaign is a real winner.
The campaign worked because it turns
around a fantasy as if it were actually
logical for the angel to fall.
References:
“Augmented Reality.” Wikipedia. Wikimedia
Foundation Inc,17 Sep 2012.
Biela, Martin. Autofspace: Digital online
automotive campaigns. Autofspace, 08 May
2011.
Hui, Francisco Hui Francisco. PSFK. PSFK
Services,05 Oct 2010.
“Lynx Excite Angels meet the public at
London Victoria.” Lynx Effect Blog. Lynx, 14
Mar 2011.
Parker, David. “Lynx Excite ‘fallen angel’ by
Tullo MarshallWarren.” Campaign:The
Work.Haymarket Haymarket Business Media,
15 Mar 2011.
“Volkswagen Fox: Twitter Zoom Campaign.”
Digital Buzz.N.p.,02 Mar 2011.
Lynx:
Fallen Angel

24 25
Commerce
Making
Loyalty
Programs
Work
Loyalty programs rule our lives. They determine the airline we fly with.
Sometimes even the schedule we take. They influence where we meet,
drink coffee or have lunch. They determine the products we buy in
supermarkets. They have the power to influence us to spend more than
we need to on items that we would view as otherwise unnecessary.
And they do this because companies understand that by giving
their customers a membership number and a plastic card, they can
seemingly satisfy people’s basic psychological aspirations and needs.
Providing these types of symbols work at a psychological level to
target and trigger actions and behaviours that engender repeat
purchase and advocacy. That is, they create loyalty. As much as all
companies want to distinguish themselves with a uniquely branded
loyalty program for their customers, the elements of each program are
often indistinguishable. American Airlines launched the first air miles
program in 1981 that seemingly every other airline has since copied;
ditto with supermarkets, hotels, and cafés. It is hardly their fault as
there are a limited number of elements that can be employed in their
loyalty programs:
• Points: calculated by the amount a member spends
• Levels: based on how much a member spends during a specific
period of time
• Badges: awarded based on what level the member has reached.
It signifies, particularly to other people, the rewards and benefits
the member receives
• Rewards: offers, discounts, and benefits that a member receives
Loyalty programs have undergone a
transformation with a shift from only
rewards-based programs to well-
designed, gamified structures created
based on models of motivation and of
behaviour.
by Diarmaid Byrne
Photo Credit: Onigiri-kun

26 27
In the last few years, these elements have been used by game
designers to create environments that lead to longer-lasting and
more in-depth participation, replicating the experience people have
while playing traditional video games. This has become known as
gamification. Game designers applied these elements to insights
from psychology and motivation theories to create immersive and
engaging experiences that ensure people continue to participate to a
greater extent than in traditional loyalty programs. The best of these
gamified loyalty programs not only add points, levels, and badges, but
also combine great game designs with an understanding of behaviour
and motivation theories. To understand why and how loyalty programs
work it is important to understand how people behave. This is best
done by looking at psychology models of motivation and behaviour.
From a perspective based on psychology, loyalty programs aim to
drive behaviours of different types of participants, at specific times,
based on triggers that the program provides. Loyalty programs draw
on the work of Abraham Maslow and his Hierarchy of Needs. The
purpose was to identify the basic types of human motivations and the
order in which they generally progress. There are five needs:
• Physiological: air, food, water, sex, sleep
• Safety: health, employment and financial security
• Belonging: friendship, family, love, intimacy
• Esteem: confidence, achievement, respect, self-esteem
• Self-actualization: the desire to become everything that one is
capable of becoming
Maslow believed that these needs motivate people to act. Their
behaviours are driven by their desire to satisfy their needs, starting
with fundamental physiological and safety needs, to higher-level
needs of achievement and self-esteem. Once the needs at each level
are satisfied a person is motivated to satisfy needs at the next level.
Michael Wu notes that Dan Pink expanded on Maslow’s self-
actualization needs in his book Drive: The Surprising Truth About
What Motivates Us. His view is that once many of the basic levels
of needs have been satisfied, people are more motivated by intrinsic
motivators. Pink identified three needs that provide intrinsic motivation:
• Autonomy: people want to have control over their work
• Mastery: people want to get better at what they do
• Purpose: people want to be part of something that is bigger than
they are
Both Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs and Dan Pink’s Three Intrinsic
Motivators provide an explanation about why people are motivated
to act. However, a loyalty program still needs to trigger desired
behaviours at a specific time to ensure member participation.
The key to triggering behaviours is to make sure that loyalty programs
work as intended. B.J. Fogg developed a behavioural model - Fogg’s

28 29
Behavioural Model or FBM - to help designers and marketers ensure
that all psychological elements are present to trigger behaviour. He
posits that there are three factors with subcomponents that lead to
certain behaviours:
• Motivation: pleasure / pain, hope / fear, social acceptance /
rejection
• Ability: time, money, physical effort
• Triggers: facilitator, spark, signal
Fogg argues that in order to trigger desired behaviours, all three
factors need to converge at the same time. Thus, the loyalty
program needs to be crafted in a way that these three factors occur
at the same time. It must provide a trigger to initiate the behaviours
it wants from its members. It then needs to ensure that they are
motivated and have the ability to complete those behaviours. That
is, the loyalty program should offer sufficient rewards to the person
to be motivated enough to do the action, and the person should have
the ability to complete the action.
