The rise of trust on Social Media – Mobile Commerce

The role of social commerce content – is this the future?

Social commerce content – reviews, recommendations and beyond – has proven itself the single most powerful trustbuilder on the web. The trust dividend that makes reviews and social recommendations so successful on the web is the same force that makes them an essential part of your mobile initiatives. After all, trust is what social commerce does best.

Now it’s time to put this trusted content to work in the channel that needs it most: mobile commerce. These ten tips for mobilising your social commerce content will start you on the right path. They’re all drawn from our experience of helping major brands and businesses increase trust, conversions and profits by harnessing the power of reviews, recommendations and other user-generated content in mobile channels of shoppers rate online customer reviews as the most important influence on their decisions, above even recommendations by family and friends, and well above independent industry reviews.

The Socialisation of Customer
Experiences, RightNow, 2011 78% mobile social commerce trends
Reevoo collects and presents millions of reviews every year for our clients across retail, telecoms, travel and automotive – and we regularly analyse this rich consumer behaviour data to track theorise of mobile. Here are some highlights from our half-year analysis, to September 2011:

55%
42%
44%
27%
50%

Consumers reading reviews on mobile devices increased 55% in the last six months while overall review reading increased by only 8%. The conversion uplift when people read a review is 42% higher on mobiles than elsewhere. 44% more users accessed retailer sites via mobiles than in the previous six months. The share of reviews written on mobile devices increased by 27% in just six months. Over 10% of all the reviews we collect are now submitted via mobile devices – and that share is growing fast. Consumers on mobile devices are still half as likely to convert within one session as those using non-mobile devices. This disparity is to be expected – many mobile sessions convert offline and in-store –but the gap is narrowing.

Social content is becoming more important on the mobile channel, as users expect to see reviews, recommendations and consumer Q&A on their handsets. Reviews are even more effective on mobile; ratings and reviews drive even more impressive results on mobiles than on traditional websites. Mobile shoppers don’t always convert via mobile – but that doesn’t mean they don’tconvert: they just do it in store, by phone or on their PC.

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As we enter into another promising year I think most of us will look back at 2011 as a bit of a rollercoaster ride. The market plunged rapidly in July, only to end the year like a champ. According to new data from comScore, eCommerce spend from November through to the last week of December was up 15% compared to 2010, indicating more shoppers are hitting online stores than ever before.

Two surveys so far this year have already highlighted online trading security as a major challenge for most businesses, with eCommerce and Mobile also top of the agenda*. The challenge isn’t only in how to implement these strategies but also in how to acquire the necessary skills to ensure successful deployment and organisations are searching for more specialist providers of interim eCommerce resource to bolster teams at business critical times.

If you are weighing up options for these sorts of projects now is by far the best time to get conversations started. You may not be in a position to hire immediately but there is no harm in window shopping. That is why T-Impact is proactively speaking with eCommerce experts from a variety of backgrounds every day to ensure we can deliver resource when you need it the most. With this in mind, please find enclosed a link to our exclusive eCommerce Candidate Showcase.

We have created the UK’s first online candidate showcase covering eCommerce and this month you can view profiles for individuals including:

• eCommerce Programme Manager
• eCommerce Project Manager
• eCommerce Business Analyst
• eCommerce Solution Architect
• eCommerce Java Developer
• eCommerce UAT Manager
• Web Analytics Consultant
• eCommerce User Experience Architect

Our Commitment to You:
T-Impact is committed to recommending, wherever possible, individuals we have worked with previously. For more information on these or any other interim eCommerce resources please don’t hesitate to contact us directly on: 01865 522 882 or russ.boreham@t-impact.com.

*Retail Communications survey and an independent UK survey conducted by Iconnyx web-hosting.

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Have a Stress Free Job Hunt in 10 Steps

10.     Don’t Try to be Perfect

Cause of stress: A new job is coming your way, if you can just seal the deal.

Surpass that stress: Don’t try to be perfect.

One of the most stressful parts of job hunting is not knowing your if your answers to interview questions are exactly what the interviewer is looking for or if you are wide of the mark.

Most job-hunters will partner with agencies that specialise in their given field and will be able to open doors that otherwise they may not have known even existed. However this is only one part of what a skilful recruiter does. They also take on a lot of your stress and become your personal coach to ensure you are going to nail that interview.

By running through interview questions (see step 2) regularly you will be able to undertake conversation in a relaxed state of mind without over-thinking the situation. It’s not about being aggressive; it’s about trusting your instincts and your experience to date.

