About

Thoughts on Social Media, Consumer Experiences, and Promotional Product Safety.


I retired from creating brand merchandise for a global tire manufacturer, now I am the Executive Director of Quality Certification Alliance.

Posts here are my own.

04/01/2013

Horrible Leg Break Leads to Equally Horrible Link Bait

Perhaps you saw the terrible injury yesterday afternoon in the NCAA Elite 8 game between Louisville and Duke. Cardinal role player Kevin Ware suffered a horrendous broken leg many compared to the career-ending injury of Joe Theismann.

It was so bad that CBS chose to not replay it, other media chose not to create a .GIF file…and it reduced some teammates literally to tears.

crying

No need here to replay the injury, or debate the choice to not reshow the video, or create some small video file of it. There is an Outkick The Coverage article today by Clay Travis that does a good job of that.

For now, I’d prefer to focus on the instant nature of today’s always-connected social web. For better, or for worse.

Talk about immediate coverage. After enduring two hours of surgery to set a broken tibia, insert a rod, and repair where the bone had broken through the skin, this photo popped up all over the interwebs:

hospital

Assuming all is well with blood flow in the leg, Ware plans to leave the hospital in Indy Tuesday, and make his way to his hometown of Atlanta to be with his teammates for the Final Four.

One person that may now find his assignment to the NCAA Championship a little more uncomfortable will be Sports Illustrated senior reporter Pete Thamel. Though he apologized a couple of hours later, Thamel has been unmercifully skewered on Twitter since doing the unthinkable- choosing the moments immediately after the injury to post a link to his own article in the NY Times about Ware being the central figure in the UCF recruiting scandal. While Thamel no longer works for the Times, and, as Travis points out in his article, “doesn’t get paid by the Tweet”, this incredibly callous choice of timing for link bait merited thousands of reactions like this from the Twitterverse:

You get the idea. Some reactions even included death threats. Twitter has long been the medium of short fuses. Complaints dominate the timeline about everything from bad food to bad service, to in this case, at best, bad form.

But, for better or worse, it IS immediate. Here’s a picture released at 4PM EST Monday by the University of Louisville with Coach Pitino, and former assistant Pitino, visiting Ware, who has his champions hat, shirt, and the regional trophy. Barely 24 hours after the injury, things look a lot better.

Pitino and Ware

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Posted at 4:21 PM (1 month ago) | Permalink

03/29/2013

3 Words You Don’t Want Together: Content Marketing. Fail.

Shared some posts on Twitter this week that I came across doing some research for our own content marketing strategy at QC Alliance. 

Brittany Richards from Software Advice was nice enough to follow up with a suggested video from a series they are doing with Joe Chernov.

From the series:

Don’t:

-Put a form in front of everything you create. Set your content free. Forms complicate the sharing process.

-Use excessive words. Cut back on the word count. Then cut back on that word count. Then cut the final word count in half! Twitter has shortened everyone’s attention span. Keep your writing short and sweet.

Do:

-Use more photos. Since your writing should be concise, use images to help tell your story.

-Have white space. “Whitespace is some of the most valuable space on the page. Preserve it”

-Assign a name to the content. People should see an author and contact information at the bottom of the post. Personalization is an essential part of relationship building.

If you want to check out the video of Lauren Carlson of CRMSoftware.TV with Joe Chernov:

 

Thanks to Brittany from Software Advice for making the info easy to get to today!

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About: 

CRMSoftware.TV is a free online resource for all things CRM. 

The site has videos, product reviews, software demos, and more.

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Posted at 12:53 PM (1 month ago) | Permalink

03/21/2013

I tweeted @Mailbox, @Mailbox tweeted back. It all seems so…simple.

Yesterday, I got a few hits on a post reviewing the new Mailbox app.

Basically, it’s a nice improvement in interface if you are JUST interested in improving Gmail, but I said two issues were show-stoppers for me. The fact that it doesn’t support landscape mode, and doesn’t allow integration of platforms OTHER than Gmail, made it a less viable option for me. 