Along with understanding motivation, designers of loyalty programs
need to understand how their members would engage with the loyalty
program. When conceptualizing a program, designers need to ensure
it appeals to as many people as possible. Richard Bartle developed a
simple player typology with four basic player types to understand the
motivations that drive people to play:
• Achievers: people who are motivated to achieve points and other
rewards for the prestige of having them
• Explorers: people who prefer to discover and learn about the
game, often at their own pace
• Socializers: people who play for the social aspect rather than
the game itself
• Killers: people who enjoy competing against others
By understanding that there are different types of players, designers
and marketers are better able to ensure that aspects of the loyalty
program appeal and motivate as broad a range of people as possible.
Loyalty programs are designed to meet the needs of people in a way that
motivates them to behave in a specific manner. They need to be broad
enough to attract different types of people, whether they are achievement
orientated or socializers. When we apply Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs,
Dan Pink’s focus on factors that provide intrinsic motivation, Fogg’s
Behavioural Model and Bartle’s player typology, we can see why loyalty
programs are successful in motivating specific behaviours. Maslow and
Pink explain what people need, and in order to satisfy these needs people
are motivated into action. The belonging needs in Maslow’s Hierarchy
correspond to the social aspect of participating in loyalty programs. The
esteem needs correspond to status, achievements and leaderboards.
In the case of Dan Pink’s three factors, mastery corresponds to points,
progression and levels, and purpose corresponds to goals and targets.
For loyalty programs to be successful, they need to meet these needs
to motivate member behaviour. However, to trigger this behaviour,
according to Fogg, the program’s mechanics must ensure that these
three factors all occur at precisely the same time.
Credit: Dijle
By examining airline loyalty programs, it is possible to see how these
apply insights from psychology and motivation theories. They appeal
especially to Bartle’s achievers and killers typography. People are
motivated to achieve a certain level of status from their membership
program so that it satisfies their belonging and esteem needs. They
are part of a (possibly) small percentage who are platinum members
and who receive platinum-level benefits. As such, they also have the
symbols to reflect this status - platinum membership card, dedicated
check-in lane, lounge access.
Another example of a loyalty program that applies insights from
psychology and motivation theories is Nike+. It is not a traditional
loyalty program; in fact it gamifies running. However, by aligning with
people’s goal - improving their athletic performance - Nike ensures it
shares a common purpose with people. Nike helps them achieve their
goal with their runners, clothing, and Nike+ apps, while increasing the
switching costs from Nike to one of their competitors.
The Nike+ fitness tool uses game elements to encourage people to
improve their fitness. A device is fitted into Nike runners and then
synchs with an iPhone or iPod. Users can track their activities,
performance - distance, time, pace, calories burned - and their
progression, set challenges, and compete with their friends. They can
post their run on Facebook and Path and hear real-time cheers for
every comment or like they receive.
Nike+ has been extremely successful, and looking at how it works it
is easy to see why. It appeals to all four of Bartle’s player typologies
by allowing people to interact in different ways with the tool:
compete against others, work to achieve goals, meet other exercise
enthusiasts, or work on fitness at their own pace. It also satisfies the
safety, belonging and esteem needs of Maslow’s hierarchy, and the
intrinsic motivators that Dan Pink identified. Nike+ also shows Fogg’s
Behavioural Model in action: users have targets and challenges
based on their ability and the app motivates them while running to
achieve them, triggering behaviours.
Loyalty programs will evolve to being a constant partner in their
members’ lives through smart phone apps, and not just thought of
when queuing to purchase products in a store. Nike+ is one such
example of where loyalty programs are heading. They will be gamified
to create more engagement from members. To do this well they need
to be cognizant of the psychology of motivation and behaviour. Loyalty
programs will have a clear purpose that is shared by their members
and they will help their members achieve it.
References
“Abraham Maslow.”Wikipedia,The Free Encyclopedia.17 Sep 2012.
Wu, Michael. “Gamification 101: The Psychology of Motivation.”
Lithosphere.03 Jan 2011.
Fogg, BJ.“Fogg’s Behavioural Model.” Online Posting to Twitter.Web.
30 Oct.2012.

30
Kuliza
Never in the history of commerce has such
a deluge of data been vaunted before
an information-hungry, and social-savvy
audience. Only a decade ago, CERN, a
European research organization, set up one
of the world’s largest databases with over
11.5 billion web pages. Today, the average
supermarket has access to shopping data:
stores that are at least twice as big, if not
bigger in size.
When consumers use their credit cards at
restaurants, clothing stores, or other retail
businesses, those purchase choices are
recorded and processed. Within the hour,
businesses have the ability to unearth
underlying consumption patterns that can
be produced in real-time. In a matter of few
hours, not only does the user behaviour trend
become more evident, but also the correlation
between people, events, locations, and
preferences emerge from silhouettes to
reveal a fairly clear picture of how marketing
campaigns are performing. The availability
of such large amounts of actionable data is
transforming the communications landscape
and is also having a sibylline effect on the
fabric of social commerce.
What is Big Data?
Wikipedia defines Big Data as “Datasets
whose size is beyond the ability of typical
database software tools to capture, store,
manage, and analyze.” 2.5 quintillion bytes
is the amount of data created every day.
Although, this proliferation of data is an
evidence of an increasingly prying world, it
is possible for Big Data to positively impact
social commerce. While most research into
Big Data so far has focussed on addressing
questions related to its volume, this article
posits the case of the impact of Big Data
on businesses with a special emphasis
on social commerce. The article also
examines the potential value that Big Data
can create for organizations, and illustrate
and quantify that value.
