Whether you are pushing out Groupon deals or introducing new products and services to capture new business; are the experiences consistent with your customer’s brand expectations?
We use rechargeable batteries in our mice in the studio, however some dodo forgot to charge them. We had to open a pack of AA batteries. Less than a day later I was needing to replace them again, and this got me thinking.
Now the batteries I inserted were Kodak. A well known brand for producing cameras. To meet the needs of users requiring batteries for the cameras they sell, I can only assume that they introduced their own line of batteries.
Yet, I believe they failed to look at whether the quality of the batteries would have a negative effect on their brand. As if the batteries don’t last very long, what does that say about their cameras?!
I believe this philosophy with any brand product or service.
Take Mercedes for instance. They have a wide variety of cars, that all share the premium Mercedes badge, one that is well known and trusted. By choosing their entry level A Class, you can begin to experience what it feels to drive a Mercedes, and I doubt you would be disappointed.
Then when you’re shopping for your next car, because of your positive experience, you’re more inclined to spend a bit more to buy the higher value C Class or GLC.
There are lots of brands who provide a very wide range of products that cross over into different industries. However they have been successful, because they deliver the same core values and expectations. A positive experience.
Onto a negative experience, and how it can be damaging.
A restaurant advertised a steak meal for 2 on Groupon for £30. I bought it as a gift for a family member. The retail price was far higher, as you would expect or at least as I was told by the accompanying content.
The restaurant were no doubt be looking to turn a profit on this promotion. From their feedback I found out that the meal was ready within minutes of their arrival. Bearing in mind that one of the two people didn’t eat steak and ordered chicken, I can only assume the meal was pre-cooked.
Anyway in a nutshell, the feedback was that they weren’t very happy with the meals. One of them actually refused to eat it, leading to a very negative experience.
These 2 people have left their restaurant, likely never to return. In the process the restaurant sold themselves short on price. Meaning that they had to cut corners to deliver the end product with the focus of still earning money from the promotion. There’s their mistake.
The strategy should have been different. Utilising Groupon as a loss leader and an advertising channel. The meal should have been prepared in the same way as their full price steak. The diners should have witnessed an everyday customer experience. If they had received a positive experience, I’m sure they would have returned to the restaurant. Even better, they would have shared their great experience with their friends, family and social networks.
If choosing to heavily discount a deal on Groupon or other advertising channel, consider the reduced cost as part of the advertising spend. Jump at the opportunity to demonstrate your value to a new flow of potential customers. Just because you give something away cheaply, doesn’t mean you should lower the standard of what is expected.
If you’re introducing a low-end product to function with your main product, try to focus on whether the product alone is good enough to have your stamp of approval. Focus on the brand experience, and ensure that the experience is consistent throughout every aspect of your business.
Forget what you know about WordPress, we make it even easier. Want to know how?