Turns out, one of the hits was a response from Mailbox:

Make an objective comment about a potential user experience improvement. Get a response that the improvements have been considered, and actually in the works.

It all seems so…..simple.

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Posted at 8:07 AM (1 month ago) | Permalink

03/20/2013

Why @Mailbox lasted on my phone… for about 10 Minutes.

Mailbox-Countdown-452

If this were snail mail, I’d stamp it “Return To Sender”.

Not because of the timed release of the application. I actually think the concept of an “updating” personal announcement of how many people were in line in front of me, and how many behind, was a stroke of marketing fun. I was “in line” for a couple of weeks, and just checked back now and then.

The idea has caught on- Tempo, a “smart” iPhone calendar app from the folks who made Siri, is employing the same rollout concept. Though, the line is a little shorter- about 20,000 in line in front of me.

Mailbox touts its ability to “get your Mailbox down to zero”. That sounded worth the wait in line. 

Mailbox      Mailbox

The app is rather straightforward and uses swipe gestures to whittle away at your inbox- moving unopened emails quickly into four areas: archive, delete, snooze, and lists.

It’s attractive, and an interface that is better than the Gmail app.

So, what’s wrong with it, then?

Two things that are absolute show-stoppers and has it banished from my iPhone:

* It is Gmail, and Gmail, ONLY. If you have multiple email accounts, other than Gmail, you will be using two email interfaces.

* For the fat-fingered among us- it does not support landscape keyboard use.

If you are looking to simply improve the Gmail experience- and only Gmail- and you are not thick of finger, the swipe gestures (two to the left, two to the right for the actions) offer an interesting way to manage the inbox. 

Mailbox also offers a nice interface with the native iOS Notes function. Seamless integration for, say, a quick grocery list.

It should also be mentioned that there is no access to non-contact emails, the auto-fill feature that Apple uses in its default mailbox does not exist in the Mailbox app.

All-in-all, until some changes, Mailbox is “Returned To Sender”, and other releases will definitely be using the “Velvet Rope Wait” release strategy.

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Posted at 4:34 PM (1 month ago) | Permalink

02/18/2013

Somebody Else Can Write the “Lessons Learned” Post. Give me the @BurgerKing Hack Humor!

Leave the “Lessons Learned” stuff to the Social Media Ninjas. There is a post coming, I’m sure in, 3…2….1. All the advice on how not to leave your site unfettered so that it can apparently be hacked by Anonymous. All the insights gained, like the fact that @BurgerKing gained 20,000 Twitter followers in the first 30 minutes after being hacked. Nope, the Blog writes itself with just a TINY selection of the unflinching Twitter stream. First, just so THEY put themselves in the clear:

THEY don’t want to be in the clear:

Best comeback from another Fast Food Chain:

From a fake Peyton Manning account:

Oops, a little bit of the obvious:

Several tweets suggested the hackers were, well:

Meat sources were questioned as being involved:

Could be that this actually ends up being a traffic-builder for Burger King:

and perhaps, even a matter for National Security:

-and-

Finally, with a name like Hamburger, the last word:

You really don’t have to write ‘em when a major gaffe happens with a poorly-managed Brand account on Twitter. You just have to read ‘em.

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Posted at 2:38 PM (2 months ago) | Permalink

01/06/2013

We saved Mona’s life over the weekend. If that’s what her name is.

We lost our four-legged friend of 15 years a few weeks back. Since then, we came to the realization that we were now probably ready to try fostering again. Our local shelter is “no-kill”, and we’ve worked with them before. Their foster program does a great job getting pets well and socialized enough to be adopted.

IMG_0616

Going in to just see if we were even ready yet to foster, Mona had different plans for us. And had us in tears, immediately.

Scrawny to the degree that her backbone and ribs were jutting out, she had just been transferred from a municipal shelter in the midlands of South Carolina the day before. According to the folks at HEART  (Help Every Animal Reach Tomorrow), 20,000 animals a year go into the municipal shelters in the area around Columbia, and 17,000 of them are euthanized. Like Mona, these animals simply have their time run out. BUT, unlike the 85% that are euthanized, Mona escaped from her time running out on Death Row to a no-kill shelter. And, to us.