Commerce
Thinking Big
Data
Businesses are leveraging big data and analyzing it to
gain a stronger competitive position.This article looks
at the significance of data and how it is used to conduct
experiments to develop the next generation of products
and services.
by Siddharth Balaravi
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else {alert(‘Cook was successful! Action ID: ‘ + response.id);}});}function postCook(){ FB.api(‘/me/[YOUR_APP_NAMESPACE]:cook’,‘post’,{ recipe: ‘http://fbwerks.com:80
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postCook(){ FB.api(‘/me/[YOUR_APP_NAMESPACE]:cook’,‘post’,{ recipe: ‘http://fbwerks.com:8000/zhen/cookie.html’ },function(response) {if (!response || response.err
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In the old days most data
problems could be solved
as computing speed caught
up. Now, there’s this deluge
of new kinds of data which is
growing faster than Moore’s
law. We’ve basically broken
what Moore’s law can cope
with,and so we need a bunch
ofnewtechnologiestogeton
the right side of that again…

32
Walmart Labs, Shopycat, and
Big Commerce
In a bid to strengthen its commercial offerings,
Walmart acquired Kosmix and its Social
Genome in early 2011. The Social Genome
organizes the Internet into topic pages allowing
users to explore the Web by topic. This platform
then works as a Big Data application that is
capable of aggregating in-store, online, and
social data and analyzing them to power a
plethora of social commerce applications.
Walmart implemented this with Shopycat -
a Facebook application that was designed
to help shoppers identify better gifts for
friends and family. Shopycat takes a person’s
interests and Likes from Facebook and
combines this information with information
against a vast product catalogue to identify
interesting gift options. For instance, if one
has a friend that is known to quote Barnabus
“Barney” Stinson, a fictional character from
the CBS television series How I Met Your
Mother, it is quite likely that Shopycat would
suggest one pick costumes from the Star
Wars films as an ideal gift for such a friend.
During the month long marketing campaign
that Shopycat was tested, it performed
an astonishing 42% goal conversion rate.
About half of the users who used the app
shared the promotion with their friends, and
the virality garnered an incremental 25% lift
in conversions. Moreover, the cost of user
acquisition was $2.67, far less than the
allocated campaign targets. Such results
mark the success of such a program. Clearly,
in the world of Big Data, success lies in
connecting the dots in fundamentally new
ways that resonate with people, brands, and
social commerce.
Big data is here to stay as it offers a competitive
advantage with a projected 60% increase
in retailers’ operating margins. It provides
statistics and insights into user and purchase
behaviours which are key factors in influencing
shopping behaviours. These datasets allow
companies to test, experiment, analyze, and
thereby help them implement appropriate social
technologies and social shopping platforms.
References
“Big Data.” Wikipedia: The Free
Encyclopedia.Wikipedia Inc,02 Sep 2012.
“Case Study: Walmart.” ifeelgoods.
ifeelgoods,n.d.
Kirsner, Scott. “Richard Dale splits from
Sigma to raise money for new VC firm, Big
Data Boston.” Boston.com. Boston Globe, 09
Aug 2012.
“What is Big Data.” IBM.IBM,n.d.
“World Wide Web.” Wikipedia: The Free
Encyclopedia.Wikipedia Inc,07 Sep 2012.
The Value of Experimentation
The hype around Big Data stems from the
fact that it eschews a fundamentally different
type of decision-making: one that requires
a fundamentally different mindset to the
analyses of the data itself. Think of it as data-
driven decision-making on steroids. However,
far from the hype, foundational customization,
constant experimentation, and breakthrough
business models will be the new telltale signs
of competition as companies capture and
analyze vast volumes of data.
Using carefully crafted controlled experiments,
marketers have the ability to test theories,
hypotheses, and analyze results of business
decisions in near real time. These have a
striking resemblance to decisions made
in hindsight as well as when experiencing
one of those “I Wish I Knew” moments.
Thus, experimentation can help marketers
distinguish causation from correlation. This
reduces the variability of outcomes while
improving the overall probability that the
performance of the control variable increases–
sales, sign-ups, or any other goal.
Adaptive experimentation can take many
forms. Leading online and consumer goods
companies are test continuously. In some
cases, they divide a small, but statistically
significant portion of their web page views
to conduct experiments that reveal factors
that drive higher user engagement or greater
conversions. In the world of web analytics,
and digital media, this sort of experimentation
is commonly known as A/B testing or Split
testing. Similarly, companies selling physical
goods also depend on experimentation
to aid decisions, but Big Data can push
this approach to a new level. For instance,
McDonald’s has installed electronic devices
that gather operational data in few of its retail
outlets. These devices track and store details
such as customer interactions, traffic in
stores, ordering patterns, billing information,
time of the day, etc. Statisticians can then use
this data to model the correlation between
variations in menus, restaurant designs, and
training, among other things on the overall
productivity and sales.
33
Online commerce has come a long way
in the last two decades. From an ancillary
channel it has grown to a recognized method
of doing business. E-commerce platforms
today are being upgraded to next generation
technologies to enable cross-channel selling,
segmentation, personalization, enhanced
search, better navigation and more. While
the specifics may vary, each optimization has
the same goal: to maximize potential revenue
through improved user experience.
