Customer Service:
-complaints/feedback
-what do you do after you get feedback?
-call 1-800 numbers
-free for customers
-expensive for company
-outsource to India
-live chat
-FAQ’s
-time, improve quality of experience
Chapter 9
Anticipatory customer service: anticipatory service concept of being proactive, not simply waiting passively until customers request service. To do this, companies must anticipate potential problem areas before they become troublesome, develop situations, and provide service that exceeds customer expectations.
Three things in order to implement anticipatory customer service:
1. build customer scenarios, using data including call center reports, e-mail logs, chat transcripts, and Web site software that can report unusual volumes of activity and uncover patterns in a day-to day service queries. Use the scenarios to determine where intervention can prevent problems, such as common customer mistakes in placing orders.
2. make customer service pervasive by fulfilling common requests before the customer even asks and enduring that service is readily available throughout the value chain
3. design the service process for “seamless escalation”. Translated, this means firms must guide customers to the service they need without having to move through frustrating layers of information that does not fir the needs of the customer.
Chapter 11
Server log: record kept at the server level that records each file requested from a website
Panel Data: the process for using panel data to generate site effectiveness data is the same as using panels in the general marketing research process. The first step is to recruit a statistically representative panel of internet users who agree to participate in the data collection. Specialized software is downloaded onto the participant’s computer to record the click stream data. The software is polled at regular intervals to upload the data. First, the source of the data is unambiguous, which it often it not with server logs. Second, a person who uses the internet from both home and work is two separate people according to server logs, but carefully planned and maintained panel data can overcome this issue. Third, the measurement firm can collect demographic and behavioral data from panel households that can be useful in reporting and analytics.
Collecting traffic, audience, and campaign data
Hit counters: a hit counter is a small piece of software that can be added to a web site to provide a few basic metrics. It measures the number of visits to the site.
Server log files: server log files are created by the server that houses the web site. Each time a browser requests a file in order to build a web page, it generates an entry in the server request log.
Coded pages: the use of coded pages is a new method of collecting data, on the “browser (user’s) side” of the information transaction instead of on the “server side” The tag part of the page that is requested by the served to the user’s browser. The file then sends data back to the server. Working with cookies, the tag can send back detailed information about the visitor’s activity on the page. One the surface, the data are the same as those collected by a server log. Data collected by tags has several advantages over server log data: the data may be more accurate, data collected by web bugs has smaller storage requirements because it stores only relevant data, and when data are collected in this manner, it permits real-time processing and viewing of site metrics.
Cookies: cookies are small data files that are stored on the user’s computer and transmitted back to the web server. Cookies can be set to retrieve personal information or not.
Variables used to measure web site traffic, audiences, and marketing campaigns
Traffic measures simply document site activity:
-hits: the number of files requested
-impressions: the number of times and ad banner is requested by a browser
-page views or deliveries: the number of times a web page is requested
-sessions: the amount of activity on a site during a specified period
-click-through: the number of times visitors come to the site by clicking on an ad
Audience measures provide data about the people who visit the site:
-visitors: the number of people who visit the site
-total (includes multiple visits) or unique (different people) during a specified time frame
-unidentified (anonymous) or identified (registered or customer)
-unduplicated audience: the vistors that are unique to a web site
-behavior on the site
-number of page views
-session time
-path through the site
-shopping cart abandonment
-entry page (many visitors do not enter through the home page)
Campaign measures provide data about the effectiveness of marketing efforts
-by communication channel: e-mail, mail, online banner, and so forth
-by offer: free shipping versus 25% off, for example
-search effectiveness by keyword
To be meaningful, all these measures must be taken during a specified period. That leads to an almost endless set of metrics that can be produced, depending on the needs of the marketer. Some common metrics follow:
-average number of visits per day
-number of page views per month
-average visitor session length last month
-number of hits for each hour of the day
-paid search results for the most recent 7-day period
Chapter 13
Knowledge management in marketing
Marketers are interested in a narrower set of activates that focus on integrating front-and back-office services and delivering information to customer service personnel and decision makers when and where they need it. They are connected about customer experience and realize they must deliver it seamlessly through multiple channels at times and places demanded by the customer. This requires marshalling all the resources of the enterprise to create usable knowledge from the multiple types of customer data and the expertise of best workers.
-to enable human agents to do their work better, faster, and in a way that provided maximum customer satisfaction
-to create automated systems that perform at least as well as the most skilled human agent
Chapter 14
Consumer adoption of innovations
The customer adoption process is generally accepted conceptualization of the stages a consumer goes through when confronted with a new product or service. According to the adoption process, the consumer must first become aware of the product; then develop an interest in it; perform some pre-purchase evaluation; and then try the product, either as a consequence of a purchase or of a marketer-sponsored promotion or incentive. Two importance stages follow trial. First, the consumer must decide to purchase/continue purchasing the product, which can be behaviorally identified as adoption. A harder to discern stage is that of internalization, in which the product has become an integral part of the consumer’s lifestyle. The internalization stage is particularly important in the case of technology.
Diffusion process: it is a communications model and as such it consists of four elements: the innovation, communication channels, time, and social system within which the innovation is spreading
Pervasive computing: implies that a single person has access to myriad computing devices to assist in performing all sorts of daily tasks. Pervasive computing aims to enable people to accomplish an increasing number of personal and professional transactions using a new class of intelligent and portable devices. It gives people convenient access to relevant information stored on powerful networks, allowing them to easily take action anywhere, anytime. There new intelligent appliances or “smart devices” are embedded with micro-processors that allow users to plug into intelligent networks and gain direct, simple and secure access to both relevant information and services. These devices are as simple to use as calculators, telephones or kitchen toasters.
Strategic drivers of wireless technology
-context: providing necessary information when and where the customer needs or wants it
-localization: the location of the user can be identified and information specific to that location can be provided
-personalization: the customer can select not only the type of information desired but also the frequency of information provision
-time sensitive: information must be provided at the time appropriate to the customer, not convenient for the marketer.
-high value: in addition to protecting personal data, providers of content and services will have to be sensitive to download times, lack of storage, and the fact that users are paying for airtime
-voice activation: there are many situations in which it is not safe to use the keyboard
-one-click payment mechanisms: a system is which payment is easily and securely authorized and billed to a single account will be necessary to enable frequent use of m-commerce services
-security: users must be assured that data transmissions are secure, and authentication services must be provided in a way that is suitable for the devices
-privacy
-expanded permission marketing: marketers will have to extend the concept of permission marketing beyond simple opt-in scenarios. They must find out what kind of information consumers are willing to receive, how often they are willing to receive transmissions, and where they are willing to receive it