I blogged a few weeks ago about The Geek Squad’s Robert Stephens talking about how they build a corporate culture. Here is a video interview we did: Highlights: Their employees get their drivers license photos re-taken in their Geek Squad uniform Encouraging positive word of mouth with blogger relations Some other interesting notes on how […]
eBay Live! 2008 Jun 21, Chicago
March 31, 2008
MyStarbucks Idea
March 28, 2008
Lots of people are writing about MyStarbucksIdea.com – Starbucks’ new site to ask for customer ideas and input. The site uses software from Salesforce.com. The most famous implementation is Dell’s IdeaStorm. This type of site is important – it’s possibly the easiest and most effective way for a company to get ideas from their customers. […]
Is YouTube putting ads on your videos?
March 27, 2008
There are now ads superimposed on YouTube videos. Are they putting ads on my personal videos? I think YouTube has every right to do it. Here’s the implied deal: We get the service for free, they get to make money in exchange. There will be a great market for YouTube Pro – a $25 ad-free […]
Who is reading your reviews?
March 27, 2008
68% of online shoppers read reviews before buying. Stop and think about this: Your entire marketing effort expenditure drives customers to the reviews. Not to your landing page. Not to your shopping cart. Who is in charge of reading online reviews at your company? Nothing impacts your online sales more than customer reviews. Do you […]
One little thing
March 26, 2008
It only takes one little thing to generate massive word of mouth: Colorful iMacs Zappos’ 365-day return policy Red Envelope’s wrapping paper A clever blog post One smart salesperson A sincere apology Here’s an example: 1coolpen.com makes a nice pocket-sized pen. The word of mouth hook: A lifetime guarantee. "Pen not working? Out of ink? […]
Am I getting screwed?
March 25, 2008
The New York Times wrote about how you can now haggle and negotiate prices at Home Depot, Best Buy, and Circuit City. It makes me very uncomfortable. Here’s what I expect lots of customers are hearing: “We are usually ripping you off. You are an idiot for paying full price. Some people get a better […]
Are you rewarding the right behaviors?
March 24, 2008
Why are there express lanes for people who buy a small amount of stuff? We should have express lanes for people who buy a ton of stuff. How about this: If you fill your cart over to the top, you get to use the SuperLane! The SuperLane will give you 2 cashiers, 2 baggers, and […]
How to tell if a vendor is healthy
March 20, 2008
Take a look at their jobs page. 1. If they are hiring, that’s a good sign of growth. 2. If they are hiring engineers, that means that they are investing in building a better product 3. If they are hiring more sales people than engineers, they may be using sales to cover for a weak […]
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