Casey Cheshire

The other week I attended the 140 conference (#140conf) in Boston. It was an excellent event run by Jeff Pulver at locations around the world.  The focus is the real time web and the implications it has on the future of how we engage and utilize technology.

In their words: “The #140conf events provide a platform for the worldwide twitter community to: listen, connect, share and engage with each other, while collectively exploring the effects of the emerging real-time internet on business.”

My favorite part of the conference was meeting many of the attendees- who all had wildly different stories but spoke the same language- @twitter, real time, now, and of course, future.  One of the people I met was Alexis (@akarlin) from Neolane (@neolane).

Neolane, in their words from the Twitter bio, “provides the only enterprise marketing software designed to manage, automate & optimize programs across channels.”  That’s a hefty mission!  I haven’t seen their stuff yet, but if Alexis Karlin is any indication as part of their crew- I’m sure they’re probably achieving it.

I was asked to speak quickly on video about what I thought a social CRM was.  Neolane is exploring the idea of bridging their mastery of email marketing with the social scene:

I’m familiar with the concept of a Social CRM thanks to another remarkable person, Margaret Donnelly (@mwdonnelly) of JitterJam (@jitterjam).  JitterJam is a quickly growing Social CRM solution that I’ve had the fortune of utilizing at my last company, Transparent Language.

The realm of social CRM is growing quickly as many vendors begin to see the importance of blending social with their other marketing efforts.  The idea is to have a single interface that allows you to manage the variety of channels that your customers are using to interact with your business.

JitterJam, from their website, “helps your consumer-facing brand or business capture relevant conversations on the real-time web and turn them into lasting and trusted customer relationships.”

Their solution is being utilized by companies large and small.  Recently I discovered that the indoor skydiving facility that I used to work at, SkyVenture New Hampshire, is using JitterJam because their Facebook activity was marked with a tiny JJ logo.  What a small world!

As social media becomes intertwined in overall marketing efforts at companies around the world, it will be fun to watch social CRM solutions evolve.  The best ones will be both easy to operate and seamless with the overall marketing campaign.

FourSquare 1.0 is doomed, but it’s not because of Facebook Locations.

For the better part of 2010 I owned Nashua, NH- well at least on FourSquare.  I was not just an early adopter, but an advocate for the location based social ‘game.’  The concept of becoming the ‘Mayor’ of a business or location by ‘Checking-In’ the most appealed to me.  It was a challenge I could win at my most frequented restaurants, shops, and even at work.

As a FourSquare advocate I explained the purpose and benefits of telling your friends where you were:

“If you’re in a coffee shop and check in, a friend of yours might be in the area, see that you checked in and join you.”

Huzzah! It’s about time your online social network joined you in real life!  Or is it? (dramatic pause)  A friend of mine, Shea Sylvia, wrote a cautionary tale on her blog about a creepy guy who saw she had checked-in to a restaurant on FourSquare.  Mr Creep actually called the restaurant asking for her- (music from TV show Lost would fit nicely here) “Ahhh!”

Okay, so FourSquare only allows your friends to see where you check-in.  Before we scold Shea for simply ‘friending’ to many creepy dudes on FourSquare, it’s important to note that you can also see who checks into locations without being their friend.

The other big controversy, this one with equal parts satire, was Rob Me Please.  The site is currently down, but their point was that people tend to ‘over-share.’  A robber could see that you’ve gone on vacation and steal your flat screen.  Technically this robber would have to know where you lived and all, but it’s not too hard to see how that could be found out.

Being a big tough guy with a relatively small flat screen, I wasn’t too concerned with the nay-sayers.  It was fun to be the Mayor of multiple locations in NH and even some highly competitive ones in Boston.

Some locations would even give you free drinks or discounts if you were the mayor.  That was the plan anyways.  Nashua certainly didn’t buy into this tech very quickly. Save for the local Starbucks (which was locked down by @KevinMic anyways), none of the 20+ locations I was the mayor of actually ever hooked me up.

