Intercontinental Hotels vs. Starwood Hotels Rewards Promotion Battle Begins
May 21, 2009
When the economy is weak, keeping loyal customers happy becomes more important than ever. For hotel brands, it’s the perfect time to launch a rewards program promotion, so I was particularly interested when I came across an article on SmarterTravel.com where writer Tim Winship compared current rewards program promotions from Intercontinental Hotels and Starwood Hotels side-by-side in order to determine a winner. In the end, he gave the win to Intercontinental Hotels, but not by much.
Tim looked at both the Intercontinental Hotels and Starwood Hotels reward programs from the consumer’s perspective (as you’d expect for a travel site). He looked at the type of rewards given, the flexibility in redeeming those rewards, the amount of time given to earn and use those rewards, and the alternative reward options. Intercontinental Hotels took the win primarily because of its flexible alternative reward options. However, those flexible alternatives are only included in the fine print of the promotion details. In my opinion, that’s a missed opportunity. Consumers don’t like to be tied down to a single choice. They inherently like options. It gives them a sense of control over their buying decisions. A sense of control is even more important when the eoncomy is weak and people feel uncertain and in a state of flux. Read more
Chevron: Corporate Communications in a Controversy
May 21, 2009
What do corporate giants do when they find themselves in a challenging PR situation and in a financial quandary? They have to be very, very careful on how they handle the situation and with what information they divulge to the public. Opinions may vary, facts may be questionable, but any company will want to be represented in the most fair, and in the most accurate way as possible.
Yes, when a company finds themselves in a negative light, they want to tell their side of the story too. This is primarily why corporations have dedicated media relations departments and journalists, specifically to share information about their company. Chevron found themselves in a “situation” regarding the incident in Ecuador, and has been sued, forcing them to pay damages for allegedly contaminating the Amazon rainforest. Obviously, Chevron has another side of the story, and they want the public to know about it.
Media Representation
In many cases, corporations have a very hard time getting the media to listen, let alone believe, their side(s) of a story. But in this case with Chevron, they decided that they would forgo any risk of getting their side wrong, so they hired their own “voice” to represent them. Curious? Not if you want to portray accuracy and fairness from your own company’s perspective.
Representing your corporation in the media can be tricky. It seems that if there is any bad news circulating, it seems to get worse once it gets into the hands of the media.
Does this mean that the media is wrong or bad? No!
Does it mean that the media doesn’t accurately report their stories? Absolutely not!
What it does mean is this: everyone, including the media, has an opinion about a story and even about a set of facts. Their job is to present their opinion, or rather, their side(s) of the story in whatever light of information that is available. In other words, just because the facts are there doesn’t always mean that an entity will receive fair and accurate reporting. Remember that dedicated media relations department mentioned earlier? Well, this is where it becomes beneficial to the company.
Your Own Voice
Chevron, surely by being somewhat overwhelmed, enlisted the services of their own PR person, Gene Randall, to present their side of a controversial story. Mr. Randall, who is also a former CNN correspondent, acted on behalf of Chevron and gave a report about the Ecuadorian situation a couple of weeks just before a negative report was given by CBS’s 60 minutes.
Although both reports are conflicting in nature (in facts and opinion), Chevron’s whole goal was to be able to represent themselves in the way that is going to benefit their company and further their mission. Is that alright? Isn’t that what companies are supposed to do?
The Solution: What Chevron is Doing
What do you do if your corporation is attacked in the media? How do you approach a sensitive subject with tact and professionalism, but still convey to your market what really happened without a complete conflict and breakdown in communications? You must protect your corporate entity at all costs. A company’s reputation is like an individual’s reputation. They can be scarred and ruined with bad, incorrect or misleading ideas or information.
Chevron is using a variety of techniques and channels to get their side of the story across in a number of different ways:
1. Videos
The video above is on YouTube, so it would appear in any searches on this topic in that channel. Having this video available allows for both the positive and the negative sides of the story to appear together. Also, Chevron has a dedicated site (http://www.texacoinchevron.com) that allows them to publish their side of the story.
2. Twitter it!
Chevron has an official Twitterer (@Chevron_JustinH), who is presumably monitoring this topic closely. Also, the search results for a variety of searches with keywords of Chevron, Texaco and Ecuador return with both sides of the story. This indicates that Chevron may have search optimisation experts who are working to ensure that their side of the story is highly ranked.
These things to me sound like a fair, responsible company who is working to ensure that equitable and balanced treatment is enacted, for both parties.
What Else?