IMG_0645

Facts on Mona, including if that is even her name, are few. She had been either abandoned, or taken away from an owner. Three years old is a best guess…the only sure thing, said the staff at the Humane Society, is “she’s sweet”. 

The Humane Society of the United States estimates that animal shelters care for 6-8 million dogs and cats a year, and 3-4 million are euthanized. It’s just an estimate, there is no central reporting agency for shelters.

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Perhaps you might think about making a difference in one of these lives. Donate, volunteer, foster, adopt. Or, all of the above.

You don’t have to let them see you cry.

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UPDATE: Turns out the staff at the Humane Society was spot on. Mona IS sweet. From “Out of Time” (that’s actually what her paper said), to her first trip to PetSmart, she is settling in just fine.  And passing gas like a pro. We’ll take it.

IMG_0680

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Posted at 11:03 PM (4 months ago) | Permalink

12/24/2012

Employees Rush Off For Holiday, Leave You as PR Grinch

It could happen to anyone. If you own, operate, or manage, you know that feeling you get as everybody around you rushes through the last items on the to-do list and heads out the door. Was everyone as careful as they should have been? Did they do it the way you would have done it?

Or, is an employee “learning opportunity” just around the corner?

That, and a lump of PR coal for you.

It happened last week to one of Quality Certification Alliance’s accredited suppliers, Caps Direct. It seems that a well-intentioned employee of the Breakthrough agency in Kansas City was a little too anxious to head off to Breckenridge for a ski holiday. A press release was “checked off” the to-do list and sent without receiving prior approval from their client, Sportsman Cap and Bag. Promo Marketing picked it up and published:

Fullscreen 12:24:12 10:08 AM

Harmless enough. Until you read the quote attributed to Sportsman Cap and Bag’s president:

“We hold ourselves and our manufacturers to extremely high standards,” said Dan Saferstein, Sportsman Cap & Bag president. “The QCA certification publicly recognizes our efforts. Obviously, it is a great endorsement for our company and a validation for our customers.” 

There’s the rub. QCA didn’t endorse Sportsman Cap and Bag. QCA had recently certified Caps Direct, a supplier to Sportsman Cap and Bag. QCA, an independent Not For Profit organization, extends its coveted certification to suppliers who complete multiple third-party audits and comply with the most stringent standards in the promotional product industry, including product quality and safety, supply chain security, and social and environmental responsibility.

While Sportsman Cap and Bag apparently intended to simply congratulate one of their suppliers, the release instead made it appear that the company was purposely “borrowing” the 15 months of hard work and considerable expense incurred by Caps Direct to achieve what is the toughest accreditation in the promotional product industry when it comes to delivering safe products.

QCA moved quickly on what appeared to be a violation of both trademark and published Brand Usage guidelines. A Cease and Desist order was communicated immediately. “Borrowing” the market differentiation offered by QCA certification could not be tolerated. If necessary, legal remedies could be sought based on the potential damage to all 26 certified members.

But, to their credit, Sportsman Cap and Bag, and their agency, moved quickly to cure the misstep. Susanne Ryan of Breakthrough worked with Promo Marketing, and the other trade media that had received the release, to pull it that same day. The next day, a corrected release made the approval rounds. This time, the quote read quite differently:


skitch_iphoto.export.skitch

Sportsman Cap & BagOpens in a new window, Kansas City, Mo., congratulated its manufacturing partner, Caps DirectOpens in a new window, on receiving full Quality Certification Alliance (QCAOpens in a new window) accreditation.

Caps Direct is dedicated to the quality of its products, the safety of its employees and customers, and to social and environmental safekeeping,” said Dan Saferstein, president of Sportsman Cap & Bag. “The QCA accreditation publicly recognizes these efforts.”


