Best Buy's Physical and Virtual Customer Immersion - Part Two

Hello!


I hope you're well and (emotionally) preparing for a pre Spring weekend.  We finally had some sun yesterday and the city is starting to wake up from its slumber and stretch.


Speaking of stretch, yesterday we talked about Best Buy's expansion into developing a mobile platform for its customers -- really a Best Buy branded service portal.  We also looked at a video from a recent National Retail Federation conference.  I've embedded it again as a refresher.

So let's chat about the implications for a spell.  I think we should be in agreement that this is a massive opportunity for Best Buy, the customer and, truly, all of retail.  I've come up with a few more that I think are basic conversation starters in no particular order (and not at all exhaustive):


Pic and Pay: As I mentioned previously (here), ScanLife allows you to snap a photo of an item and complete the transaction - all on your phone.  It's a conceivable application for Best Buy: take pictures of the TV you want, get information sent to your phone, complete your purchase, receive a bar code confirmation on your phone which can be scanned on your way out -- all the while bypassing lines.


Gentle Nudge: An interesting extension would be suggestions for the customer while completing a mobile purchase.  So, if you're buying a TV, you could be gently nudged to purchase new cable or a new game for your Wii.  Best Buy could also sign affiliate partners.  To stick with the TV example, either during or just after the transaction, perhaps the customer can be presented with a Crate & Barrel offer to purchase a new TV stand.  Or if it's around dinner time, maybe local restaurants can offer discount with Best Buy mobile purchase.


Subliminal Messages: There was a hint at the end about how they could package their technology suite and sell it as a product/service to other models or possibly other retail partners thereby creating an additional revenue stream.  Best Buy B2B!


Segmented Smartphones: Because this is Best Buy, it's conceivable they can overlay their retail segmentation we discussed yesterday to tailor the offers better.  So, if you're a Mr. Storefront, you could be offered Geek Squad business services bundled with the purchase of a new laptop.  If you're a Buzz, maybe you'd be offered wireless devices to accompany that same laptop.  It's all in the spirit of personalized service to cement the relationship between the customer and Best Buy.  Bundled with "Subliminal Messages" and this becomes a very powerful tool for affiliate retail marketing partnerships.


Location Based: That same post I mentioned in "Pic and Play" also covered Socialight and Foursquare, which are nifty little location based apps.  One wonders if you can "unlock" Best Buy loyalty badges and "just because" offers (maybe by segment, even) for frequent visits just like Foursquare rewards someone for frequent check ins.  That would be a great "surprise and delight" tactic.  Focus Group of One: Yesterday, I was pleasantly surprised by my Super User badge that came with a frozen yogurt offer.   And, again, their application would be exportable.


GPS: Similarly, Cisco Systems has Mobile Concierge.  As well designed and well lit the stores are, I do admit sometimes getting a bit turned around and it would be great for my phone to help.  Hey, I'm human.  If I'm walking by an affinity category, "Gentle Nudge" could apply here, too!


Location Based - Part Deux: I listened to a webinar today presented by Nicole Nunn Walker, VP of Marketing at Metrosplash.  A neat feature of FuelLinks, their fuel loyalty program, is a "heads up" to the customer that he/she is near a favorite gas station and spells out the savings per gallon (based on their loyalty level).  This could be customizable for Best Buy's purposes.  Based on location, a customer can get a text with offers based on transaction history with a pointer to the closest Best Buy store.


Buyer Rejoice: Since Best Buy wants to be a branded product/service portal, a potential application is consumers creating a global wish list housed on the Best Buy portal but open to any product out there.  Better put, some sort of centralized RedLaser concept that tracks all prices all the time would be kind of neat.  Send a message and let me complete the transaction on my phone based on stored credit card data.

Again, this list isn't exhaustible and frankly, I don't know if any of these are good ideas.  The point in putting this list here for your review is to show you that the four minute video stimulates the imagination which is exactly the direction in which Best Buy is open and willing to go.  It is embracing a role beyond traditional retailer in its drive to always stay relevant regardless of the sales channel the customer chooses. 

That's it for me...  I hope you have a great rest of the day!  Send me your thoughts when you've a moment!


Until Next Time,


Parissa Behnia
parissa321@gmail.com
www.linkedin.com/in/behnia

Best Buy's Physical and Virtual Customer Immersion

Happy Wednesday!


If you're like many people, you feel a certain panic if you find yourself without your smartphone.  You might even feel naked or otherwise vulnerable if you're not able to reach for your phone every few minutes just to see if you've received another email or a text message confirming your dinner plans.  If you're a millennial, you may even be sleeping with your phone gently cradled in your hands and using the vibrations as a sleep aid.  It's your address book, your mp3 player, your Facebook channel and, oh yeah, your phone...  Let's face it, it's your life.


Don't deny it.  Your friends at Best Buy don't which is why I was really fascinated by this video that they recently presented at National Retail Federation's Retail Innovation and Marketing Conference.  It's over four minutes but worth the viewing!

Whew!  Lot of stuff in there to absorb and I imagine it will take me a bit of time to truly decipher all of the different possibilities.  Here's what I do know: Best Buy is gunning to be as indispensable as your phone is these days no matter how, when, where, why and whom you engage with them.  It has made a conscious shift from a company that sells TVs, DVDs and iPods (among other things) to a company that designs and provides solutions for customers almost like a Best Buy branded portal for products and services (bundled or not) or even affiliated businesses.  That, my friends, is HUGE.


As you know, customer centricity is not a new thing for Best Buy - this is the latest evolution in their personalized service and is a means to stay relevant and one step ahead of its competition.  Both of which current (e.g. Sears) and the dearly departed (R.I.P. Circuit City) competition haven't discovered.  A few years ago, Best Buy identified its main customer segments: Barry is an affluent techie, Jill is a soccer mom, Buzz loves gadgets and may grow up to be a Barry, Ray is a price sensitive family man and Mr. Storefront owns a small business.  Best Buy employees are trained to identify these segments and tailor the sales presentation based on the segment profile and some Best Buy stores provide product and are designed with the predominant segment in mind (based on zip code).  


Using its in store customer experience and segmentation expertise, Best Buy is slowly transforming into a service provider with its feet on the ground and its head in the clouds.  Given the ever changing consumer and evolving mobile landscape, Best Buy wants its customers to steer the relationship on their terms:  

• They decide how they will receive product and information: either through the traditional retail model, as an online browser/shopper or in store shopping with the smartphone almost like a handheld information kiosk.  
• They also get to decide how to get tech tips via Best Buy's Twelpforce on Twitter.  
• In the future, customers will decide how to conduct the transactions as well.  If you heard Mark Williams, their President of Financial Services, you noted that mobile will be the ways items will be purchased as card plastic becomes obsolete.  
• New iPhone apps are in development and Best Buy wants the end users to contribute to IdeaX to identify the features and benefits.
• And, as I mentioned in this earlier post, Best Buy's user forums remove the entity from the equation and lets the advocates do the selling for them -- truly putting the social in social media marketing.

In other words, Best Buy is trying to manage the customer experience three dimensionally such that it becomes the de facto place to go when consumers need products, services or just some basic questions asked.  By staying curious and hungry, it stays one step ahead.

In the next post, we will talk about current and future implications (and maybe applications) of this radical shift  in doing business.  In the meantime, please do share with me your thoughts!

Best,

Parissa Behnia

parissa321@gmail.com

www.linkedin.com/in/behnia