Yes, there are times when the corporation will be wrong. And yes, there are times when the media will have gotten it wrong too. But if a company ensures that they have systems in place to represent them accurately, positively or negatively, then the challenging part is under control. They can then concern themselves with other things like marketing and customer retention and running the corporation. There will always be opinions flying. Just make sure the facts are there and accurate, and there will be no worries over who said what.
What else could Chevron have done or should do to further publish their side of the story? I would love to know your views on how you feel that Chevron is communicating their position in this controversy. But, be nice.
PDF Ebook Resources to get you started in Social Media
May 21, 2009
I almost entitled this article as “Don’t Let Your Business Lose Out in the Social Media Land Grab”.
You will already have read on this blog how important social media is and will be to the corporate world, but you might still have some reservations. That is fair enough, and to be honest, I still have reservations about some of it.
But really, if you do nothing else with social media for your business, at least make sure you secure your business names, brands, and as important, your own name.
Just like in the domain name world, in most cases only one person can hold these uniquely named accounts. You might not think of a Twitter account as being prime real estate today, but in fact business is already being done there, people are already passing off their own lunatic rantings as those of major brands and celebrities, and you can count on it only getting even more crazy in future.
So, grab your names. Go now.
Back so soon? OK, now what next?
The key to making the most of social media for your business is to work out which parts and tactics work for you, and which do not. That means getting your hands dirty and trying things out. I have had terrific return on investment from blogging, Twitter, and to a lesser extent, LinkedIn, but have found MySpace less than stellar and I am still finding my way with FaceBook. You will not know if these services will work for you unless you take a look.
If you want to look at Social Media for business, check out “What is Social Media” by iCrossing, which is a bit old but still explains the basics: http://www.icrossing.co.uk/fileadmin/uploads/eBooks/What_is_social_media_Nov_2007.pdf (PDF)
As a professional you will need to be on LinkedIn: http://www.bnet.com/2403-13070_23-219860.html
Seeing as I already mentioned Twitter, and Twitter is one of those services where only one account can hold a particular name, you really need to get started with that service today: Twitter Jump Start
Mari Smith is the Queen of FaceBook, and she has a free FaceBook tips report telling you how to get started, how to avoid common mistakes, and how you might use it for business. Get it by adding your email address, right here: http://marismith.com/facebooktips/
Finally, for individuals in this challenging career environment, I have to point to Chris Brogan’s report on how to use social media to find work :http://www.chrisbrogan.com/free-ebook-using-the-social-web-to-find-work/
Hopefully these free resources will give you an idea of the potential social media holds for your business, but the key point is grab those accounts and get started!
This was a guest post by Chris Garrett. Chris writes for several blogs and companies including Cogniview, the leading provider of PDF conversion software, as well as his own blog Chris Garrett on New Media where you can get two free ebooks just for subscribing.
Going Native
May 20, 2009
Most articles, news stories and blog commentaries about social media seem to be written by someone looking through a tourist telescope, like the ones in Battery Park or on the edge of the Grand Canyon. The general approach is “Look, people are tweeting!” Or “Quick! Get in there and make money.” And at the other end of the spectrum are writers who seem to be so immersed in the social media world that they speak a secret language.
But Web Strategy by Jeremiah Owyang is one blog that’s consistently substantive without taking itself too seriously, and leading-edge instead of merely trendy. Although Owyang works for Forrester Research–which provides a lot of access–this is his personal blog, and it covers a wide rage of topics relating to how businesses can and should use the web.
There’s even a job board for “web strategist” positions, which have recently included openings for an “online connection pastor” and an SEO analyst for the Oprah Winfrey Network. Just browsing these postings provides another angle for understanding the scope and reality of social media and web presence in today’s marketplace.
I’d sum up by saying Owyang’s blog is not so much “about” the social media space as it is about thinking in a social media way. And that involves a lot more than just jumping on the Twitter-wagon. If you’re interested in really understanding the web landscape and its inhabitants, race to read What Companies Should Know about Digital Natives. This post–live-blogged from a conference on corporate social networking–explains some key factors about folks who are either born into the digital world (i.e., from 1980 on) or have arrived there as immigrants.
I’m an immigrant, of course, but I was an early homesteader on the digital frontier, so in many ways I feel more kinship with the natives than with my own generation. Though my friends and colleagues are all “computer literate,” even those who work in IT are mostly still living and thinking in the age of the individual user. Not that they don’t get their maps online, got to virtual meetings, IM like mad, and put their snapshots on Facebook! It’s just that they don’t think of the world as one big open, creative, accessible digital space.
Non-natives worry about privacy, for example, and piracy. They read newspapers (which I’m definitely not saying is a bad thing), buy physical media (CDs, DVDs, paper books), and don’t see the point of Twitter. They shop online but don’t have a PayPal account . . .
