For years marketers have been saying that consumers have the power to change things but that wasn’t truly the case until the widespread usage of the internet and especially of social media sites and blogs. For the first time ever, users truly have the ability to openly praise or criticize their hated or beloved brands, and influence others while doing so. Smart companies will understand that social media is a tool that can give them great insights about real consumer thoughts because people aren’t afraid to type, especially when they can do it anonymously. CVS pharmacy presents a fabulous example. You would probably think (at least I did) that people go to pharmacies based on convenience (i.e. location), and yes, that is often the case but there are also loyalist and detractors in this industry. There is a facebook page dedicated to those who hate CVS. We will never know if it was created by competitors like Walgreens or Duane Reed but the sure thing is that it is a very active website with many followers, and we know that bad rep spreads much faster than good one. One of the group members posted “Dear CVS Pharmacy, I hate you. I hate you for several reasons. First off, I hate you for delivering sucktastic customer service. You could at least explain to me WHY you will not give me multiple refills of my birth control at once without having my doctor rewrite my prescription” and it goes on. CVS should read carefully at all the complaints and understand if there is a trend in what people are whining about, and do something about it! On the other hand, CVS pharmacy created its own Facebook site. and although most comments are positive, even here, the posts are not all supportive, why? Because in social media consumers (and even employees) can say whatever they want! Just 40 minutes ago the company posted a wall note saying they would be open during thanksgiving day. They had a lot of “likes” but also got 6 comments criticizing them for forcing employees to work during the day when they should be with their families.
As a customer I can’t but love social media sites because they give me the power to express myself in a way that could make a difference. Before, all I could do was write a little comment on the suggestion box, send an angry letter which I never did because it would most likely be ignored, or I could call customer service and talk to someone that was usually as helpful as talking to a chair or table in my house. Now I can write things other customers will see and maybe, if I convince them, they will think twice before buying a certain product or service. But it isn’t all negative, I also take the effort to write about things, brands, and places I love, and hopefully people will also be intrigued and maybe their purchase intention will increase. I can tell for sure that I have been greatly influenced by consumer’s reviews and nowadays before I buy anything worth over $100, I go to blogs, consumer sites, etc. to check out what people think about the products and if there are too many “sucks” I will probably not buy that product.
As a customer I can’t but love social media sites because they give me the power to express myself in a way that could make a difference. Before, all I could do was write a little comment on the suggestion box, send an angry letter which I never did because it would most likely be ignored, or I could call customer service and talk to someone that was usually as helpful as talking to a chair or table in my house. Now I can write things other customers will see and maybe, if I convince them, they will think twice before buying a certain product or service. But it isn’t all negative, I also take the effort to write about things, brands, and places I love, and hopefully people will also be intrigued and maybe their purchase intention will increase. I can tell for sure that I have been greatly influenced by consumer’s reviews and nowadays before I buy anything worth over $100, I go to blogs, consumer sites, etc. to check out what people think about the products and if there are too many “sucks” I will probably not buy that product.
A lot of people think all the criticism could hurt companies in the long run. I agree but I think smart companies will take the time to look at customer’s feedback and take action on it so they can hopefully get better feedback in the future. Companies have paid millions of dollars a year in trying to understand consumers. They pay for focus groups, ethnographies, interviews, etc. and of course, I’m not saying they should stop because these also give great insights into consumer minds. However, they have a FREE tool not only to connect with customers but also to better understand their needs and complaints and hopefully to improve upon their criticism. Social media is here to stay and companies should simply adapt to that fact and hopefully exploit the tool in their own benefit.
I completely agree with the argument of the advantage for customers to express themselves about companies. Personally I also find it pretty useful and fair for us as customers.
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand, every advantage may have the negative side. As you say, we'll never know if "hate-sites" are posted really by customers or by competitors. But unfortunately that's the way it is and companies must use it to try to get a better approach to their current and potential markets.
Just to add one more comment, I think it is imperative for all companies to be creative in order to avoid boring the market. It has already happened with e-mails (and spams), it's up to companies to avoid this (and therefore keep social networks as beneficial tools) by giving some added value to customers by these means.
As a consumer, I feel the same way. I love how social networking has allowed us to be heard by companies, specially when we have some kind of complain or concern.
ReplyDeleteI also find a great advantage the fact that we have fast and direct access to companies' products and information. And most important access to other consumers insights and experiences with products I am interested in.
I agree with Ignacio that companies should be creative to avoid boring their customers. But more important I personally think that business should be careful of not annoying their customers because this could social media from an effective tool to communicate with customers to an item that could kill a the seller- buyer relationship.
I agree with Angela. Feedback should always be welcome by companies who want to grow and prosper. Indeed some of the feedback may be negative, however, in the long run, it prevents the wasting of resources on a product that is either declining or is no longer in demand.
ReplyDeleteI actually wrote on the concept of crowdsourcing which allows the customers to have input on product creation and they have a say in products that are thought to may be implemented in to the marketplace. This type of service allows customers to give input (good and bad) to companies. Dell implemented this a while back with a separate social media concept that allows customers to vote on what they think of prospective products. This allowed Dell to see what customers wanted (good and bad) and allow them to put the most desired product on the market. For this, I tend to lean towards the side arguing that negative feedback is the great for a company, even more so than positive feedback!
ReplyDeleteCheck out what I found on my blog