I Love Banana Milkshakes! But Please Don't Send Me Emails About Them
By John Andrews
I’m mad at them.
A couple weeks ago, the chicken sammy kings sent me an email about their new banana creme milkshake. Don’t get me wrong, I love milkshakes of all shapes and sizes. Again that carb thing gets in the way, but occasionally, I’m all in!
The problem is I get 500+ emails a day. Additionally, I’ve never given Chik-fil-a an email address so they got it through a partner (which I also try to limit or avoid opting in) they really shouldn’t have been emailing me. As I begin to think about this email I really began to get angry about it. I bet some well-intentioned marketer who sent me this also gets 500+ emails a day and was recently complaining to a co-worker over some waffle fries about how much time they spend dealing with email. As a marketer, I think we all should have to wear a WWID (what would I do) bracelet.
Each day I drive by a Chick-fil-a store, probably see an ad on TV or a billboard with one of their lovable cows. I also see their signage and promotional materials in-store and share word of mouth communications with friends. Do I really need an email too? Does anyone? A CNN report released yesterday said that email usage among those ages 25 and under dropped 60% in the past year. That’s an incredible rate of change that speaks volume about the usefulness of the medium.
It’s time to really give some thought to marketing tactics. Emerging media tools have opened up so many new ways to engage customers but most usage to date seems to be traditional push tactics using new tools. We all love the idea of people “liking” us but there is probably more value in connecting with the people who are indifferent or don’t like us that much. How many brands would have greater dislikes if there was a dislike button?
Want to grow your business? Find those folks who “dislike” you and fix their problems. They will reward you by telling everyone, naturally. Sort of like buying them a virtual banana milkshake.
John Andrews, Collective Bias Founder/CEO, has over 14 years experience with leading brands like Sara Lee, Eastman Kodak Digital, Newell Rubbermaid, and of course Walmart, where he is perhaps best known for the creation of its award winning social media platform Elevenmoms, an industry-leading online customer advocate program.
admin
cbAdmin
jaythornton
lizlongcrier
Monica
John Andrews
Brad
Courtney Velasquez
Mailena
Jerra Nalley
Ted Rubin
Mel Lockcuff
Sandy Jenney
KateBerg
Alex
Casey
StewartCox
Kathleen
laurenrodkin
Rebecca E. Parsons
tylerbradley
heidiclark
Marc Shalom
jonb
zachjones
Joan Cook
Annette McCormick
cbblog
Isra Hashmi
Brian Carreno
Melissa Garcia
kimj
Chris
Amy Callahan
darielacruz
Lori Pace
brandijeter
Deshaun Artis
kristenbrown
Christy
marytarczynski
kristinwheeler
melissagarcia
aardvark.antiques.ga@gmail.com
yosu.cadilla@gmail.com
cbguest
priscillayagoudaef@hotmail.com
ashantialas@hotmail.com
katherinyovino@hotmail.com
darlenadunkentell@hotmail.com
eunadowdell@hotmail.com
lauraleeserabia@hotmail.com
AMEN !!!!
This was one the best articles I have read all week!
Yes save the time writing the email because it’ll hit the trash quicker than you can say goodbye!
YES! YES! YES!!
mmm… banana milkshake.
We’re getting a Chik Fil A sometime this year, supposedly. My main peeve with them is that I would invariably want a chicken sandwich on a Sunday.
You’re right, though, brands would be wise to listen to the bad as well as the good.
I totally agree. I actually opt-in to their emails – don’t even remember why I did (maybe I didn’t) – but I keep expecting to find something valuable. You know, like a coupon! But I never do. Their emails are always just junk. Information that I’ll find when I go in for the sandwich I love. When I get there, I’m certain I would see their signs about their new (insert item here) and decide at that time if I want to buy it or not.
Think I’ll unsubscribe until they get their marketing act together and start making their emails worth my time. Thanks!