After a couple of examples of non-customer centric encounters, I thought it might be time to provide some positive examples. The timing is perfect as I recently was reflecting on how I went from not using Netflix to paying $8.99 per month. It didn’t happen overnight but it did happen because they made it ridiculously easy for me to business with them.
I started Netflix as do many people – with a free trial. Midway through my trial I started noticing a button on my home page. The button was my door to Netflix. No pressure, no sales pitch. They didn’t even tell me about all the other membership levels. Just a simple click to become a Netflix member at their entry level of $4.99 per month. I clicked.
Then a few month later, just as I was wishing that I could get more than one movie per month, I started noticing another little button. This one told me that I could start getting unlimited movies per month (still one at a time) starting that day. It showed the amortized price for the rest of the month and then subsequent monthly price that I’d be paying ($8.99). Again, no major pitch, I didn’t have to go to a separate screen that showed all of the other subscription options. Just a simple button. I clicked and continued this painless and seamless journey into Netflix membership.
I am currently holding steady at $8.99. But, I keep seeing the next button. I’m sure when the time is right I’ll hit it and up my membership yet again.
Ironically, I would have never signed up for Netflix at $8.99 per month. I probably wouldn’t have signed up if I didn’t get the free trial. And I certainly wouldn’t have signed up if I first had to talk with a sales person about Netflix. But, Netflix is smart. They didn’t make me do any of that. They just offered me a simple button, a little information and left the rest up to me. It was almost too easy.
Howdy Brad,
I’m glad you liked my last comment. As for Netflix, I believe they are a good company and I’ve never had any problems with them.
Additionally, it seems like they know their potential customers pretty well. Think about it. Who subscribes to Netflix? I can tell you that it is probably not the high school teenager who is only interested in getting their movie “right now.”
I’d be willing to bet that Netflix’s customer base is a little bit more mature, a little bit more “patient,” and a little bit more interested in total value(this may be changing with their online streaming though).
And so, what kind of marketing should Netflix employ to gain this type of customer’s hard earned dollar? Probably the kind that you just described is doing just fine – after all, they are still in business. Also, I know that I personally have never responded well to high pressure sales tactics (yes, I know, I like to humor myself sometimes and believe that I’m part of the aformentioned customer base).
Anyways, Netflix seems to know their customer base pretty well.
Enjoyable,
-Kyle
Yo Chief,
Thanks for this post. Wow– you have finally written about something I have experience with! I had been a NetFlix subscriber for years (for professional reasons, mind you). I like the company but ended up canceling my subscription recently because increasingly– a)I would have to wait a few weeks to get a movie in my queue, and b) about one out of every five or six dvds I would receive were damaged. Now most would say I’m a patient person, but that’s not customer- centric if you ask me.
Moreover, the “little button” sales technique you mention seems like smart marketing more than excellent customer service, no?
I predict that this company is going to go belly up in the next few years. With so many quick and easy (and increasingly, cheap) ways to get video content, I doubt that it will remain viable unless it is able to compete with on-demand venues.
Take care, SPM.
Thanks for both of your comments.
Both of you mentioned streaming and how it might impact Netflix’s future. I think there is another good example of their customer focus. I just read an article that the CEO of Netflix has been very focused on making the switch to streaming. Again, I’d argue that he is focused on where his customer’s and the industry are headed. Netflix swept Blockbuster’s market relatively easily because Blockbuster wasn’t watching the changes. They never really were able to recover. It seems Netflix learned from this as well and are pretty committed to not being scooped by someone else.
In terms of the comments about the queue and DVD issues, I wouldn’t say that’s poor customer focus. That’s just poor execution. Any organization has to be really good at their core business (whether customer focused or not). If you core business is distributing DVD’s by mail, you’d better make those DVD’s readily accessible and usable (once the customer gets them).
On the “smart marketing” question, I agree it is just smart marketing. But, I’d argue that smart marketing is understanding your customer and adapting to their needs.
After writing this post, I clicked on another little button on a different website to get their free trial. After putting in all of my information I got a message saying that I’d be contacted by somone to “fianalize” my free trial registration. What a constrast. Certainly not “smart” marketing. They want me to get their trial using their process, not mine. They want me to hear their sales pitch, etc. before giving me access. That’s not what I signed up for. I wanted a simple free trial. So, there is an example that “smart marketing” isn’t as easy or obvious as it may seem.
Hi Brad! I’m sure that you read Chris Anderson’s The Long Tail where he highlights companies like Netflix and Amazon. Seems that where Netflix is effective is that they are able to draw upon a large demographic across the country, and they track within an area what the most popular items are. Now, is that good customer service? I think so – in the day where Google knows what you are looking at and puts appropriate advertising, knowing what your customers are buying and being able to get it to them quickly is an effective tactic. And this is in Northern MI where everything takes 3-5 days to get here!
To the other reader that had scratched DVD’s – tell Netflix that. They will either send you gift cards or something else to try to make up for it. I have never received a scratched one myself, but a friend that had a couple scratched got that as a perk.