Stress-free job hunting...

It may well be that the organisation isn’t the perfect fit for you or vice versa however by taking the heat off you can concentrate on getting the variables within your control right.

Just remember that the purpose of interview questions is mainly to test your response. The answers are not really so important that they become the be all and end all. Hence just focus on the way in which you’re solving the problem. Don’t keep looking for the “right” answer.

Investment: By this point if you have followed all the steps you will have invested significantly in your future.

Reward: Your dream job without the high-blood pressure normally associated with job-hunting.

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Have a Stress Free Job Hunt in 10 Steps

9.     Trust in Those Around You

Cause of stress: With so much going on it is difficult to rely on other people to get the job done.

Surpass that stress: Job hunting is a team game; use the people around you to get ahead faster.

In times of extended stress and pressure most people revert to a default mode – survival. This is a scary place to be because anyone working in survival mode can easily take too much on and burn out quickly.

Working with people around you does two things; first and foremost, it helps to create new connections in the brain and cement your goals. Secondly, talking through issues with those around you also helps you to consider your own situation more constructively.

If you are finding it difficult to move on from your past employer because you don’t believe you will succeed in your new role, try this. Write a list of the positive aspects of your past employer and ask yourself if your previous organisation is the only company in the world that can offer you those virtues. The answer will doubtlessly be no and this will help you to move on and plan your future career with another employer.

Now make a list of how you are going to go out there and get your next job. There is nothing like a to-do list to get you chomping at the bit.

Investment: It is not always easy to be open with people and let them offer constructive advice.

Reward: You will find people are a lot more supportive if they are invested in your long-term goals.

Lack of Feedback: What Candidates Really Think!

With many employers now failing to give any permissible constructive feedback to unsuccessful candidates we have seen a sharp rise in the number of applicants who bring low expectations from the outset. This mind-set however is hugely detrimental to hiring campaigns and leads to long-term resentment from applicants.

As a professional agency recruiter acting as a hybrid internal recruitment manager my reputation and that of my clients (internal and external) can be quickly tarnished when feedback is not forth-coming. Most applicants will wait a matter of days before writing off an opportunity; meanwhile commercially savvy businesses are ensuring their brand reputation grows stronger by doing the little things well.

Feedback Should Not Be One Way

A lack of feedback is a solid warning sign for me as a professional recruiter as I know from experience that there are several reasons that a client will fail to provide feedback quickly. Candidates are not stupid and they draw their own conclusions – having asked a large number of them over the previous months, here is what people think when we fail to give them feedback:

1.       We can’t be bothered

The candidate thinks the line manager or HR manager simply cannot be bothered to write-up the interview, especially if they are having lots of interviews or juggling masses of hires at once. This leaves the candidate feeling unvalued and suspicious of our organisation.

2.       We are scared to provide feedback

Hiring managers are often over-analysed and sometimes an impression is left that we are concerned about giving negative feedback as it may lead to a debate about credentials or open the organisation up for potential prejudice claims.

3.       It wasn’t a real job

I have lost count how many times an applicant will ask me to confirm that the job is actually real before sending their profile. This is especially true if they have seen a role re-advertised or if they have been waiting for feedback for more than a couple of days. People think that the client may simply be interviewing to gain market intelligence or to even benchmark their own staff.

4.       A cheaper option or internal hire took place

Many organisations tend to undertake all recruitment at once with both internal and external processes running side by side. If there is an internal candidate it can often drag the process out longer than anticipated. Alternatively there may be another candidate the hiring manager is keen on and giving feedback can often inadvertently leak information regarding preference.

5.       We aren’t in the loop

As an HR representative, which I’m afraid to acknowledge most recruiters still are, we may not be in regular communication with the direct hiring manager. This is one of the key drivers that set limitations on the value recruiters are seen to add to the hiring process. I’m sure most of us have been subject to an applicant trying to circumvent the normal communication channels and take things into their own hands. Doesn’t end well, does it?

6.       Quite frankly we are prejudice

Often a favourite for the most disgruntled job applicant who has been on the market for a while and expected to have a job a long time ago. We (the client) may have rejected their application for non-transparent reasons such as a personal dislike for the candidate. As we are unable to identify a formal reason for rejecting them we are not giving any feedback.

7.       The piggy bank is empty

It seems innocuous enough but if the candidate assumes that the recruitment budget has been withdrawn then they see this as an underlying weakness in the company finances. In reality the hiring manager probably hasn’t provided feedback for fear of looking foolish, but which do you think the candidate will tell their network?