So, other than a currently skiing member of the Breakthrough staff looking forward to a “learning opportunity” when they get back, all is well, with no real damage done. And, if you happen to be in the market for a cap bearing the Sportsman, Valucap, Authentic, or Dri Duck brand, you also now know the record has been set straight: it is made by a supplier with the QCA certification.

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About QCA: Chicago, Illinois-based Quality Certification Alliance is an independent, accreditation organization whose mission is to elevate the standards by which industry firms that import and/or manufacture promotional products provide consistently safe, high-quality, socially compliant and environmentally conscientious merchandise. QCA Accreditation is granted to companies who complete multiple independent third-party audit and comply with stringent standards, which are based upon a combination of state and national laws, international standards and industry-accepted best practices that are recognized for their strength and effectiveness by QCA Accredited companies, the promotional products industry and end-user clients.

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Posted at 2:46 PM (4 months ago) | Permalink

12/05/2012

Is Twitter Your #Complaint Platform of Choice? While 70% of Companies Ignore, @Culvers is listening.

While some articles would have you believe that all you have to do is Tweet and have a bunch of followers to “land you in the Executive Suite”, the fact of the matter is that according to a Maritz Research study, 2/3 of companies in a survey of 1,300 Twitter complainers…ignored them.

But, of those that did hear back, a whopping 86% “liked” or “loved” hearing from the company regarding their tweeted complaint.

Which brings us to Culver’s, and me. 

Being a transplanted Midwesterner living in the South, I was thrilled to see the Wisconsin-based chain open, and bring the first Midwest-style breaded tenderloin with them.

I tried the drive-thru, where you order at the squawkbox as you would expect, and  because it is made-to-order, you then move ahead in the driveway with an order number hanging from your window. You wait to have your order brought out to you.

Given that Culver’s is the new Tenderloin In Town, I suppose an error is to be expected now and then. I got my number, but somebody else’s order:

Pretty textbook response stuff. Acknowledge the complaint, move it out of the stream. Well played, Culver’s.

So, they have me ENGAGED IN A CONVERSATION.

And, have turned the situation around to this:

The reality is that BOTH the corporate Culver’s folks AND the local owner sent me a coupon for a “make-up” basket, and I got a call from the owner, as well as an email.

Culver's

The TWO baskets were not a lot of money, but clearly made up for the incorrect order, the gas to get the replacement basket, and the frustration.

Now WHY can’t more companies do it right??? It’s NOT that hard.

Culverts

Posted at 10:17 PM (5 months ago) | Permalink

11/26/2012

There’s NO SUCH THING as a “Green” Product

I know what you’re thinking. Like many consumers, you are trying to be more responsible in your purchases. You favor post-consumer recycled goods, you know what a carbon footprint is- or, at least you choose “paper over plastic” at the market.

Image: Creative Commons, Christoph Brill

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BUT- as Jacquelyn Ottman, the author of “The New Rules of Green Marketing” points out here, every product uses resources and energy and creates waste. Fact is, the Federal Trade Commission issued new “Green Guides” in October, and the FTC warns manufacturers against making market-speak claims like “eco-friendly” or “Earth Smart”. As Ottman points out, consumers are not to be misled by images or claims of product differentiation based on unsubstantiated environmental benefit claims. She calls the images and logos, “daisies, babies or planets”.

But, if there TRULY is no such thing as a “green” product, what’s a consumer to do? More importantly, what’s a consumer products company to do?

D E Fenton, of Quality Certification Alliance (QCA), has some advice:

“Take ‘biodegradable’ for example. Unless you can prove that the entire product or package will completely break down and return to nature within one year of disposal, products cannot be promoted as degradable. Similarly, products that are recycled that cannot be demonstrated to fully degrade within a year should not be marketed as degradable. Sounds simple, but the standard makes a distinction between ‘qualified’ and ‘unqualified’ claims”. 

Fenton says that there have always been consumers strongly interested in buying products sensitive to environment concerns, but recent natural disasters like Hurricane Sandy make the focus on responsible products even higher.

