News & Notes

We live in a data-driven world. Just about every action, post, and click is tracked online.  Companies have access to vast amounts of data — almost too much. But having a ton of data does not necessarily mean that you will have actionable insights to improve your product or services. And the problem is only going to get worse….

In today’s data-rich and data-driven environment, we are predisposed to gain our insights from data. But action doesn’t always follow collection. A survey of 600 executives by the Economist Intelligence Unit found that 85% of the participants thought the biggest hurdle to unlocking value from data was not grappling with the sheer volume, but analyzing and acting on it. And gleaning the insights from the data is what makes the data valuable. — More Data Does Not Equal Better Insights by Laura Patterson

Do you know what to do if you or your company is suddenly under attack on social media?  What about if something not-so-great happens and is suddenly amplified throughout the online social space?  One of the biggest complaints that customers have is lack of response from companies who have an online presence (something like 80% of questions and complaints on brand Facebook pages go unanswered).  A crisis situation can be especially tough.  This article over on SocialTimes has some tips to help you prepare:

A strategy is especially important for those who consider them resources during a crisis.

“Develop a protocol internally,” suggests Stephanie Shkolnik, Director of Social Media at Digitaria. “Create a simple system to identify what types of scenarios are applicable to your brand and what requires issuing a statement versus respectfully going dark. These qualifiers should be defined based on your business and/or brand’s location and if you have employees and/or customers in the area impacted.” — Social Media during a Crisis: 5 Tips by Debra Eckerling

Have you ever walked into or shopped at a Nordstrom’s? It’s amazing.  All the employees are super friendly and will do just about anything to help you.  They also have just about the greatest return policy ever — they will take back anything no questions asked.  Delivering this type of brand experience in-store is one thing, but how do you extend that to digital channels? Jamie Nordstrom, president of Nordstrom Direct offers some insights in this article from eConsultancy…

One surefire, said Nordstrom, is to sell consistently online and off. For instance, if you send a marketing email and a customer walks into your store with that email in hand and says, “I want the item featured here,” then you better have that item in store, he said. — How Nordstrom sees customers’ changing expectations by Cielo Lutino

Think about how to maintain a great customer experience across different marketing and communications channels. Do you have another example of a company that’s great at this?