Adrian Wong's Blog

Can happiness be measured? According to a 30-year-old methodology known as the “Net Promoter Score,” yes it can. Bain & Co. consultant Fred Reichheld is the one responsible for creating such brilliant system that has allowed companies like Zappos to evaluate its level of customer loyalty. While the methodology is simple in nature, it provides the user with invaluable information. The first step is to survey the customers after a sale or service is completed, asking them: “On a scale of 0 to 10, how likely is it that you would recommend our company to a friend or colleague?” Subsequently, the percentage of “Detractors” (those who gave a rating of 0 to 6) is subtracted from the percentage of “Promoters” (those who gave a rating of 9 or 10). The “Passive” responses, either 7 or 8, are disregarded. After calculations, the difference is the company’s Net Promoter Score. The idea is to gauge customer loyalty rather than customer satisfaction. Unlike satisfied customers, loyal customers are more inclined to “refer more, spend more, spend more often and are willing to provide feedback” (canadianbusiness.com). The success of a business hinges on referrals, which is a result of customer loyalty. Case in point, Zappos was bought by Amazon for almost US $1 billion not because it was another online shoe retailer, but because Zappos has the ability to make its customers so happy that they will urge other people to buy shoes from them. By using the Net Promoter Score, companies have access to the knowledge that is crucial in the development of approaches that beget the most customer loyalty and referrals. How would you rate your favorite company on a scale of 1 to 10?

http://www.canadianbusiness.com/entrepreneur/sales_marketing/article.jsp?content=20091101_30007_30007

In an attempt to brighten up its image, Gap, a San Francisco-based American clothing and accessories retailer, has changed its logo in the initial week of October.

The logo on the left is the new one while the original is on the right.

Customers are irate upon seeing the new logo’s debut. Expressions of dissatisfaction pervade social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter. Comments like “If this logo is brought into the clothing [store] I will no long[er] be shopping with the Gap. Really a bummer because 90% of my clothing has been purchased there in the last 15+ years” have prompted Gap to ask for better ideas on its Facebook page. Just as disappointing are the company’s share price, which at $18.25 is down 13 percent year-to-date, and its sales, which fell 2 percent in September. A parallel can be drawn to Coca-Cola’s New Coke/Classic Coke marketing ploy. Coca-Cola presented an atrocious and unappealing logo to get as much free media hype as they can, then revealed that due to customer feedback they are reverting to their original logo. Gap could be replicating a similar business strategy.  “It’s all part of the plan” – Joker (The Dark Knight)

http://money.cnn.com/2010/10/08/news/companies/gap_logo/index.htm

A new phenomenon has emerged in Canada’s labour market. Workers 55 years of age or older are getting employed at an increasing rate. Why?

1. Employers prefer job experience, which older workers possess. Mentoring younger employees, possessing an institutional memory, and saving the company money it could have used for training its employees attest older workers are assets
2. More members of the older population are actively seeking employment than in decades past.
3. Older workers are willing to settle for lower wages. As indicated in the article, “some clients take a pay cut of as much as 30 per cent, while others are opting for shorter-term contracts.”

Many people are staying in the workforce due to the cost of living pressures or a strong desire to continue working. The benefits an older worker offers overshadow the attributes a younger worker possesses. According to Statistics Canada, job growth has escalated in the past year among men and women 55 and older in the past year, rising 7.7 percent and 5.9 percent respectively, whereas the job creation has remained flat among middle-aged women and youth and grown slightly for men aged 25 to 54. Evidently, it is not always better to hire younger employees; older employees not only provide maturity to the workplace but also diversity, which is essential in today’s business environment.