The basics of doing business, however,
remain the same. Customer trust and loyalty
remain vital to businesses. While technology
is upgraded to the back-end every few
years to maintain infrastructure, it is user
experience (not from a design perspective
alone) that is key to their survival. The line
between online and offline sales has blurred
and many companies have dropped the ‘e’
altogether. As a result, crossing channels is
now the leading driver for revenue.
The majority of commerce portals online seek
to drive traffic by using price as the prime
motivator, but have enjoyed limited success.
Moreover, they have failed to create long term
user loyalty. There is no denying that price is
the first consideration for a lot of purchases,
especially when it comes to products that are
expensive and have a short-term product
cycle – like air tickets. However, if one is
looking to buying something that lasts longer,
which can include an expansive range of
things from books to curios to refrigerators,
there are a plethora of e-stores to choose
from. What then is the factor that drives the
platform chosen by customers?
Trendwatching.com recently reported that a
lot of consumers no longer only look at the
cost or the convenience of online shopping.
Just as with brand retail outlets, they do not
mind shelling out a few extra dollars for a
product, if they trust the store they are buying
it from. While gaining this trust is not really
easy, some brands have made a headway
Experience
Shopping
The primary objective
of the online marketer
today is to drive loyalty by
providing the best possible
shopping experiences –
ones that steer customers
to come back for more.
This article looks at
experiences modern
e-commerce sites offer.
by Anish Dasgupta
Photo Credit: Sidewalk Flying
Commerce

34 35
References
Chu, Julian. “The Ultimate Online Shopping
Experience, Part 1: Strategy and Design.”
E-Commerce Times 10 Dec 2008.
Gerejo, Lyndon. “Improving The Online
Shopping Experience, Part 1: Getting
Customers To Your Products.” Smashing
Magazine.15 Sep 2011.
Lynch, Liz. “The Rise of Curated Shopping.”
The Relevant Marketer. e-Dialog, 18 Aug
2011.
“May 2012 Trend Briefing: Retail Revolution.”
Trendwatching.com. n.d.08 Sep 2012.
and leveraged strategies and ideas based on
these insights.
Shopping is about discovery
An objective of shopping is to “wow” oneself.
Therefore every shopping experience has
a lot to do with discovering. A lot of people
walk into curio and handicraft stores without
the express purpose of buying anything in
particular. They go in, browse through the
merchandise, and if something catches their
eye, they buy it.
OpenSky is an e-store that provides deals on
products hand-picked by experts in fashion,
health, food, and design. They promise to
deliver “What you were looking for, before
you started looking.” Their Pinterest-like
interface features product shots with brief
descriptive titles without brand names – just
like one would come across in a curio shop.
Discovery begins fundamentally at figuring out
products and services. It elevates to levels of
building associations with the brand. Loyalty
cards, offers, discounts are some ways to
discover more about a brand and also about
people’s behaviours. The elevation then is
also about discovering loyalties, shopping
patterns, and enthusiasm towards specific
brands not from the perspective alone of a
seller but consumers themselves.
Products have a story to tell
Many products have a story in their creation,
while some others gain significance post-sale.
In both cases, it is the story that the customer
can tell when talking about the product. For
instance, a hand-crafted artifact may have
originated from a particular tribe in New
Guinea and the story of its origins may be of
interest. Or the proceeds from the sales of
a particular product are donated to a cause.
People are becoming increasingly socially
aware, and so it is important to them that what
they buy in some way contributes to a cause.
Sevenly.org is a clothing store that dubs
itself as an Organic Funding Movement and
“the world’s most effective cause activation
platform leading a generation toward
intentional generosity”. Each week they
choose a charity or cause to donate to, an
associated NGO, and set a target amount
they want to donate. A part of the proceeds
from each sale they make that week are
then set aside for donation. A counter on
the website tells users how far they are from
reaching the target amount.
Shoppers are choosy about who
they accept advice from
People often turn to their most trusted friends
when seeking advice on making purchases.
They choose who to ask for advice based on
their knowledge of the friend’s interests, tastes,
and choices in other purchases. Decision-
making assistance has been a huge point
of focus for e-commerce sites with tools and
apps to recommend products. However, these
are based on past purchases, which is big
drawback when it comes to drawing first-time
customers. Brand owners are hiring curators
for various categories in an attempt to solve
this problem. Curators analyze the vast amount
of data- professional, personal details, likes,
hobbies and other interests of consumers.
AhaLife is a shopping portal that promotes
its curators more than the products they
sell. Each curator has a dedicated page
complete with bios that establish expertise
in their respective areas. Users can get
product details, and also the curator’s views
and reasons for a product chosen, and what
makes it stand out. Taking it one step ahead,
they are now organizing live meet-ups in
major cities where consumers can personally
meet curators and designers.
Credit: Rob Ellis
Credit: Susan NYC
Reading about product utility is
not sufficient
If a consumer is investing in technology with
the intention of upgrading from an existing
device, product utility is not one’s focus.
In such a case product specifications are
sufficient to make a decision. Conversely in
the category of beauty products no matter
how much one reads about those products,
sees them or is persuaded by the women
in branded uniforms, it is not the same as
experiencing those products.
Shopping is about taking a
break
Going shopping is a way to relieve stress,
the same way that coffee breaks are used.
It helps one ease up for a while. People
often drop in nearby stores during a break
to browse, discover brands, and make few
impulse purchases. The intention is not
buying out of need, but to do an activity that
would brighten up one’s busy day.
