How to Create Meaningful Omni-channel Experiences: 5 Examples of Brands Getting It Right by Rachel Serpa

Worldwide smartphone users are expected to total 1.75 billion this year (eMarketer), with 56% of US adults boasting smartphone ownership (Pew). At this point, mobile-friendly sites are hardly just a perk or pleasant surprise – they’re a status quo expectation – yet many brands’ concept of “omni-channel” is still restricted to “responsive design.”

The ever expanding list of social platforms, communication mediums and connected devices presents a huge opportunity for businesses not to just replicate user experiences across channels, but to reach consumers in a variety of new and engaging ways. Today’s leading brands are taking this a step further by connecting these cross-channel experiences in a way that builds customer relationships and lifetime value.

Here are 5 examples of brands creating omni-channel experiences with purpose and effective outcome.

24 Hour Fitness

24 Hour Fitness created an online and in-club customer referral program that enables existing members to share a free 3-day gym pass directly with their social networks. Referees receive guest passes and additional information and promotions via email, while 24 Hour Fitness rewards top referrers by sending them personalized gift packages, effectively uniting social, email and real-world mediums.

The Effect: A significant increase in consumer trust and acquisition via member referrals, as well as a bump in customer loyalty and lifetime value.

Capcom

Video game giant Capcom promoted the relaunch of its Devil May Cry (DmC) franchise with an exclusive mobile app featuring gamification challenges that spanned both virtual and real-world channels. After logging in socially to the DmC app, users could participate in missions to scan various real-world objects, posted on the DmC website each week. Participants that completed the assigned missions scored virtual points, which could be redeemed inside the video game.

The Effect: A 500% increase in unique visits to the Devil May Cry mobile app by highly engaged users that logged in an average of over 6 times. These loyal users translated into over $1 million in game sales in the month following the app’s launch.

White Castle

Users can login to White Castle’s Craver Nation network using their social identities to start posting their best White Castle related photos and videos via desktop, mobile, or directly from Facebook. Cravers can earn badges and points for participating in and winning various real-world challenges, like cook offs and costume contests. Challenge submission photos are voted on by other Cravers, and can be seamlessly shared across Twitter, Facebook, Google+ and Pinterest.

The Effect: An interactive community that keeps Cravers coming back for more by putting the White Castle brand at the center of real-life activities and building personal relationships on-the-go, in real-time.

Victoria’s Secret

Victoria’s Secret Angel Card rewards program enables shoppers to share and earn points by shopping both in-store and online. Members receive personalized email alerts regarding special offers and promotions, get free gifts and birthday presents, and gain access to special events and exclusive discounts. Card holders also receive extra rewards for connecting their social profiles to their accounts.

The Effect: A personalized customer experience that recognizes and fosters brand advocacy while driving repeat purchases.

KLM

By connecting mobile, social and in-air – that’s right, in-air – experiences, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines has built a totally unique omni-channel journey for flyers. When users login to the Meet and Seat mobile app using their existing social network identities, they are able to see the social details and seating assignments of other participating passengers on their flight. From there, they are able to select a seat next to the passenger with the most intriguing social profile.

The Effect: A totally social, memorable flying experience that not only makes KLM stand out, but fosters a connected community of flyers that choose to get on board time and again.

Each of these examples showcases the power of omni-channel experiences to create an end-to-end customer journey that drives customer acquisition, engagement and retention across touchpoints. Are you ready to go beyond responsive design? For more information on how to create meaningful omni-channel user experiences, download our free white paper, 3 Ways to Create an Effective Omni-channel Strategy.

Source: http://blog.gigya.com/how-to-create-meaningful-omni-channel-experiences-5-examples-of-brands-getting-it-right/

5 Open Source Programs That Help Your Business Succeed by Kevin Purdy

5 Open Source Programs That Help Your Business Succeed

TRENDSKevin Purdy

DEC20

If you're reading this, you're using and experiencing open source software.

The server this page is hosted on, the content management system, the JavaScript doing all the fancy stuff on the page, the design framework—you can check for yourself. And that goes double if you’re reading this on a Mac, an iPhone or iPad, or an Android device, all of which have open source software at their core.

The question then is not whether free and open source software can work, or has worked, at any scale. It’s what particular open source programs can work for what you do every day. If you’re wondering whether there are apps you can try to explore, or software that’s free, functional, and minded by a big community of watchful eyes, we have a small starter pack to share with you.

First, a word of advice: Start small. Don’t try to replace Microsoft Office or your entire payroll scheme all at once. Start by installing these apps on your own system, and then maybe recommending them to a few coworkers. If they work for you and your team, then see about bringing  up open source to the IT team for consideration.

SugarCRM: Customer and marketing management software, but not from big firms with restrictive licenses. There are multiple pricing tiers, but scroll to the bottom to find the free trial and entirely free community edition.