 http://www.ctv.ca/generic/generated/static/business/article1750528.html

A brief summation of what to expect from the National Hockey League (NHL) in the upcoming years can be expressed in one simple word: Growth. From increasing its presence overseas, to improving its online image, to signing new broadcast TV deals, the NHL is determined to render its content, news, updates readily accessible to all avid hockey fans around the globe. Its plans for expansion are based on its rising popularity. With annual revenue of about $2.8 billion U.S., the league had a 66 percent growth in its advertisement and sponsorship revenue and a 4.2 percent upsurge in its season-ticket renewals from last year. NHL’s first step is to emulate its more popular fellow North American sports league, the National Football League (NFL). Like the NFL, the NHL has emphasized the league as a whole more than its teams. In other words, the NHL wants its fans to watch and enjoy its games no matter who is playing. Furthermore, the league has its own reality show on HBO allowing viewers to fathom the trials and tribulations players undergo while preparing for the 2011 game, much similar to what the NFL has done. To boost the league’s popularity, the NHL has redesigned its website (http://www.nhl.com) making it more appealing and user-friendly. Meanwhile, the league has also signed and extended deals with several companies to broadcast its riveting games, which include Comcast’s Versus, General Electric Co’s NBC, and Finland’s Elisa Corp. With the aforementioned tactics implemented, NHL’s strategy for expansion proves to be promising.

http://www.bnn.ca/News/2010/10/8/NHL-pushes-for-growth.aspx

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/09/14/business/14mott.html?_r=1

Amidst a general slowdown in economic activity, Dr Pepper Snapple has garnered much profit last year, at a record of $555 million. On May 23, workers of Mott’s, one of the many companies that Dr Pepper Snapple markets, were on strike against a $1.50-an-hour pay cut and freezing of pensions. The basis upon which the decision of aggressive cuts is made is questionable. Despite recording stellar growth, profits and executive compensations, the company believes its workers were overpaid. But according to iuf.org ( http://cms.iuf.org/?q=node/414), “…their pay is in line with the average wage in their industry and geography.” The demands of the company were unethical. In the words of Milton Friedman, “[corporate executive] has direct re­sponsibility to his employers. That responsi­bility is to conduct the business in accordance with their desires, which generally will be to make as much money as possible while con­forming to the basic rules of the society, both those embodied in law and those embodied in ethical custom.” Corporate executives of Dr Pepper Snapple have not adhered to their social responsibility. While CEO Larry Young claims that the company’s actions are in the best interests of all stakeholders, the fact of the matter is that workers are being exploited. After a 16-week strike, luckily, a settlement has been reached on Monday, September 13^th.

http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/news/article.aspx?feed=AP&date=20100920&id=12066970

In the words of a rising Canadian artist Drake, “Point the biggest skeptic out, I’ll make him a believer.”  These lyrics epitomize Apple and its confidence in its relatively new product, iPad. Despite technical gurus and media pundits deeming the iPad as nothing more than an oversized iPhone, the product proves that there is much more than meets the eye. Given that the iPad will most likely not replace netbooks or desktop in the business world, it is still a unique, revolutionary gadget transcending the limits of preceding tablet computers (i.e. Windows Tablet XP edition). With three million units sold 80 days since its initial release, Apple has exemplified good marketing – leading with benefits and supporting with features. The iPad provides convenience and mobility. “The iPad isn’t too heavy if I support it on a bag when standing,” says columnist Peter Svensson of Associated Press as he recalls using it to read literature while taking the busy New York subway. Because of its touch interface, the product is easy to use and saves space since it does not require a keyboard or mouse. While HP and Windows are complicating the experience, Apple is going against the grain to simplify it. Just as iPods have slowly rendered CD’s and CD players less popular, iPads are replacing printouts, newspaper, magazine and books. Currently, Amazon.com Inc’s Kindle e-reader is the only respectable competitor, allowing its users to download books wirelessly and being more readable in bright light compared to the iPad. Sadly, Kindle e-reader is not as versatile, serving the sole purpose of displaying literature for users to read. Its touch screen technology is not as sensitive and, most importantly, it cannot scroll or zoom, doing itself a disservice as such feature is useful when reading fine print. iPad does not only possess the aforementioned features that Kindle e-reader lack but gives users the freedom to purchase and read Kindle books. Capitalizing on the hype generated from the iPhone, it is no wonder Apple continues to garner more success becoming ubiquitous.