#retention #wom #community #stickiness #ecommerce
[tweetmeme]We are constantly learning about how we want to gain people’s attention through better SEO strategies or by participating in “the” conversation though 140 character impressions, but there is another half: the sticky strategy. In a recent study, we listened to Massively Multiplayer Online (MMO) game players talk about their recent change from one game to our client’s game. From this study, we learned about how this particular group of people coped with changes in game-play-mechanics and culture as well as three factors that went into making it a successful transition. Those three factors were providing a place for people to get started, to become advanced users and a place to show off. We’ll also discuss why those factors are important for any business, especially in the e-commerce world.
Why did our participants, like one whom I shall name Andrew, make the switch? The most common reason was because Andrew’s sister made the recommendation. The recommendation and trust from the type of relationship they shared was enough of a reason to try something different. As Neilsen reports, friends and family members largely influence a shopper’s decision making process. We see the same thing happening here with Andrew and his sister. Andrew is a young man who lives independently and enjoys spending his free time playing MMO games and watching movies through Netflix. Like all the other participants, he invests a great deal of time with the characters he has developed within the MMO game making them a very important part of his life. His characters embodies a lot of the values he believes in from aesthetics to game-play style to accomplishments earned. Similarly, it’s the same way any other person might invest their time and effort in customizing their new car or decorating the interior of their living room. Andrew is also close to family and has periodic phone conversations with them. One evening, after the usual conversation with his sister about the kids and work, they changed subjects to our client’s game that she has been playing that also interested Andrew. Without too much convincing, Andrew was sold on the game and soon found himself trying it out. Because he trusted his sister’s point of view, and also the fact that they shared similar preferences in games, the transition happened swiftly. Not only was he getting a significant recommendation, he knew that going into it, his sister would be there for help. [1]
The interesting part is that there is comfort in knowing that Andrew’s sister will be there for support and company. The question for you is, do your new customers feel the same when they make the switch?
So how can your e-commerce business create and foster an emotional solace when trying something new? Well after interviewing more participants, it comes down to the company to provide an official “forum.” I say forum with the meaning of a place where people can gather and exchange information freely. It’s your e-commerce site that provides the destination for this type of interaction and support to flourish. There will be arterial sites and channels that will exist, but a primary home base is the very core where the rest of the community stems from. We’ve talked about using blogs, Twitter accounts and Facebook pages to be part of your arsenal of communication channels and means to check the pulse of your living business. The benefits of having a home base though, is that your customers will have an official place that they can go to for relevant information whether it’s related to new promotions, new support information or product announcements from a reliable, authoritative source. It also shows that the company cares about their community and provides them a place for community members to interact with each other. This type of direct interaction let’s people share their experiences and drives excitement and participation. Even if you don’t have a fully fledged system in place that facilitates a community, there are resources out there that can help. Get Satisfaction, a web based support and community service allow businesses, both small, medium and large to field complaints and questions about products or services that can be integrated into your own domain. It even allows you as a company to designate influential customers as ambassadors of your brand who represent your company and help out for the sake of being helpful. But enough of a plug, there is a way and there are options.
There were three factors observed that made the switch easier for our participants: A place for people getting started, a place for people to become advanced users and finally a place to show off.
A place for people to get started
Otherwise known as the “Out-of-Box-Experience,” new or advanced players need help getting started with a new game. Even though the game is the same genre – lots of people playing at once together in an immersive environment – the mechanics will be different and require some degree of retraining. A place to “get started” can provide information that covers the whole range of experience from identifying what each control does, what labels mean and the different skills that are available to your player. For players who were playing our client’s game, they had access to a lot of this information online. Players like Andrew benefited greatly from getting started guides when we talked about how they got started. There was a lot of fear for new players that the advanced players would brush them off as completely useless and incapable of doing their own research. It’s a significant emotional barrier. But having “getting started” guides made the transition easier and allowed both new and advanced players to proceed with less abrasion. The information can also go so far as to describe best use cases or best practices during game play. Finally, having this information available in bit sized pieces makes it much more approachable as well compared to thick user manuals that is hard to search or thumb through.