WordPress: WordPress powers nearly one-fifth of the web, and is the backbone for some massive and complex sites – WorkIntelligent.ly being just one example. But WordPress can also power even a single section of your site with its own blog, or be used as an internal progress and issue-tracking blog, as they do at WordPress itself to maintain their 100 percent mobile workforce. (Free, server-based, with apps for many devices)

VLC media player: This one is a no-brainer. It’s a media-playing app that can play almost any file out there, no matter what weird format your client sent over or country that DVD is from. Ever have a media file with an extension you don’t recognize? Chances are VLC can play it. Keep it handy, and it will save the day. (Free download forWindows/Mac/mobile/other)

7-Zip: Like VLC, 7-Zip can save you in a pinch, while making you wonder why the professional and expensive versions of this utility aren’t nearly as good. ZIP files, RAR files, and other weird compression schemes are all easily handled by 7-Zip. Oh, and it archives pretty well, too. (Free download for Windows/Mac/mobile/other)

Thunderbird: Having worked at many offices, I know the many ways that different email clients can excel at making email difficult to manage. Thunderbird has a familiar and adjustable three-pane look, is easy to set up, and does a lot of smart things to make email less painful, such as offering to send large attachments to online storage services. (Free download for Windows/Mac/mobile/other)

Are you using open source software in your day-to-day work? Anything that’s helped you be more productive? Let us know about it in the comments below.

Source: http://www.workintelligent.ly/technology/trends/5-open-source-programs-help-you-succeed/?utm_campaign=ContentSyndication&utm_medium=NativeAd&utm_source=OutBrain&utm_content=&utm_term=5+open+source+programs

5 Reasons Why Your Company Should Create a Business App by Sarah Schmid

5 Reasons Why Your Company Should Create a Business App

MOBILESarah Schmid

APR07

Creating unique apps catered to your business is the latest buzz. But does it really make sense for your product and will you see the return on your investment? Get the 411 on why mobile apps are a great way to connect to your customers.

Order dinner. Hail a cab. Check your symptoms for that nagging cold. Thanks to apps developed by a range of businesses, all of these can be done from the smartphone in your pocket. Consumers have become accustomed to the convenience and immediacy of mobile apps, but 45 percent of businesses still don’t have a mobile app or a mobile-optimized website. If yours is among them, there’s no time like the present to start developing a mobile app of your own.

If you’re still on the fence about developing your own app, consider these five reasons why it pays for businesses to go mobile.

1. IT DRIVES SALES

When your customers can initiate and complete a purchase while they wait in line at the grocery store, you’ve just accomplished one of the hardest tasks in marketing: meeting your customers where they are. Rather than requiring them to sit in front of a computer in order to buy your stuff, an m-commerce app allows customers to make quick purchases from wherever they are. This is precisely why a 2013 comScore study showed that 55 percent of consumers’ time spent with online retail happened on a mobile device, versus just 45 percent on computers.

2. MOBILE BUSINESS APPS DELIVER QUICKER CUSTOMER SUPPORT

No matter how cheerful your on-hold music may be, your customers don’t want to listen to it while waiting for the next available agent. Instead, they’d rather get answers and information as quickly and efficiently as possible. That’s why services like Hipmob have made such a splash. Hipmob enables your business to provide in-app customer support and answers to FAQs. The result is a better experience for your customers and lower call volumes for your customer support staff.

3. BUSINESS APPS INCREASE CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT

It’s hardly a surprise that customers who can access your products or services easily are more likely to become repeat customers. But an app doesn’t have to have an m-commerce component to drive customer engagement. By providing valuable content relative to your business—whether that means recipes, travel advice, or tips for repairing a radiator—an app can deliver lasting value to your customers and help them see your brand as a trusted authority in your field. And with features like push notifications that chime updates from your customers’ pockets and purses, keeping your audience engaged has never been easier.

4. A GREAT BUSINESS APP CAN ELEVATE YOUR BRAND

Having an app can be a huge differentiator for your company, especially if you’re in a non-digital field. If, say, you’re a plumbing contractor, an app that allows homeowners to get a quick quote can lift your brand far above local competitors. Plus, having an app can help your company land new customers who are searching for answers or services online.

5. A BUSINESS APP IS A CHANCE TO GET TO KNOW YOUR CUSTOMERS

If you’re still relying on uniques and pageviews to gauge your business’s digital performance, you’re missing out on all the good stuff. While normal web-based analytics allow you to see where and when your customers engage with your brand, mobile analytics gives you a next-level look at your customers’ behavior. By going beyond the desktop experience, you can see how your customers interact with your brand in the wild. This allows you to tailor your services, plan promotions, and deliver unexpected value to your customers wherever they may be.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Of course, not all businesses need an app. The costs of developing a mobile app can range from a few thousand to hundreds of thousands of dollars. If you’re unable to deliver value to your customers, this expense is hardly justifiable. You’ll need to have the ability to generate and publish content on a regular basis, as well as the IT resources to support the app on the back end.

Only you can determine if your business will benefit from a mobile app. But if the items above apply to your business—or if you’d like them to—an app may be the solution you’ve been looking for.

What has been your experience with creating business apps? Was it worth the investment? We welcome comments below.

Source: http://www.workintelligent.ly/technology/mobile/2014-4-7-create-business-apps/