QCA focuses primarily on safety in the promotional products industry, but she has more than 20 years experience in product compliance. “While having to substantiate claims will certainly be viewed by some as a painful process, the result will be more relevant, targeted and credible marketing messages. We need a better vocabulary to accurately describe product attributes and the processes required in their manufacture. Once we can do this, the term ‘green’ will be rendered irrelevant and insufficient, certainly for the customer who today is demanding ‘green’ promotional product options”.

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How about you? As a consumer, or as a business, do you feel like Kermit, “It’s NOT easy being ‘green’?”

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D E Fenton is executive director - compliance for Quality Certification Alliance (QCA), the promotional product industry’s only independent, nonprofit organization dedicated to helping companies provide safe products. With more than 20 years of compliance experience, she offers practical advice and actionable tips that help make the complex concept of compliance easier to understand so companies can implement compliance into their daily business practices. She can be reached at dfenton@qcalliance.org or visit www.qcalliance.org for more information.


Posted at 2:23 PM (5 months ago) | Permalink

09/16/2012

When @BILOSuperSaver Bonus Card….Isn’t.

BiLo

Ran to the corner grocery yesterday. Just wanted to grab a package of buns because lunch was already on the stove. Like many chains today, Bi-Lo is capturing market information in exchange for discounts on groceries. Problem is, if you’re a guy like me, you can end up with a whole keychain full of the mini-version of these things to tote in your pocket.

This chain also offers discounts on gas with select petroleum partners with a certain level of purchases. So, while I don’t keep their card on my keychain, it is always IN the glove box. That’s what gets this story of bun overpayment started- my card was INSIDE the glove box, but I was INSIDE the store.

BiLo

Now you can rescue your discount by having the cashier punch in the phone number associated with the card, IF you know it. Irene, the nice young cashier at Bi-Lo #661, punched in my first number, and then a second try, while the bagger listened in.

Irene’s response after the first number failed: “Nope”. Irene’s response to the second failed try: “Nope”. I was left with no choice but overpaying for my buns. “Don’t forget your buns”, said the bagger, knowing that I didn’t get “2/$5”.

Now, Irene is a very nice young woman, I’m sure, and likely only doing as instructed in a case like this. For a guy without a keyring full of cards, if Bi-Lo isn’t collecting my shopping habits, it apparently isn’t going to be forking over my discount.

BiLo

While I really think Irene could have let me slide and rung in a generic card to save me 99 cents, that isn’t the issue here.

Wondering what was wrong with the two phone numbers I tried, got home and checked on Bi-Lo’s corporate website where you can match your phone number against your card number. Each number delivered the same error message, “there is a different name associated with this phone number”.

That led to a phone conversation with Bi-Lo corporate. That conversation went something like this: 

BI-LO SUPERSAVER BONUS CARD HOLDER: “What name do you have for this card number?”

BI-LO: “Tell me what phone number is associated with your card.”

BI-LO SUPERSAVER BONUS CARD HOLDER: “But that’s what we’re trying to find out!!!”

Long story short, the card was in my wife’s maiden name, data entry had entered it with her last name as the first and first name as the last. No way the phone numbers could ever be matched right, no way short of a phone call, with no shortage of attitude from Bi-Lo suggesting it was OUR error, that this would have been sorted out.

In fairness, Bi-Lo offered to send us a .99 coupon, but the consumer experience had been molded already. The inconvenience of carrying the fistful of cards that develops with several retailers playing this game, the concern for what confidential information is potentially being shared in the name of marketing, served with a dash of attitude, is not going to be overcome with a .99 coupon offer.

There are lots of other ways retailers can play the card game. The Target REDCard gives 5% back on selected purchases, Costco Executive members get 1% back on most all purchases. Still, all things being equal, we have decided to shop more where the discounts are baked into the shelf price. JCPenney recently switched away from large “% off” inflated tag prices. What you see now on the item is what you pay. Same thing with auto retailers like CarMax. What you see is what you pay- no haggling.

How about you? Been thinking about shopping where what you see is what you pay? Or maybe think that Irene should have just cut me some slack…you know, to save a customer?

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Posted at 6:42 PM (8 months ago) | Permalink

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