E-commerce To infinity

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E-commerceTo infinity beyond?

• Kieron Smith

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Agenda

1. Growth crisis
2. Why is this happening
3. Why is the customer never happy?
4. The GAME case
5. What can we do about this?

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Progress of the Internet
Phase 1 Phase 2 Phase 3 Phase 4
Phase 5
Dotcom Burst Steady Integration
?
People accessing and buying
Growth/Crisis in ?
Crisis of service
Growth in inclusion
Crisis of red tape
Growth in consolidation / collaboration
Crisis of control
Growth through direction
Crisis of trust/confidence
Growth through creativity
Mature
Young 1994 --- 1999 --- 2004 ---
2006
After Greiner 1972
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Growing pains as move from mass service to
service shops
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Why the customer is never happy

• The famous 1967 Stanley Milgram study which
  showed there were at most six degrees of
  separation between any two people in America
• Despite the increase in population the number
  has now fallen to 4.6
• Customers bad experiences spread faster than ever
  before

The Economist 21 01 06
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Bombarded, cynical informed
We now have a far more informed but far more
cynical consumer. Siemon Scamell-Katz Average
of 3,500 daily messages 99 have no impact
The Guardian 19 11 05
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Expose your guts

• or the customers will
• Hack-Your-Own
• Our experience of the informed customer on a
  mission

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Service measure

1. Tangibles site, usability, abandonment
2. Reliability pick, pack dispatch.
3. Responsiveness customer contact, proactive
   communication.
4. Assurance ability to inspire trust confidence.
5. Empathy caring, individualised attention
   provided to customers.

After Parasuraman et al 1994
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Conclusion

• Many retailers now face a crisis of service due
  to exceptional growth.
• The challenge is to move to a service shop
  high customisation low labour.
• The networked customer is cynical and bombarded
  target well and work with them or they will work
  around you.
• Measure monitor service levels to take us to
  the next phase of growth.