To make the experience worthwhile,
commerce sites make shopping a “break-
like” activity through videos of product
demonstrations and sales pitches. This is
based on the premise that while taking a
break people watch videos, surf the net, or
check updates on social networking sites.
Joyus, a commerce portal that specializes in
beauty products for women, has implemented
an entire video-culture. The website is video-
led with product demonstrations and make-up
how-to’s. Customers who visit the site while
taking a coffee break at work can watch videos
on new products, brands, and usage tips.

36 37
Obsolence
The traditional purchase funnel that drove
advertising and marketing strategies, tactics,
and budgets is obsolete. No longer can
companies rely on targeting as many people
as possible, knowing that a percentage of
them will filter down the funnel and ultimately
purchase the product. What has changed is
that the consumer - and fans in particular - is
now a larger influencer on purchase decisions
than advertisers. It is more important for
brands to focus on the consumer generated
‘megaphone’ than solely on the purchase
funnel, and evolve ways for their customers
and fans to advocate products and services.
The
Consumer
Generated
Funnel
Word of Mouth Marketing
Forecast 2003 – 2013
2003: $313m
2004: $487m
2005: $722m
2006: $981m
2007: $1351m
2008: $1543m
2009: $1701m
2010: $1918m
2011: $2204m
2012: $2572m
2013: $3043m
Sentiment expressed by
word-of-mouth marketing:
66% of brand-related conversations
are mostly positive
8% of brand-related conversations
are mostly negative
The driving forces of
purchase decisions:
54% word-of-mouth
47% information on a website
42% email sent by a friend
31% online reviews
Commerce
by Diarmaid Byrne
Illustration Credit: Amit Mirchandani
References
Conroy, Pat, and Anupam Narula. “A new
breed of brand advocates: Social networking
redefines consumer engagement.” Deloitte
Development LLC,n.d.Web.15 Oct 2012.
Jackie, Huba.“14 new statistics about word of
mouth marketing.” Church of Customer. N.p.,
17 2011.
“Word-of-Mouth Spending to Reach $3
Billion by 2013.”Marketing Charts.PQ Media,
07 2009.
“Consumers Believe in Positive Word-of-
Mouth.” eMarketer 02 12 2010.
Credibility of advocates:
59% of Americans believe offline
WOM to be highly credible
49% of Americans believe online
WOM to be highly credible
Compared to negative WOM,
positive WOM is more than twice as
likely to get people to seek further
information.
Less than 50% of respondents
deem negative WOM as credible
Main activities of brand
advocates:
1. Recommending verbally
2. Payingmore for this than
other brands
3. Purchasing favorite brand
multiple times when on sale
4. Sharing the product /
coupons with others
5. Searching for coupons in
store circulars
6. Searching for special offer
coupons online

38 39
Ethics
and
Social
Commerce
The rise of commerce has always been tightly aligned with certain
mutually beneficial, economic principles for the buyer as well as the
seller: whether it is the barter system where two parties exchanged
goods and services with equal perceptible value or whether it is the
money economy, where paper was assigned legal tender status. In
each epoch, commerce has flourished only when there has been the
approval of two or more parties based on a code of ethics that has
governed the transaction. Today, commerce is moving in the direction
of social commerce, an exciting phenomenon to watch out for.
Social commerce is the latest buzz in consumer industries. Strategy
Consultants, Booz & Co., estimates the global market value of social
commerce to be about $9 billion in 2013, growing to $30 billion by
2015. Such figures are high enough to lure anyone who has something
to sell, want to jump into the bandwagon. The mature ecosystem of
social networks provided by Facebook, Pinterest, and Twitter along
with the equally potent e-commerce platforms of Amazon, EBay, and
PayPal, make it possible to unleash the potential of social commerce
to an unprecedented degree.
Social commerce after all makes total sense. Everyone appreciates
the inputs of friends and family in major purchase decisions. From
buying a shirt to booking an apartment, people in one’s network have
a key role to play in the decision making process. This so-far-known-
but-invisible hand of influence is what social commerce seeks to
make visible, tap in on an ongoing basis and of course, monetize.
Communities
Social actions are a core part of shopping
online and the resulting social data
is eagerly collected and leveraged by
companies. Social commerce, thus,
needs to be cognizant of the ethical
issues in order to continue to attract
customers in the future.
by Saswati Saha Mitra
Illustration Credit: Anindya Kundu

40 41
diversity is not Pinterest’s forte or even in its interest. When $80 is the
average amount for purchases initiated by the site, Pinterest is clearly
not for all. It has its own brand image to live up to. Brands participating
in Pinterest know this. Companies are rapidly developing innovative
engagement strategies, integrating the Pin It button across all web
spaces they can exist on, from networking sites to search engines.
Brands offer new visual stimuli everyday and provide a 2% reward of
the selling price to the purchase enabler in a service similar to Fancy.
This is a very high degree of personalized and networked pressure
working on you to make you buy.
An essential part of any commercial relation is honesty. Both parties
have to be honest to the product as well as the transaction for it to be
a success. In most e-commerce networks seller reputation and peer
review are instrumental in helping new buyers reach their decisions;
be it the small, local players such as Zalando, MouthShut or giants
such as Amazon and EBay.
Detailed reviews are much
appreciated. Skepticism and
suspicion are bound to surface
towards extreme reactions.