A place for people to become advanced users
Otherwise known as “tips and tricks,” the community of existing players may have experienced unique ways of applying your character outside of the typical scenarios initially imagined. Unlike “getting started,” these tips and tricks might introduce the community to new ways of playing the game never previously imagined. Use cases emerged from exploits in the game served as a form of inspiration on how to evolve your product. Additionally, this place can also host more fluid discussions that further the development of these new and emerging behaviors. It becomes a much more organic and relevant form of communication much different than getting started guides. For instance, getting started information will be less likely to change in terms of content because the game is what it is (for the most part), but new character skill combinations and team dynamics might bring out a tip that others want to apply as well. Products and services in general all have use cases and you can’t deny the fact that some of your customers will use your product in ways you didn’t imagine. Allow your customers to share their insights and allow them to help each other become savvier.
A place to show off
Our participants weren’t necessarily proud of the game they purchased, instead it was more about the characters and adventures they experience from playing it. Products and services, like games, are only tools that help people serve a much more meaningful part of their life. While some might idolize their shiny new gadget, it’s the function it carries that makes using it worth while. Our participants had a community as an audience to celebrate their character’s accomplishments. This encouragement made the experience much more rewarding and compelling to continue playing. Even as an audience member themselves, celebrating other’s successes was just as gratifying. These intrinsic rewards are much harder to facilitate compared to extrinsic rewards like monetary benefits. Being able to create that kind of experience is a greater differentiator and one that is harder to replicate. Doing this can make your business much stickier.
How was all this accomplished? Well this community was completely hosted by two web technologies that are widely available today: discussion forums and wikis. These are technologies that have existed for quite some time now and can be easily deployed through your own web hosting provider. While they may not be next generation technologies, they are tools that facilitate next generation behaviors in consumption and peer to peer interactivity on the Web. The great thing about these tools is that they enable knowledgeable people within the community to provide most of the content. As long as these channels are moderated, it’s possible to “crowd source” the community to enable a semi-self sustaining system. Getting started guides can easily be generated through wikis, while discussion forums promote new tips and tricks which can then be added to the wiki as well. Finally, forums also serve as a way to allow people to share their stories and have people celebrate their achievements through comments, similar stories and even questions. Especially for veteran players, their comments have far more impact and weight than those who are just getting started. The time they have invested in the game affords them a level of respect and authority that is compelling for many players. As a result, tying in an identity system like profiles, or in game player names in this example, will be an important component towards their experience.
This community which not only supports new players (or customers) but also encourages continued use makes switching less dramatic. For Andrew, trying out the game and finding a flourishing community that provided resources to him at his finger tips made the switch harmless and almost enjoyable in some ways. He now finds himself helping others and even offered to help me get started if I decided to start playing. That’s the level of stickiness that I’m talking about. While e-commerce companies continue to strategize news ways to increase their SEO and improve their search capabilities, the human aspect which rewards participation and continued use will make a meaningful impact that factor greatly in buying decisions, retention and repeat customers. People begin to form a much larger source for recommendations that extend well beyond close friends and family given a healthy community.
Businesses are getting closer to people’s lives and people are demanding that business respect the way they choose to live it. Our client has recognized that there’s a significant amount of activity outside the actual playing time in game that’s equally as important and has applied the use of certain communication tools to successfully accommodate their behaviors. You can do the same too.
[1] Now, I’d also like to point out that in this case, it’s easier to try a new product when it’s “free.” The game we were evaluating had a one time, upfront cost, whereas the competitors were requiring a monthly subscription fee. That difference allowed people to try out the game without facing additional costs like they had experienced before, which was very appealing. Also, it’s easier for people to try something different when it doesn’t impact critical business operations. Our participants were evaluating games, an entertainment product, so we didn’t have any additional insights about operations. However, if you’re selling goods or services that may have significant ramifications, then you know better than anyone else the additional challenges you face with convincing new customers.