So SnapCash is really an identity play for ads and revenue for SnapChat and an ecosystem play for large mobile base for Square. Got it.
— Bradley Leimer (@leimer) November 18, 2014
Making Sense:
On the one hand we move through physical spaces like drones, by force of habit; on the other, we are becoming quite good at spotting differences that create an advantage for us. So far, it is a skill we are using mostly when shopping.
- How to Stop Annoying Behaviors and Handle Offensive People. Adam Grant: Dan Pink, is on a mission [...]. He’s the host of a new show on National Geographic called Crowd Control, which uses social science to change some of the most irritating behaviors that we see in everyday life. [...] The show is really entertaining, can deepen your understanding of behavior, and will arm you with some techniques you can use in your lives.
- Price Transparency On Steroids: The End Game. RSR Research: Key differentiators will continue to be rapid fulfillment, solid in-stock positions, and excellent customer service. Ask yourself, will you be able to fill your customer delivery promises this year? If not, the price just isn’t going to matter. In fact, customer service and inventory reliability might even be more important that the actual products sold. Why do I say that? It’s clear that brands continue to investigate their relations with consumers beyond just “low price alternative.”
Making Do:
Two industries that have (so far) resisted a more comprehensive retooling for digital are now facing a more serious approach to how people pay for things and get healthy.
- Snapcash is a Window into What Users Don’t Want Snapchat to Know. Bank Innovation: Snapchat isn’t processing any payments — it’s letting Square do that. Square Cash, which launched in October 2013, has received praise for its clean design and ease of use, but didn’t exactly shake up the world with its standalone app. However, Square is one of millennials’ most trusted brands and the one they would most like to see start a retail bank, which is the kind of gravitas Snapchat, with its history of hacks and general air of cheerful disregard for the serious [...] can surely use.
- A digital prescription for pharma companies. McKinsey: The US healthcare industry is undergoing a major transformation as healthcare reform encourages consumers to play a far more active decision-making role. Yet despite this traditionally business-to-business industry moving quickly to a business-to-consumer model, companies have been slow to join the digital movement.
Making It:
When people can talk back and that conversation is public, well it does change dynamics -- the degree of the shift required is up to each organization to think through. Talk is cheap, though, if we want to build a good Web.
- For better or worse, this is how the media works now. Matt Ingram: In the end, I think having CEOs and VCs and even presidents and armies tweeting or blogging is good, in the sense that more information is almost always good — even if the source of that information is trying to spin public opinion, or avoid making real decisions that will have actual impact.
- It's Hard to Build a Good Web. Anil Dash: Here’s what we made: the Good Web Bundle. I hope you’ll give it a look, and tell a few friends about it, and maybe buy one for yourself and gift the codes to a loved one for the holidays. But even if all it does it gets you to think about the web as a place that has lots of big box stores and not nearly enough Main Street shops, that’d be wonderful.
+++
Valeria is an experienced listener. She designs service and product experiences to help businesses rediscover the value of promises and its effect on relationships and culture. She is also frequent speaker at conferences and companies on a variety of topics. Book her to speak here.