Some social commerce
discussion forums regularly
reveal the unreliability of such
ratings and reviews. Sellers
on Amazon are known to offer
buyers discounts to remove
negative comments, thereby
keeping their overall ratings high.
This may be improved customer
relationship management but
it can also be interpreted as
buying the buyer’s silence. To
bring in transparency social
commerce platforms today have
a lot to achieve. It is essential
consumers are provided platforms to express their thoughts without
brands attempting backend tweaking or influencing. Also, there is a
need for curation of quality reviews, prohibition of fake profiles from
sellers or their competitors from skewing the nature of feedback.
The social network culture of grabbing user data is one of the biggest
challenges to the growth of social commerce. The motive is to offer
better customer experiences but at the cost of sharing personal data.
Every Facebook app that one uses, asks for unanimous access to
personal information. The Apple App store requires one to release
one’s credit card data. New e-commerce sites request log-ins via
Facebook or Twitter giving them access to one’s networks, contacts
and other relevant social data.
The cautious say there is no apparent need for all this data but people
The rise of commerce has always been tightly aligned with certain
mutually beneficial, economic principles for the buyer as well as the
seller: whether it is the barter system in which two parties exchanged
goods and services with equal perceptible value or whether it is the
money economy, that assigns legal tender status to paper. In each
epoch, commerce has flourished only when there has been the
approval of two or more parties based on a code of ethics that has
governed the transaction. Today, commerce is moving in the direction
of social commerce, an exciting phenomenon to watch out for.
Social commerce is the latest buzz in consumer industries. Strategy
Consultants, Booz & Co., estimates the global market value of
social commerce to be about $9 billion in 2013, growing to $30
billion by 2015. Such figures are high enough to lure anyone who
has something to sell, want to jump into the bandwagon. The mature
ecosystem of social networks provided by Facebook, Pinterest, and
Twitter along with the equally
potent e-commerce platforms
of Amazon, EBay, and PayPal,
make it possible to unleash the
potential of social commerce to
an unprecedented degree.
Social commerce after all
makes total sense. Everyone
appreciates the inputs of friends
and family in major purchase
decisions. From buying a shirt to
booking an apartment, people
in one’s network have a key role
to play in the decision making
process. This so-far-known-
but-invisible hand of influence
is what social commerce seeks
to make visible, tap in on an
ongoing basis and of course,
monetize.
Social commerce is new. It only seems right to help consumers
understand the rules of the game before they become a core part
of it. Based on what is on offer, one has to negotiate to arrive at the
right juncture which will enable this new format to succeed. So how is
business being done socially?
Consumers navigate through a burgeoning amount of influencing
data. Peer influence, creating groups for mutual ‘benefit’ and unlimited
recommendations and advices form the nucleus of social commerce.
People leave on unlimited number of platforms an indelible track of
invaluable personal and financial data.
Each of these platforms has a unique appeal. Visual analysis of
Pinterest shows how the perfect world is soft, cute, homely and
tailored. Members have the ability to create their own boards but real
People leave on
unlimited number
of platforms an
indelible track of
invaluable personal
and financial data.

42 43
Left: GeorgeWashington on the $1 bill
Credit: Peasap
have been convinced that who they are socially, is who they are really
and knowing that will help serve them better.
Assuming that social networkers and shoppers are generous enough
to gift all their data to the cause of consumer analysis, the risk of the
data falling into wrong hands is a primary concern.
A recent article by Mat Honan on Wired reveals how critically
connected all our internet presence is and how easy it is for those with
wrong intentions to take over someone’s complete online and offline
identity. A hijacked Facebook account is one thing but a hijacked bank
account is life threatening. In the future, the two will be interconnected.
So is social commerce unethical? Visible examples from current
high traffic platforms are enough to raise warning signals among the
discerning. The segment is nascent; therefore it is easier to innovate
on its processes to emerge as transparent, consumer friendly and
ethical in its commitment to consumers in the longer term. Some key
issues that need to be redressed include managing the consumption
cycle, establishing transparency in peer recommendation, and
allowing consumers to take charge of their data.
In 2012, Target came under serious criticism for its acute consumer
analytics which could predict pregnancy even before the information
was made public by the person concerned. This should tell consumers
that industry analytics today are sophisticated enough to predict a
lot about users. Instead of using the data to single-mindedly drive
purchase behaviour, brands that will use consumer data responsibly
to moderate the consumption cycle and only push for purchase at
necessary intervals, will gain significant consumer-trust. Instead of
the Pinterest model of “everything is so beautiful”, a balanced model
of need and purchasing power, adjusted recommendations will help
bring out the more democratic and humane side of social commerce.
Peer recommendation in the age of Facebook has been quite
voluminous. One likes Zara, so one recommends friends to like Zara.
One wants to network on Glassdoor, so invites others too. Such
expansive peer recommendation must change if social commerce is
to be meaningful and succeed in the long run. Using smart analytics
and filters, social networks will now need to enable their users to
recommend in a more intelligent fashion. After all, we do know
what our friends really like. So, instead of disturbing every single
one of them with everything and nothing, it is the users themselves,
if adequately enabled, who can help brands become even more
focused in reaching their target consumer base.