Right about the same time the “Early Majority” group (from book Crossing the Chasm by Moore) of adopters started checking in around my home town, I began checking in less.  It was a slow process that had a flipping point when I stopped checking in where I work at EF Tours (@EFTours) in Cambridge.  The hotly contested building of over 850 people had about 5 regular FourSquare participants.  Maintaining your position as #1 requires consistent check-ins and frankly, is tedious.

One day I just stopped.  “Let someone else be the mayor today.”

I kept thinking about a criticism my friend and tech thought-leader, Aaron White (@AaronWhite), had made about social start-up Aadvark.  The site allows  you to ask & answer questions utilizing your social network.  Aaron’s main point of contention was that there had to be a ‘reward’ for answering questions to keep the system going.  Whether it was money, points, business referrals, or ICEEs from 7-11 some motivation was critical.  Aadvark, to their credit, replied to Aaron’s keen observation and must have added the ‘reward factor’ to their equation because they’re being acquired by Google.

It’s this same criticism that I now have of FourSquare, GoWalla, and now Facebook Places.  Why check-in? How is this going to benefit me?  Where’s the ‘reward factor?’

Good ol’ Kevin, yes the guy who is the mayor of just about every Starbucks in NH, actually swung by a PetSmart when I checked in there during a puppy training class.  He got to meet my starter-son Charlie, a wheaten terrier.  That was it though.

I’ve realized that the only thing I’ve been doing while checking in on FourSquare is missing out on the experience of real life.  It seems too, that I’m not alone.

Last week I tweeted that I was bored with FourSquare.  The responses came rolling in:

• mizkerri Yup. RT @CaseyChesh: I’m getting bored with @FourSquare – Anyone else?
• MeganLeap @CaseyChesh No, but isn’t that was Facebook Places is for?
• Private – @CaseyChesh yes. But it seems much more popular here in the west coast (I’m vacationing)
• denimroad @CaseyChesh yea its a split.. I use it because of the social networking qualities but the rest of is not fun anymore
• NathanSpencer @CaseyChesh I feel bad. I only use 4sq to let ppl know where I am and even then not much anymore.
• jennifer_el I killed my account. RT @mizkerri: Yup. RT @CaseyChesh: I’m getting bored with @FourSquare – Anyone else?
• jennifer_el @CaseyChesh Not really. I mean, I kept forgetting to check in cause I was actually busy enjoying myself, so what was the point?
• MeganLeap @CaseyChesh Maybe! However, I’m going to stick to Foursquare. I don’t need to update ALL my Facebook friends with my whereabouts.
• Private – @mizkerri @CaseyChesh Yes and no. It’s still useful and kinda fun but the novelty has worn off.
• Drantis82 @CaseyChesh yeah, I quit a few weeks ago.
• YoavShapira @CaseyChesh I quit months ago

The prosecution rests. FourSquare and it’s friends GoWalla, Facebook Places, as they’re currently offered, are doomed.  They need a reward factor for check-ins.

Will they find it? Maybe, but I see a much more interesting future for geolocation.  Checking into a location is the start, much like floppy disks were so much cooler than using index cards with holes punched on them.

We’re seeing only the tip of the location-based innovation iceberg.  Saving money more than social fun will be the driving force that helps this new tech bridge the gap from fad to phone.

I was checking in to Lingo, my local lunchery, on geolocation-social service FourSquare when lo and behold a trending location caught my eye: Heatpocalypse Boston.  Wiping away the sweat from my brow, I immediately checked-in.

Yes, 106 of us are currently baking in the Heatpocalypse Boston.  This new venue has had over 200+ unique check-ins and is a remarkably accurate description of the insanely hot weather we’ve been having in Boston lately.

This event is a funny reminder of how a common struggle- like weather, can unite us all.  If not for FourSquare, I might not have had proof that I wasn’t the only one sweltering out there.