How far do you think a recruiter should go to get feedback for an applicant? I welcome your thoughts via the poll below.

It shouldn’t really be a debate though, should it? I believe what should be a straight forward part of a recruitment campaign has become so shrouded with vague dialogue that most prospective employees now almost expect a negative experience in the feedback process when searching for a new job.

In today’s economic climate the interview process can be a rollercoaster for most job hunters; enjoyable when things are going smoothly and positive feedback is flowing but can dip quickly and a negative feedback process (even if only consisting of a bad interview and lack of feedback) can quickly challenge a candidate’s perception of themselves and rock their confidence, impacting further subsequent interviews with other employers.

Enjoyable? Not for some.

As professional recruiters we sometimes need to hold our hands up too – it is often too easy to become desensitised to the emotional attachment that each candidate has to their own search campaign. It is difficult to handle rejection and the hiring process can often be a very personal series of events, especially if someone has their heart set on working with a company and has spent a lot of time researching and preparing for the interview process.

With the rise of social media there is now a potentially huge negative impact of not having a good feedback process. Some of you may remember the simply astonishing story of David Carroll, a Canadian Singer who had his guitar broken by United Airlines in 2009.

After refusal from United to repair his guitar, Mr Carroll wrote a song about his experience with the airline and posted it on YouTube. To date his video has received just short of a whopping eleven million views. OUCH!

I have spoken with more candidates than I care to recall who won’t even bother chasing for feedback from potential employers now because they only expect a call back if they are successful. This puts agents in a very difficult position as roles are often re-advertised – when the candidate sees this they ask for feedback and I have seen many agents prioritise protecting the image of the client above their own reputation because they are concerned about the negative image portrayed when hiring managers don’t see the value in providing detailed feedback.

I don’t believe it will be long before the impact of Social Media will start taking effect on internal hiring practices and leave you with a question that I would welcome your thoughts on:

If you are interested in reading more about this topic, why not read my follow-up blog: Lack of Feedback: What Candidates Really Think!

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Sometimes you have to give credit where it is due and this has to be by far one of the best laid out, simplest to understand and well written blog articles I have ever stumbled across explaining contractor notice periods.

Hats off to Mr Watts for a fine article. He rightly explains that the best way to stay inline with IR35 guidelines is to ensure you have the minimum level of Mutuality of Obligation between you and the client whilst ensuring lack of Direction and Control from the client and of course the Right of Substitution.

The fight to maintain a notice period by contractors is hugely damaging to an IR35 defence, not to mention your ability to control your own workload.

Read the full article by Alan Watts here.

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Have a Stress Free Job Hunt in 10 Steps

8.     Smile and Ask Questions

Cause of stress: It looks like a long-haul interview and you are being bombarded with questions from multiple interviewers.

Surpass that stress: Ask questions to give yourself breathing space.

If you pop the search phrase “why interviews are like dates” into Google you will get a somewhat alarming 270,000,000 results returned fairly swiftly. That should probably tell you quite a lot about interviews and maybe a bit about dating as well.

FYI - all seagulls talk too much!

With that in mind I will tell you one of the first things I ever learnt in recruitment – people love talking about themselves. The same is true of dating; anyone who has been out with an *ahem* ‘chatty’ individual will tell you that everyone’s favourite topic is themselves.

Knowing when to turn this to your advantage can be a real life-saver in an interview.

Firstly, asking questions takes the emphasis away from you (yes, you can breathe now). Whilst you take a moment to compose yourself you are also clocking up valuable bonus points by coming across as interested in more than just yourself.

Furthermore, showing an understanding of the organisation and people you are interviewing with is a fantastic way of opening a conversation that you are able to steer into calmer waters, e.g.:

“I love the way the company marketed the release of the new product range; what was the driver behind emphasising the social media capability?”

“I saw your LinkedIn profile and was interested to see we both worked at IBM previously; how did you find working with their global business team?”

Lastly, focus on how questions are asked and even answered. By mirroring the way in which your interviewers answer or ask questions (for example, with anecdotes or by using statistics or figures) will dramatically increase your chances of being heard. It’s also a sign of a date going well…so we hear.

Investment: You’ve already done your research and have some questions prepared, so take the time to ask them during the interview.

Reward: Get a conversation flowing that leaves a positive impression for both parties.

Normally bus journeys back from work at night are not something to blog about, but last night was a bit different. Having been comfortably tapping away on my phone, trying to find some form of entertaining app to tide me over I was suddenly thrown into what felt like a warm up show for Eastenders.

