2. The power of trends is no
flash in the pan.
Trends aren’t just marketing flannel or data-spin. These are broadscale
cultural patterns that are influencing behaviour, opinion and expectations
in huge swathes of people across the globe. Their importance to brands
and their interactions with customers should not be underestimated.
Tapping into the right trend in your strategic planning can give your brand
unprecedented social relevance. More importantly, it can accelerate your
business beyond your competitors – especially in commoditised markets.
It’s a competitive advantage that some of the world’s most forward-
thinking businesses have already recognised – as you’ll see in the
following pages.
You’ll also see that it is deeply rooted in our own different approach,
which is why we’ve included one of our own examples here.
We hope you find these stories as inspirational as we did. We’ve
deliberately included some questions and challenges to spark
conversations within your own organisation. If you’d like to join
in the debate, feel free to drop me a line, or you can comment on
our blog at http://www.geronimo.co.uk/blog/.
Scott Cooper
Head of Innovation, Geronimo
scott.cooper@geronimo.co.uk
Call me on 020 7467 9890 ext. 229
to join in the conversation.
3. Oooh how
lovely I wasn’t expecting that.
A new breed of perks and privileges is satisfying Random acts of kindness will delight customers and
people’s ever-growing desire for novel forms of have delivered great results for our clients. But they
status and convenience. (Thanks to web 2.0 and require careful planning to deliver tangible ROI.
the rise of customer empowerment, it’s no longer Delivered in the right way, these initiatives will leave
good enough to meet expectations. Brands must individuals not just pleased, but grateful. Gratitude
exceed them.) is powerful social glue, as well as a potent emotion
to inspire and potentially profit from.
Appropriately delivered, perks foster strong
customer loyalty. They can also make for invaluable We hope you’ll be surprised and delighted by the
PR. The media love perk stories, particularly if examples we have brought together here.
they’re unorthodox; and customers enjoy relating
stories about unexpected privileges. They’re status
symbols as much as conversation starters.
4.
5. Interflora
gives free flowers to Twitter users in need of cheering up
We particularly liked this engagement activity by Interflora… it goes to show that little
gestures can add real gloss to big marketing spends.
“In September 2010, Interflora launched a social media campaign designed to brighten
up the lives of Twitter users by sending them flowers. As part of the campaign, Interflora
monitored Twitter, looking for users who they believed might need cheering up. Once
found, the melancholic Tweeters were contacted directly and sent a bouquet of flowers
as a surprise.” Source: trendwatching.com.
According to Nielsen, the two most “trusted” sources of information are:
“Recommendations from people known” and “Consumer opinion posted
on-line”. So the questions we would ask you: “What’s your story? Which
conversations do you have the credibility to start?”
6. Airpoints Fairy
grants passengers
their airport and flying points wishes
We travel all over the world for stimulation: South
Africa, the USA, Australia and New Zealand are
favourite hunting grounds. Here, Air New Zealand
have linked research and prizes to bring about true
customer collaboration.
“New Zealand-based Airpoints Fairy by Air New
Zealand is an online service that grants users
their wishes for points top-ups, access to first class
lounges and upgrades. The wishes are granted
largely at random, but a convincing reason and
a polite demeanour seem to help users see their
Collaboration is a big part of empowering
wishes come true.
customers – giving them the remit to
make a difference to what a brand does. Users can make wishes via Twitter to @airpointsfairy,
In your own world, what matters most to spelling out their desires. The Airpoints Fairy then
your customers? And how can you give tweets the lucky ones to let them know that their
them the opportunity to influence how wishes have come true. Magical.”
that looks? Source: trendwatching.com.
9. There are a few shining examples of staff-driven
programmes: Dell and Best Buy being the most
well-known. From 30-minute interviews with nearly
5000 respondents, Edelman found in their Trust
Barometer that “conversations with employees”
were the most trusted source of information from
a company; more than the CEO.
Hyatt’s approach stood out as a smart way of linking
two insights: perkonomics + consumers’ trust in staff.
“Hyatt Hotels has launched a staff-led campaign
which empowers employees to give Gold Passport
guests ‘pleasant surprises’ to delight them during
their stay.
Originally coined as ‘random acts of generosity’,
surprises include the company picking up the bar
tab, a complimentary massage or free breakfast.
Beats the ‘turning down service’ for sure.”
Source: trendwatching.com.
McKinsey’s recent research into “The Rise of the Networked Enterprise” is
well worth a read. The use of social network tools within an organisation
produces significant returns on investment. Collaboration and speed of
access to knowledge significantly improve the effectiveness of marketing,
amongst a raft of other benefits. So what do you do to leverage all the
ideas of the employees to impact marketing ROI?
10. delights
Geronimo surprises and
ING Direct customers
In the depth of the economic downturn, rate cuts
and scarcity of cash had driven customer interest
in savings to record lows. Geronimo’s targeted
‘Random Acts of Kindness’ programme for
ING Direct brought a little lightness to the gloom.
Reinforcing ING Direct’s promise that ‘Saving Feels
Good’, we sent savers a range of unexpected treats,
from movies to sweets.
The initiative brightened the outlook for ING Direct
too; helping them generate record retention levels
and achieve no.1 ranking in the sector Net Promoter
Scores for the very first time.
The key word to bear in mind is “targeted”
… we don’t advocate sending surprise
and delights to every customer, just those
who represent either the biggest risk
to defection or the best opportunity for
income growth. Where would you target
this activity?
11.
12.
13. satisfies
Kellogg’s
hunger for the things we Krave
This FMCG story demonstrates what we call Social media can be a double-edged
‘activation’; an activity which invites customers sword. Get it wrong and you’ll be
to participate, or better still, to lead the charge. sliced and diced. Get it right and those
you engage will do a great brand job
“Kellogg’s has unveiled a social media campaign
for you. A lot of brands knee-jerk into
and site for the new chocolate cereal brand, Krave.
the big platforms like Facebook and
Visitors to the site can earn virtual points by doing
YouTube. In actual fact, energising
things like inviting friends via Facebook. These
customer reviews can make a bigger
points can then be used to bid for money-can’t-buy
difference to the customer buying
experiences, such as concert tickets and backstage
journey. Have you prioritised and
passes. Just add milk.” Source: trendwatching.com.
assigned roles to each of the key
digital platforms?
14. Whilst this case study might seem a bit far-fetched
and categorised as ‘nice’ rather than rooted in
a business need, it isn’t. Any motor insurer will
tell you that the perfect scenario is lots of premium-
paying customers who don’t drive much = less
accidents = less claims. A key question to ask of
your colleagues: Do we really reward the behaviour
we seek from our customers?
It’s all about
the bike
for Sao Paulo commuters
This one is from an unlikely source “Brazil-based insurance company Porto Seguro is one of the top three
– an insurer in Brazil. But what a Brazilian property and casualty insurers. Since 2008, the organisation
great example of ‘rewarding the has offered free bicycles to customers who want to avoid Sao Paulo’s
behaviour you seek’. grid-locked traffic.
Customers can leave their cars in one of the bank’s affiliated parking
places and continue to their destination on a bike, which is free to use
until they return to pick up their car. How’s that for a spin on ‘free’?”
Source: trendwatching.com.
