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Hello. I'm Stacey Pilcher. I am a strategic marketer and brand consultant who is passionate about helping my clients build their businesses.
I started my business in 1999 and believe inspiration comes from within - and also within the Grand Canyon - that's why you can find me hiking there every year.
I started this blog to help my clients think about new opportunities. How can I help you?
Posts Tagged ‘consumer experience’
A comeback from almost certain death
Friday, May 4th, 2012
In February 2000 the company was riding on top of a wave. By November 2008 the stock had fallen 82%. Death seemed imminent. Was it mismanagement? Increased competition? According to the New York Times, “. . .it filled its stores with stuff that people didn’t want.”
How is it that such a successful company loses its relevance? The constant evolution of a concept, especially in fashion, is the number one rule for long-term success. This requires a keen focus on the consumer to predict trends and stay fresh. Brand foundations do not change, but how they are manifested does.
In this case, the brand “. . .offers inventive American style. Clean, classic clothing and accessories help customers express their individual sense of style.” In the 1990s this defined the khaki culture, but by the early 2000s consumers had moved on. Today the company is rethinking its products to help it deliver on its promise to offer “inventive American style”. And its stock is up nearly 54% so far this year.
The Gap realized that its brand is not a logo, but the experience and products it delivers to consumers.
Tags: brand strategy, consumer experience
Posted in 2012, Strategy | No Comments »
Test Your Brand
Monday, January 31st, 2011
Have you measured the status and effectiveness of your company’s brand lately? Answer “Yes” to any of the following questions, and you need to consider new strategies and tactics to keep your brand fresh, relevant and profitable in today’s marketplace.
1. Do you depend on a loyal customer base with few new customers acquired each year?
2. Has your brand identity been consistent over the years, yet never updated?
3. Is social media a mystery to your company?
4. Is consolidation changing the face of your competitive environment?
5. Have distribution points changed for your products?
6. Do you feel that your product is slowly being usurped by new technology or offerings?
7. Have your consumers changed consumption patterns since the recession?
8. Do you have one “star” product outpacing all others?
Over the next few months, I will be discussing these topics and providing insights and suggestions on building brand and market share. Stay tuned.
Tags: brand building, consumer experience, consumer perception, marketing
Posted in 2011, Strategy | No Comments »
What is Marketing?
Thursday, September 16th, 2010
I had a client ask me that question the other day and it got me thinking that there are probably a lot of people in business that really do not understand the depth of marketing. This particular client described marketing as an occasional ad and his sponsorship presence. Hmmm. . . of course marketing includes advertising and sponsorships, but what about. . .
. . . the customer service department?
. . . the billing department?
. . . the purchase experience off and online?
. . . the product design?
. . . packaging?
. . . product delivery?
. . . the web site?
. . . the facebook page?
. . . the product performance?
. . . the twitter account?
. . . communications after the sale?
. . . the competition?
. . . what people are saying off and online?
. . . how the company treats its employees?
. . . the company’s personality?
. . . the physical office or store?
Tags: advertising, brand strategy, consumer experience
Posted in 2010 | No Comments »
Walk in another’s shoes.
Monday, June 7th, 2010
Today, I was reading a review in The Wall Street Journal of the new book Delivering Happiness by Tony Hsieh, the 36-year old founder and chief executive of Zappos. As the title indicates,he attributes some of the success of Zappos on the company’s approach to customer service, or “delivering happiness.” I’d like to read more.
One of the best things to come out of social media is teaching companies the impact customer service has on a brand. Social media has made our transactions transparent. Those companies that embrace social media and customer complaints, as well as compliments, are finding that honesty truly does build brand equity. Even consumers know that not everything is perfect all of the time.
So take a walk in your customers’ shoes, who knows, after ten years, you might be able to sell your company for $1.2 billion, just like Mr. Hsieh.
Tags: brand building, consumer experience, social media
Posted in 2010, Strategy | No Comments »
Monkey see, monkey do. How the consumer experience drives brand equity.
Thursday, June 3rd, 2010
In the early 1990s, while studying the brain activity of monkeys, neuroscientists discovered specific neurons would fire in a part of the brain’s frontal lobe with specific activities. What they also found was the same neurons fired in the monkey who was just watching the action. Mirror neurons let the observer experience at least part of the action taking place.
More recently in Daniel Goleman’s book Social Intelligence he says our brain is designed to make connections. If someone is angry with us, we have a similar reaction. If someone smiles at us, we become happier. “The fact that we can trigger any emotion at all in someone else–or they in us–testifies to the powerful mechanism by which one person’s feelings spread to another.”