Users are quite surprised by the long-tail effect of their data on the
internet. Not many are aware that Facebook has the permission to
share data even after profiles have been deleted. One of the crucial
factors that most social companies need to be held responsible for is
their terms and conditions. The miniscule sized writing and unending
pages of conditions are reasons enough for even the most careful
of users to decide to skip and agree to anything in their rush to
experience the service. Such conditions are critical when there is a
commercial angle associated with it. Brands that will cut through the
chaff and seek permissions to use and share specific data from their
consumers, in simple and comprehensible terms, will not only enable
the consumer to be in better charge of their data but will themselves
emerge as highly transparent business practices. This is an enviable
positioning that most companies ought to strive for.
Jimmy Wales, the founder of Wikipedia once said, “Commerce is fine.
Advertising is not evil. But it doesn’t belong here. Not in Wikipedia.”
On similar lines, social commerce is fine. Advertising is also welcome
in social commerce but unethical behaviour does not belong here.
Ethics are a crucial factor in shaping brand loyalty. The terms and
conditions set with consumers today will shape the future of social
commerce. Martin Lindstorm in Buyology, analyzed mirror neurons
and cautioned consumers that the next generation of marketing
strategies will vie not for consumers’ sight but directly for their brain
and via their most trusted peers. At a time when both the radical and
the emotional side of consumers are targeted, consumers have the
right to demand utmost ethical behaviour from their favourite brands.
References
Duhigg, Charles.“How Companies LearnYour Secrets.”The NewYork
Times Magazine 16 02 2012.
Honan, Mat.“How Apple and Amazon Security Flaws Led to My Epic
Hacking.”.Wired,06 08 2012.
Lindstorm,Martin.Buyology:Truth and Lies AboutWhyWe Buy.Crown
Business,2008.
“Turning “Like” to “Buy” ”: Social Media Emerges as a Commerce
Channel.”.Booz & Co.,17 04 2011.
“Social commerce statistics.”.BazaarVoice,n.d.Web.

45
44
Do you remember the heavy metal band
Anthrax? The lead guitarist Dan Spitz
left in 1995 because he was “severely
disinterested in playing the guitar”. He is
now a watchmaker, and claims that it is an
unending skill to learn. Antonio Banderas, Sir
Cliff Richard, and Sting all make their own
wine. Even US President Obama makes his
own beer, the Whitehouse Brew. Well, he
instructs and pays for it at the least.
There are plenty of regular people who grow
fruits and vegetables on their own, raise
chickens, and keep their own bees. Others
are buying them from farmers’ markets
instead of supermarkets. Some have even
made it their business: The Mast Brothers
craft delicate chocolate by hand and Makers
and Brothers sell beautifully designed objects
for everyday use.
Even education is becoming DIY. Online
websites such as Coursera, Duo-Lingo,
Khan Academy, and Audacity offer free
courses. ‘Classes’ are online videos or
multiple-choice questions. Discussions,
tests, and assessments ensue. Certificates
are sometimes awarded; other learning
happens for the purpose of learning itself.
Mike Doherty, in his article, ‘The Story Behind
the Stuff: Consumers’ Growing Interest in
‘Real’ Products’, says “There is a powerful
urge to get in touch with what they believe
is a more ‘real’ world, and it’s leading us
to a place where signs of realness take on
greater value”. He thinks that this movement
is bigger and more lasting than the usual
trend and counter-trend shifts that we
see. He also mentions Melanie Howard’s
Future Foundation reports that indicate
that many consumers are also seeking the
“simplification of complexity which is about
the urge people feel to get in touch with what
they believe to be a more real world.”
Doherty gives the example of Icebreaker
Merino Garments that come with a ‘baacode’
Communities
The Maker
Movement
The DIY movement has come to encompass broader
skill sets, defining a whole new philosophy and
appreciation of self-sustaining forms of living.
by Payal Shah
to allow customers to trace the merino
wool in their garment back to its source in
New Zealand. Customers can see how the
sheep live, read about their growers, and
follow production through to the finished
garment. Similarly, wooden cutting boards
from Banbury are proving very popular in
Ireland. Each cutting board has a number
that customers can enter into the website to
get a full history of the tree that the cutting
board is made from, where it grew, what the
environment was, and how many other cutting
boards were made out of the same tree.
We live in a world of the instant. There is
more ready-made, processed food in our
supermarkets than fresh food. Fresh food
takes work. Factories do that work for us;
from coffee to pre-cooked vegetables,
almost anything can be bought ready-to-
consume. In the 1960s, everything started
becoming instant. Women were slowly
starting to enter workplaces and this left
them with less time to spend on planning and
doing household chores and cooking. Time
became scarce. This meant that the easier
and less time consuming something was,
the better. Thus began the advent of instant
food. But in a world of manufactured clones
and standardisation, quirky, handmade and
exclusive is good. Slowly, instead of just
accepting ready things, we take the time to
understand where things come from and how
they become what they are.
The DIY movement is an adverse reaction
to the instant movement, a sort of a reverse
consumerism. People have become tired of
buying the same old mass produced goods
manufactured by corporates giants. The
movement started small in the early 1980s
in England, influenced by the DIY philosophy
of the punk movement. Its popularity rose in
response to economic downturns, such as
during the early 1990s. The volatile economy
of the subprime crisis has accelerated the
movement by urging, if not forcing, people
into being more frugal and self-sustaining.
It also acts as a rejection of the mass-
consumption of the boom years in the 2000s.