A well dressed man boarded the bus on his way to town – he was clean shaven, wearing a nicely pressed shirt and smart trousers with good shoes, all things a man around town should aim for. The resulting tsunami of Davidoff Coolwater aftershave however was simply unforgivable. I couldn’t tell if he had bathed in it or marinated himself head to toe but it proved to be unbearable in close proximity.

The conversation that arose next to me shortly after didn’t fare much better. A lady (I use the term loosely), who was clearly half cut drunk from the local boozer, picked up her phone on an otherwise silent bus and proceeded to tell the world how her husband had punched her in the face and when she retaliated the police arrested her. Here, I thought, are two things I would probably choose not to have experienced given the choice. It did get me thinking though, what else do I hear about regularly that people should feel free not to share?

Here’s a few of my most common:

1.       Bad experiences with agencies.

We’ve all had them – yes, even recruiters have had bad experiences with using agencies. Contrary to popular belief, 99% of recruitment agents have probably used a specialist recruiting firm when looking for their own career move. Some of these are good, some of these are bad. What’s that saying: “99% of recruiters give the 1% a bad name”?

It is simply the way it goes – you don’t stop watching movies or going to the theatre because of one bad performance and you shouldn’t proceed to tell every recruiter you work with how most recruiters are a complete and utter waste of space and service nothing but thin air. The impression you will leave is that they are the next on your agency bashing list. No thank you…

2.       Failed projects that weren’t your fault.

A tough call; you’ve worked on a project that didn’t work out. Nobody can apportion blame to the management team (because stakeholders and sponsors magically disappear when projects are pulled) and as the Project or Programme Manager you are left holding the buck. It’s bad, but rather than drag yourself through the mud in what is now a disparate (and sometimes desperate) attempt to clear your name, simply move on. Recruiters are much more interested in what you have achieved or learnt from ‘failings’ than who was to blame.

We've all been there...

3.       Ageism is rife and you have no trouble securing interviews.

I hate to say it, but just because you didn’t get a job or two, or three, doesn’t mean it is because of your age. It may be *ahem* because you need to seriously brush up on your interview technique. I’m not saying it doesn’t happen, we all know it does, but don’t fall into that trap where nothing is your fault.

Everyone can learn something from failure – check out my recent blog ‘Find Success in Failure’ to refocus and keep things in perspective.

I’ll leave you with a trade secret that should be common knowledge to anyone who works in a team based environment: Confidence Breeds Confidence. If you approach a new opportunity with negativity then the recruiters you are working with will do the same – they won’t buy into you and won’t believe you are going to succeed in the process. If however you come across as willing, able, enthusiastic and eager to get the right result then they will work later, harder and faster for you.

Now wouldn’t that be nice?

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Have a Stress Free Job Hunt in 10 Steps

7.     Attack from Different Angles

Cause of stress: You feel like you are repeating yourself over and over during an interview.

Surpass that stress: Achievements are fantastic at demonstrating real-life competency, but learning to support your point from different angles gives you an edge.

All good things come in threes...

You are probably already well aware of the ‘rule of three’, the principle that suggests things are more effective when delivered in threes. Three is fundamentally the smallest number of points that can form a pattern and public speakers use three-part phrases to their advantage on a daily basis. One of the most well-known iterations of this rule is the saying “location, location, location”.

Learning to repeat yourself can be highly advantageous, especially if you are armed with bullet points of your achievements in an interview.

For example:

1. I recovered £100k of revenue through renegotiation of our supplier contracts, whilst ensuring service level agreements were met and resources allocated effectively.

Can also be delivered by saying:

2. I managed the relationship with our external partners, working to understand where we could cut back on expenditure and as a result we reduced supplier costs by over 50% compared year-on-year.

Or

3. The project finished ahead of schedule and 10% under budget due to close management of third-party suppliers. That allowed us to allocate budget for quick win projects and deliver more strategic objectives across the program.

The use of numbers and figures in this way is incredibly powerful, especially when combined with the power of three. If you have a list of three (or four) achievements that you can point to and learn to address those in different ways it is much more likely that the interviewer will remember your success ahead of other candidates.

Remember Tony Blair’s mantra of “Education, Education, Education”? Okay, maybe not that one, but a little work now will definitely help you reiterate your importance on business critical projects and programmes.

Investment:  One hour to reflect on past experiences or put in a couple of calls to old colleagues.

Reward: Be the one that they remember when it comes to standing out above the crowd.