Human actions and emotions register in others and in a profound way provide the power to change those that observe. How companies look, act and communicate with customers, then, has a great effect on their brand equity. An empathetic voice, a smiling face, and confident actions will go a long way in building trust.
This research reminds me how important it is in marketing to paint a picture and tell a story to customers – to make an emotional connection. And how easy a positive connection could be lost with a negative interaction.
Tags: brand development, brand equity, consumer experience, marketing
Posted in 2010 | No Comments »
How to Say “Good Luck” in Japanese?
Monday, April 26th, 2010
Culture has a great influence on how people communicate and process information. The Japanese culture is clearly steeped in tea. So how much of a challenge has it been to sell coffee in this country? In the 1970s Nestlé first asked this question. They hired Dr. Clotaire Rapaille, a market researcher and psychologist to help them determine the answer. What Dr. Rapaille found was that the Japanese had no connection or “imprint” to coffee. Without personal or cultural reference to the product, any attempts by Nestlé to sell to adults would likely fail.
So, Nestlé began by introducing coffee flavors in candy for children, to create an “imprint” so later in life these individuals would have a positive emotional response to the idea of coffee. In 1970, coffee sales in Japan were nearly non-existent; today Japan is the world’s third largest importer of coffee.
Speaking of culture, candy and Nestlé, the BBC reported the popularity of the KitKat bar among Japanese college students at exam time. Was it the green tea or cherry blossom flavor that boosted sales? Not entirely. It seems that the name KitKat is close to a Japanese expression “kitto katsu” meaning “I hope you will win” and used by students to wish each other luck before finals.
KitKat bars not only taste good, but are a good luck charm. What a perfect blend of culture, communication, and candy! Delicious.
Tags: consumer experience, consumer perception, marketing
Posted in 2010 | No Comments »
Can Tools Change Trends?
Monday, March 1st, 2010
What sounds better? Music played from a CD on a high fidelity stereo or music played through an MP3 player or iPod? According to research conducted at Stanford University by Professor Jonathan Berger, today’s iPod generation prefers the sound of digital music. For the past eight years students have participated in an experiment where they rated a variety of audio formats while listening to the same song. He found that in fact, over time, there was an increase in preference for the music played digitally. Their experience changed their perception.
In 1913 the Italian psychologist Mario Ponzo created this image and illusion, where the top line appears to be longer. 100 years ago, he thought it was because how our brain interpreted the space on either side of the lower line. However, new theories on how the brain works suggest the perception is due to our experience. In this case, our experience tells us that the vertical lines are receding, like train tracks, meaning that the horizontal line at the top is longer. Not the case – but it is our perception.
These findings remind me that all consumers have past experiences that help define their reactions and decisions. Knowing just where they are coming from will help us move them in a new direction. The iPod generation believes that digital music is great, not to mention they can carry thousands of songs in a device the size of a match book. Oh, do you remember those? Matchbooks – a great advertising tool from the 1940s.
Tags: consumer experience, consumer perception, marketing trends
Posted in 2010 | No Comments »
Two Heads are Better than One – Marketing Planning
Monday, April 28th, 2008
According to research conducted by two Princeton economists, two heads are better than one. Experiments were conducted between groups and individuals solving the same problems. They found groups outperformed the individuals. Groups were also not any slower in solving the problems.
John Morgan, assistant professor of economics and public affairs at Princeton said. “Our results suggest that even in complex environments, groups are not paralyzed by indecision. Moreover, groups use the data they have on hand to make timely — and better — decisions.”
A professor at Northwestern University challenged an engineering class to tell him how a cat is like a refrigerator. Panic ensued as the engineers froze. Then the professor had the students get into groups of three. Remarkably, the minds began to thaw. The results: “They purr.” “They smell.” “They are hard to get rid of.”
In approaching creativity in marketing, groups are essential. And the more diverse the better.
Mix it up.
What could a mechanic, a lawyer, a database expert, homeowner, graphic designer, salesman, contractor, internet geek, and psychologist have in common? Together, they make up a team created to understand how homeowners look for, interact with, and purchase new home appliances. Individually, each brings an area of expertise. As a team they define an experience.
Groups in marketing are the best way to find simple ideas that make a huge difference in a consumer experience. When the consumer experience is well defined and filled with relevant insights, the marketing is also more relevant. And better equipped to impact the bottom line.
In mythology, Janus symbolized change and transition – being able to see into the past and ahead to the future. In business, putting more heads together will not foretell the future, but two heads are still better than one.
Tags: consumer experience, creativity, marketing
Posted in Brand Adages | No Comments »