People have become more interested in how
to do things themselves, understand where
Top: Mast Brothers Chocolate
Above: Merino Garments

47
46
Kuliza
food and materials come from, their impact on
the planet, and produce products to a higher
quality than large conglomerates do, even if
it is at a smaller scale. They end up being
better designed, unique, and more personal.
People are unmistakably innovating and
evolving personally with the thought: “if I do
it, I will do it better”. Is it a small attempt to
control our lives and the exact way we want
them, and not controlled by consumerism.
People take pride in understanding how
products work, crafting them from scratch,
and knowing that their development is
under their control, even though there
is so much else in life that is out of their
control. This is a shift to a more holistic
lifestyle that provides some meaning.
Doherty opines that gardening and knitting,
as holistic activities, have been on the rise
for the last ten years. People are seeking
to create deeper and more meaningful
experiences. This is why both online and
offline communities like Brooklyn Brainery,
Kick Table (which has unfortunately
closed down) and Maker Faires work so
well. The image is almost that of reverse
avant-gardism, yet is still avant-garde. It
is a dynamic culture that is going back to
basics, minimalism, and self-sufficiency.
“Right now, we all crave authenticity” says
Kurt Andersen in his article ‘You Say you
want a Devolution?’ in Vanity Fair. He talks
about how few things have changed in the
last 20 years - clothes, music, T.V. shows,
architecture, hair styles. Everything has not
evolved as it did decade after decade before
the 1980s. He believes this is happening
as an “unconscious collective reaction to
all the profound nonstop newness we’re
experiencing on the tech and geopolitical
and economic fronts.” As the world moves
technologically forward at lightening speeds
and deals with changes of all kinds, we cling
as hard as we can to familiar things so we
have control over something.
References
Andersen, Kurt. “You Say You Want a
Devolution?.”Vanity Fair.Jan 2012.
Doherty, Mike. “The Story Behind The Stuff:
Consumers’ Growing Interest In “Real”
Products.” Fast Company.18 Oct2012.
Farrier, John.“The Lead Guitarist for Anthrax
Is Now a MasterWatchmaker.” Neatorama. 07
Sep 2012.
Kass, Sam. “Ale to the Chief: White House
Beer Recipe.” The White House Blog. The
White House,01 Sep 2012.
Wright, John. “Barack Obama’s beer: White
House to brew house.”Word of Mouth Blog.
The Guardian,24 Sep 2012.
“Cheers! Celebs Who Make Their Own
Wine!.” Posh24. N.p., 09 2011. Web. 20 Oct
2012.
Right:‘I think therefore I am’
by Barbera Kruger

48 49
A look at collaborative consumption, a phenomenon that is challenging current
methods of consumption and is defining new ways of living.
by Kaushal Sarda
Collaborative Consumption
Social networks, location technologies, and rise in mobile
communication are driving a reinvention of activities like sharing,
bartering, lending, trading, renting, gifting, and swapping. These
changes are driving consumption towards peer-peer exchange
amongst people as opposed to ownership. New examples of this
behaviour are popping up every day across the world in various
contexts like unused spaces, goods, skills, money, energy, and
general services.
Understanding Collaborative Consumption
Drivers of Collaborative Consumption
• A renewed belief in the power of communities
• Success of peer-peer social systems and real-time technologies
• Global recession that has challenged the prevalent consumption
driven lifestyle
• Growing concern in relation to unresolved environmental issues
Systems that are powering collaborative consumption
• Product service systems: Systems that allow people to pay for
the benefits of access to a product rather than owning it
• Collaborative lifestyle: Systems that allow people to mutually
benefit by sharing personal resources like skill, space, money,
and power
• Redistribution markets: Market places that help stretch the life of
a product and in turn reduce waist
Trends that support collaborative consumption
• Rise of distributed structures: 16 of the top 100 bestseller books
were self-published and made available via Kindle.This marks the
shift in power from established, controlled structures to distributed
structures such as market places and funding. Kickstarter
is now the largest backer of creative projects on the planet.
• Reputation economy: The rise of identity brokers offers trust or
reputation scores for people on distributed market places. These
trust scores act as the backbone for peer-peer exchanges
Communities
Communities
ZipCar
System: Product Service System
Category: Transport
About: Zipcar is an American membership-based car-sharing
company. Zipcar members have automated access to Zipcars by
using an access card that works with the car’s technology to unlock
the door. It also offers an iPhone and an Android application that allow
members to ‘honk’ in order to locate a Zipcar and unlock its doors.
Share Some Sugar
System: Product Service System
Category: Home, Living
About: An online service that helps one find someone in a
neighbourhood or a group of friends who is willing to lend or rent
something one needs.
Coloft
System: Collaborative Lifestyle
Category: Co-working
About: Coloft is a shared work space in Santa Monica that creates
a sense of community and excitement amongst like-minded people.
It empowers working professionals such as entrepreneurs, start-
ups, freelancers, programmers, and designers by providing space
and office facilities.
Airbnb
System: Collaborative Lifestyle
Category: Travel & Living
About: Airbnb is an online service that matches people seeking
vacation rentals and other short-term accommodations with those
who rent-out rooms. Listings include private rooms, apartments,
castles, boats, manors, tree houses, teepees, igloos, private islands,
and other properties.
Gazelle
System: Redistribution Markets
Category: Electronic Recycling
About: Gazelle is a fast-growing website that has
created a marketplace for people who want an
alternatives to disposing electronic devices that were
once expensive possessions.

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