There is a serious side too of course.  Dehydration can be dangerous so get yourself some water & drink up Boston!

In a previous post, I introduced my two Twitter lists which identified the superstars and blooper-stars of Corporate Social Media.  These follow on posts detail how a company has earned it’s place on either lists.

A recent Domino’s Pizza television commercial really impressed me.  The staff of the mega-chain acknowledged the complaints about their pizza.  After coming clean, they introduced a little wow-factor into their new pies.  Extra love on the crust, legit fresh ingredients, and more.

Great job on the campaign and great job with social media.

We ordered pizza the other night and wanted to give Domino’s a shot at it since their “makeover.” It turned out great!  Today, I sent them a message about their great job:

@CaseyChesh: @Dominos Good job with the Pizza Upgrades!

Six minutes later I received a response:

@dominos: @CaseyChesh Thanks so much!

Excellent use of Social Media and it’s more than a quick response to a compliment.    It shows that they’re actually listening.  I feel confident that if I had issues they would have easily been cleared up.  Literally, Social Media, done right, is as simple as this.

In the highly competitive pizza world, Papa John’s started making waves with taste and freshness.  It became trendy to order that over the “old expensive standard.”  Domino’s is quickly regaining the trend points with excellent use of technology (Pizza Tracker) and now, a Social Media win.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Domino’s mea culpa and America’s pizza passions (time.com)
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• Let Social Media Pick Your Pizza (searchengineguide.com)

In a previous post, I introduced my two Twitter lists which identified the superstars and blooper-stars of Corporate Social Media.  I also invited everyone to send me suggestions- and send you did!  This report, however, is of my own personal experience with Panera Bread (@PaneraBread).

This was a tough one!  I am a huge fan of Panera’s “Pick Two.”  I always get the Grilled Chicken Caesar and the bowl of Broccoli Cheddar Soup.  It’s quite literally my quintessential lunch, and I’m the Mayor (on FourSquare) of my local Panera. For those not on FourSquare, it means I go there too much!

So what happened Casey? Nothing major, nothing dirty or disgusting.  I called in on my way and got lunch to go.  Did the Pick 2- of course!  And while the soup was tasty, this is what my salad looked like:

Click here to see a larger image.  From my CSI photo with pen for measurement, you can see that the Chicken Ceasar Salad should have a small “c” for chicken as there is barely any there!  This is not routine for dining at Panera Bread.  When eating there, my salad bowl is full of goodness and yes, Chicken (capital C!).  I have however noticed that the take out salad is usually a bad value.

Normally I just put up with the salad’s issues, but this particular day the chicken was so spare (and thinly sliced) that I decided this is it! Rather than call up and complain, I had previously found & followed Panera on Twitter and decided to use Social Media to inform them.

I took a photo with my iPhone, uploaded it to TwitPic, and Tweeted:

@panerabread my chik cea salad frm Nashua makes me sad. And I’m the mayor! http://twitpic.com/x2mbs

Would you like to see the response I got?

Their response was:

What was that? You can’t read it?  I didn’t type it?  Oh, so sorry!  Here’s a graphical version:

No, they didn’t send me a t-shirt.  They didn’t respond at all.  Crickets! Chirp chirp.

I wasn’t mean, didn’t demand a refund, and actually took the time to take a PHOTO of something they should probably fix.

For their lack of response, Panera Bread earns a Social Media Fail.

Let that be a lesson to all of those responsible in Corporate Social Media.  Twitter is all about a 2 way conversation.  If you don’t want to hear from your customers- and respond back, stick to your print mailers and avoid Social Media.  Because it’s not about what you say back as much as it is about you responding at all.

This blog is a second test of Panera’s Social Media program.

Nothing would please me more to hear from them because they saw this article- which means they’re out there, and listening.  I’d be happy to take them off the fail list and post an update.  But until that time, until you see an update below these words, Panera Bread will remain in the list of companies who have failed at Corporate Social Media.