The MarCom Strategist: A Free B2B Marketing E-Newsletter

May, 2008
Published by Dianna Huff
Volume 8, Number 05

Welcome!

It's May, it's warm, and the trees are in bloom. Happy Spring to those of you in the Northern Hemisphere. Woo hoo!

No Plug, Toxic Fumes, & Surcharges -- Oh My!

By Dianna Huff

In his Keynote at the recent New England Direct Marketing Association (NEDMA) conference, Paul Gillin, author of The New Influencers, talked about the effects of social media. One stat that stood out for me: 78% of consumers trust each other more than they trust advertising -- which is why they read blogs, forums and the like.

Along the same line, the Boston Globe recently ran an article about how Bank of America lets customers post feedback to the Website -- whether it's good, bad, or downright ugly.

As Tara Burke, spokeswoman for B of A said in the Globe article, people talk to each other in the offline world about products, services, and companies, so why not let them do it in the online world?

I agree with Gillin and Burke -- especially when a company "gets it," as is the case with Xobni -- the company that has developed a fabulous new Outlook plugin. (If you don't have it, get it.) They use their blog to solicit feedback and actually listen to what their users have to say.

However, negative online feedback is partly what dissuaded my husband and me from buying a new range (or stove) from Sears. Our 40-year old Caloric literally died a few weeks ago, which meant that I immediately went online to the big box retailers to compare prices and brands.

We found one in our price range at Sears -- and while looking at the ranges displayed, I noticed that you could read or write a review about each product. So I started reading the reviews.

Most people raved about the stove we had picked out, but many of the reviewers kept mentioning that the oven had a burn-in period that produced fumes that were quite toxic. One reviewer wrote something to the effect of, "Open all the windows and remove the pets and kids! It's toxic! But love the stove."

Yikes!

Upon further research, I learned that stoves these days do not come with plugs. Say what? On top of that, Sears requires that you pay $20 for the plug AND an additional $198 to install the plug.

No plug, toxic fumes, and surcharges. I was underwhelmed.

Of course, I found information via Google on how to install a stove plug. My husband took one look at that and said, "Go to that appliance store in town and see what they have."

I did and found an even better stove within our budget. For an additional $25 they installed the stove, and the plug, and hauled away the old stove to boot. The oven didn't require a burn-in period, either. I put it to use immediately.

Companies need to respond to the feedback they receive

Being able to post feedback about a company's products and services is great -- for customers and companies alike. However, if companies ask for information, they need to monitor feedback and take action if necessary -- for example, by posting a reply to negative reviews.

Instead of letting customers post about "toxic fumes" with regard to its Kenmore ranges, Sears could have written a reply explaining why the unit required a burn-in or that they were aware of the problem and were fixing it.

Instead, they lost a sale -- and maybe others, too.

What do you think? Do you read customer reviews? Do you base purchases on them? Send your feedback to me at info@dhcommuncations.com.

Feedback from Last Issue Blows Out My Inbox

Wow! Many of you had quite *a lot* to say about whether or not roofing contractors should have a Website. Some of you thought roofing companies definitely need one while others felt that the phone directory and referrals were still the way to go.

You can read the original article and the responses at my blog -- and post your response, too. Thanks to everyone who sent in a reply!

How Has Your Job Changed in the Last Decade?

As part of my upcoming 10-year anniversary, I've asked people to send me stories about how their jobs have changed in the last ten years. Jean Gogolin, of WordWright Corporate Communications & Speechwriting Workshops, writes,

My first job was at a suburban Boston weekly, where like you we typed our copy, sent it out for typesetting, and when it came back, cut long strips of it with an Exacto knife to fit the layout. I remember occasionally having to cut single lines of copy to fit.

Today I'm a freelance speechwriter. An even more dramatic change for me is the way I now do research. In the bad old days I had to go to the Boston Public Library, the Kirstein Business Branch, or the BU Library (none of which had open stacks), request what I wanted from a research librarian, hope it was the right thing, and if it wasn't, start again -- a hideous process that often took days.

When the day arrived that I could find virtually anything I wanted online, I thought I'd died and gone to heaven.

Do you have a story you'd like to share? Send it to me at info@dhcommunications.com.

DH Communications Clients in the News

Although I don't officially offer PR services, I do write press releases and contact publications on behalf of clients when asked to do so. So I'm really pleased to see the following clients featured either in print, online, or both:

• Smart Products, Inc. -- Smart Products, which manufactures way cool miniature valves, had DH Communications develop a case study showcasing how one of the company's check valves helped Energy Prosthetics take its new prosthetic device to market. The case study is appearing in the May 2008 issue of Medical Products Manufacturing News. A photo of the valve graces the cover of European Medical Device Manufacturer.
• Suzi and Fred Dow -- The RVing couple's exploits were featured in USA Today; the story was then picked up by ABC News.
• Dr. Helaine Smith -- Dr. Smith's new e-book, Healthy Mouth, Healthy Sex!, has been featured in a number of blogs including David Meerman Scott's Web Ink Now, About.Com/Sexuality, Running a Hospital, Dental Tourism, and PR Wireless. Anita Campbell, author of the American Express Open Forum blog, did a nice write up of Dr. Smith's YouTube videos.

Congratulations Sharon, Suzi and Fred, and Helaine! You are awesome clients!

To learn more about my B2B marketing communications services, visit my Website at www.dhcommunications.com, call 603-382-8093 or send email to: info@dhcommunications.com.

Keep up with the latest MarCom news at The MarCom Writer Blog.