So in addition to the digital divide between those who do and those who don’t have computer access, there is also a divide between those who do and those who don’t “get” digital life. Not as in Second Life and virtual reality–which is sort of a specialty interest–and not as in the early chip-centric visions of “ubiquitous computing.” More as in Zoho instead of MS Office, Hulu instead of Tivo, and WordPress instead of Writer’s Market.
Want to recruit digital natives? Create a digital environment.
More to come.
Getting it right for the best customer experience
May 19, 2009
A month ago, we heard from Colin Shaw (founder of Beyond Philosophy) on how companies should react to the current climate. Today he’s back, to share his views on one of the secrets of a great customer experience…
A few weeks ago we conducted our annual study tour in London, England. This is where we take delegates to visit a number of leading companies for a behind-the-scenes look at how they approach the task of building a great customer experience.
The companies included Prêt-a-Manger, Virgin Atlantic, Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park, Dell Computers, T-Mobile, Lexus Cars, AOL and Microsoft. As we travelled around these companies on the luxury coach, I pondered what the common traits are of companies who provide a great customer experience? Undoubtedly one of these traits is “attention to detail”, so let’s give you an insight as to what some of these companies did. Prêt-a-Manger told us about the absolute struggle they go through to make sure that all the ingredients in their sandwiches are additive free so as to enhance the taste of the sandwiches. This involves a great deal of searching to determine the best supplier, as well as extensive tasting. The time and money they spend on this activity is phenomenal and is testament to their customer focus.
But this is just one element of the attention to detail these companies pay. Liam Lambert, Director of the Mandarin Oriental Hyde Park Hotel told us of his “attention to detail”. He wanted his doorman to stand out as ‘beacons’ to help promote the hotel – as it is on the less busy side of the street and after seeing other hotel doormen who were all dressed in grey overcoats. This colour made them blend into their hotel buildings and act as great camouflage. Liam decided to dress his doorman in red, creating a true beacon. It was clearly effective as more people noticed them than ever before!
Liam told us about how he treats his new arrivals and our group was privileged to attend and witness his ‘Morning Prayers’. This is where all the managers from each department within the hotel get together every morning and talk through each new guest explicitly that is arriving at the hotel that day. They look at who they are and look at where they’re coming from and therefore how likely they are to be tired, for example. They even get on their guests’ web sites to discover more about the person staying so that they can ultimately provide them with a better service. Finally, if available on the web site, they will print a picture of the individual who is staying with them and place it on the ‘Guests Wall’ so the staff can recognise the person by name.
So, do you go into that amount of detail with your customers? When a guest is staying with them they ‘learn their behaviour’. They also take note of the drinks they order, whether they like ice or not, whether they have a cappuccino or a Latte after a meal. This information is then recorded on what is effectively a CRM system, which is them utilised to enhance the customer experience on subsequent visits. This is pure attention to detail!
Our visit to Virgin Atlantic highlighted to us the amount of time they have spent on working out when the optimum time is to deliver hot towels in Upper Class – before or after takeoff, for example. They also have calculated the most pragmatic and attractive layout of a service trolley, and have great new lie down beds situated in Upper class. As someone who spends a lot of time travelling around the world giving conference speeches, I can’t wait to try them.
And Dell Computers have set up a number of ‘Listening Posts’ to ensure they capture customer information and convert this into something that is usable by the customer.
So, attention to detail in building great customer experiences is paramount. The converse is also true, and lack of focus on the customer experience will detract from it. The other night I visited my local cinema. The ‘baby booster chairs’ were left in the aisle so that when we entered the cinema late, we nearly broke our necks falling over them! Not to mention the vast queue to buy a ticket, with only two tills in operation and three people standing at the back chatting whilst dozens customers showed their indignation. We have all had similar experiences, but it takes thought, time and commitment to build a great customer experience.
We recommend you to pay attention to the detail in future – both in ‘real life’ and on the various sites that are part of your company’s web estate.
A classic example of focusing on the details that make the customer experience of corporate web estate better is Amazon’s recommendation system, which gives the customer suggestions as well as providing potential up-sell opportunities. Like the Mandarin Oriental example above, this helps the visitor feel that the company ‘knows’ what they like. And the customer reviews provide reassurance, so the visitor feels they are making the right choice.
At a more mundane level, ensuring that the website is user-friendly, with appropriate help easily available when needed, matters. Visitors need to be able to navigate the site to find what they need (without falling over unnecessary ‘baby buggies’, or being led down navigational dead ends). And ensuring that the site can be found easily, and is distinctive helps. Consider the Mandarin Oriental again: is your site dressed in the appropriate livery, and acting as a beacon for your visitors?
Thanks, Colin!
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