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My 2007 Forrester Research retrospective

Looking back at 2007, I just wanted to compile a list of some of the reports I wrote at Forrester:

• 11/06, Gen Y Is Truly Different; Design Accordingly - Forrester analyzed survey responses from nearly 50,000 consumers to understand the differences between Gen Y and older generations of consumers. The analysis showed that Gen Yers are more apt to like style, fun, and technology; seek out what's hot; make purchases based on image; consume all types of digital media; and use every wireless service on their mobile phones. Each of these elements creates a different set of design requirements, such as injecting fun and social networking into the experience and developing experiences that bridge the PC and the phone.

• 10/17, The Gen Y Design Guide - Gen Y consumers are a unique breed. But what exactly makes them different from their elders? Our research unearthed nine attributes of Gen Yers' social, emotional, and mental makeup that shape their perception of interactions. To reach these young consumers, we've identified four design approaches: immediacy, Gen Y literacy, individualism, and social interactivity. To truly engage Gen Y, firms should create a Gen Y advisory board and apply Gen Y design approaches across touchpoints.

• 9/07, Uploading To Video Portals Isn't Easy - Forrester applied an abridged version of its Web Site Review methodology to the site experiences at five major video portal sites: YouTube, Yahoo! Video, Metacafe, Dailymotion, and Veoh. Our evaluation looked at how well each site supports young adults trying to upload a new video clip. Only YouTube received a passing overall score. Some of the major problems we found across the sites: poor contextual help and deficient privacy information.

• 8/08, Online Desirability: The Readiness Self-Test - Before diving into desirability-focused projects, Web site owners must first make sure that they've mastered the basics. To help execs gauge whether or not their Web site and their Web organization are ready to move to the next level, we developed two self-tests.

• 8/07, Desirable Online Experiences: Taking Web Sites Beyond Useful And Usable - Consumers are spending more and more time online, seeking out experiences that are relevant, engaging, and personal. We've explored three tactics for creating desirable online experiences: 1) providing engaging content and functionality, 2) focusing on aesthetics, and 3) incorporating elements of game design.

britney spears fuge

Amazing.

Alternate Reality Games: a few links

Here are a few links to viral alternate reality campaigns, like the Lost Experience. These fascinate me – 1 part video game design, 1 parts psychology, a dash of integrated marketing, and hope the dough will rise.

Blog post about viral campaign for the next Batman film.

Agency behind the campaign, 42 Entertainment

42 Entertainments awesome viral campaign for the game Halo

Marketers = Experience Integrators

[From Forrester's 2007 Marketing Forum]

Sylvia Reynolds faces a unique challange as Wells Fargo's CMO. "We have the opportunity to delight or disappoint our customers in moments of trust every day," she said. And there are a lot of opportunities for Wells Fargo, who receives 250 million phone calls to its call centers each year.

But how do you create delight in a world that is divided into 80+ silos, and justify organizational change when each silo is hugely successful? "Paradox is possible," said Sylvia, meaning that while the 150+ year old Wells Fargo might be financially booming, that doesn't mean it's providing a consistently strong customer experience. Her recommendations:

• Manage sideways. Learn to communicate across organizational boundaries. Marketing needs to see itself as an integrating force.

• Drive to a deep understanding of your customers. How many times have you been in a meeting when someone who wants to talk about the customer experience their personal preferences instead?

• Be single-minded and broad-minded as you build and sustain your brand. Brand is one part expression (or brand promise), two parts experience.

• Selectively embrace the power of new media and technology. Use it to solve real issues by asking "How do I use it to create a new connection with my customers?"

At the end of her talk Sylvia made a poignant remark: "How did marketing become the "make it pretty department?" Marketers need to focus on taking back customer experience as part of their role in the organization."