List of References for Connected!

Here is a list of references I used while writing Connected! Very helpful and informative sources. I encourage you to take a look. The HorizonbFit program – https://members.horizonbfit.com/horizonbfitmobile#. The program is powered by Advanta Health Solutions. Alfa-Bank, with its save more when you move program. http://activity.alfabank.ru/Activity/ Plenti, the multi-retailer and cross industry loyalty program by American Express. https://www.americanexpress.com/us/credit-cards/card/plenti/ COLLOQUY: An […]

Connected! is now live!

Excited to announce from Barcelona, Spain, that my second book “Connected! How #platforms of today will become apps of tomorrow” is now live as a Kindle eBook! The paperback & hard cover versions will out through the distributors soon. I’ll also make the eBook available on Barnes & Noble & Apple in the next few weeks. For a limited time, get it […]

The Connected Company Framework

Preparing for the connected future will have a far reaching and profound impact on our organizations. We cannot not change how we work, and how we think, and still expect to be creating magic with our customers. The framework that I detail in the book “Connected!” provides a simple and immediately actionable blueprint. It consists of defining what a connected company is, […]

Customer engagement lessons from the holiday season

Let’s start with some cool statistics to set the stage for customer engagement. The numbers are hard hitting. Online sales clearly exceeded offline sales as nicely explained here. 25% more people did not stand in early morning lines. Obviously the availability of blockbuster deals is not an issue anymore. Good in a way but kind of takes some fun and thrill […]

PayPal, Visa and MasterCard Collaborate – For Now.

In a turn of events that demonstrates how rapidly the financial payments market is evolving, Visa and MasterCard have both entered into separate deals with PayPal. (ref 1 and 2 below) Image courtesy It was puzzling. Didn’t PayPal already accept both Visa and MasterCard? Yes it did, but the growth of PayPal (and now Stripe), also posed a very real risk […]

Pokemon Go beyond the initial rush?

Timing is everything. Brands and businesses worldwide were quick to cash in on the Pokemon Go launch mania. Businesses jumped in with all kinds of promotions and offers as millions of people took to the streets hunting Pokemon on their mobile phones (I did too). For the most part, the promotional tactics for customer engagement by businesses can be categorized […]

Now available: the essential ingredients for contextual, location aware retail

One the biggest challenges facing brands today is that consumers are bombarded with promotions. It’s anybody’s guess that an average shopper has tens of products they want to monitor, as they wait for the right time to buy. Add to that the fact that shoppers also have multiple wish list items – these are items they’ve seen but are not ready […]

To save your retail store, you must think beyond the store

It’s human nature. We try to protect what we have knowing fully well that change is coming. There is advice all around us from experts who say that the store can never die and how customer experience must be enhanced instead to make it a place of enjoyment and social interaction. That’s all very true, but the fact is that if […]

The missed lesson from JC Penney’s failed strategy

JC Penney is on a slow recovery after a disastrous 17 months trying to eliminate promotions, introducing upscale merchandise, and making the stores a little fancier. Consider this quote on a blog from a couple of years ago when the JCP changes were going live. This quote was from Candice J, a shopper at JC Penney. She brought out a […]

The (missing) ingredients of retail pricing

As the holiday season of 2014 starts in full swing, we see news reports of how often retailers are changing prices on their items, how price matching with online retailers is becoming more prevalent and how the effects of show-rooming will be countered. Its obvious that while retailers – both online and physical – change prices based on their internal analytics of […]

SAP declares war on the “CRM Experiment” – Or does it?

In a press release on Sep 22, SAP announced that “The CRM experiment has failed. Today’s empowered customer requires a new model for engagement”. What SAP is referring to is its launch of multiple solutions in the digital and social arena. There is no doubt that the story is compelling. Enterprise customers everywhere are looking at ways to simplify their […]

Preparation 2015 – think right-to-left and meet your goals!

2015 has arrived and I wish everyone a wonderful new year. Time really flies. I hope this year we can all catch a breath and enjoy the scenery as we whiz along. Resolutions are the “in-thing” at this time of the year. Here’s to grit and hope! However, statistics are not on our side. Not many personal resolutions will endure […]

Clienteling is not just about retail

At Dreamforce 2014 (Salesforce.com’s annual event), executives from Louis Vuitton showed how their founder carried a little black book where he captured his client interactions. This diary helped him engage in a personalized and meaningful dialog with customers. Fast forward to today and the talk of “Clienteling” is everywhere. It is possible now to make information available to the store associates which […]

The ingredients that analytics needs to create customer engagement

In a research on consumer behavior, professors at Harvard found (1) that people who bring reusable bags to a store tend to spend more on organic food, and also spend a little more on indulgent items. The construct used was of “licensing” – when you do a good deed you feel good, and you permit yourself some excesses. Through a lot of effort, […]

Dancing The Digital Tune

Competing in a Digital World