etailology

Here’s the deal. I know who I am. It’s you people — you etailers — that have the problem. And it is your problem, not mine, so please take responsibility for it…

I wish you’d take my word for it. … but since you can’t, please be sensible about how you verify my identity. Here’s five rules that I — the almighty consumer — would really prefer you adopt.

1. Remember Me. Sounds easy, right, but many etailers still spend hours debating whether they should drop a cookie or not. (Correction, many etailers IT department zealots still debate this — the marketing and merchandising folks would prefer to lojack each customer.) Trust me. I, like other consumers, will block cookies if I want. Don’t worry about me… instead, prepopulate my login, would ya?
2. Use my email address as my login. It’s my online identity. It’s the thing I remember most easily, and you need it anyway to communicate to me, so why not?
3. Register me quick. Complete my profile later. When I’m in the mood to buy, I’m IN THE MOOD to buy. So put as few hurdles between me and the checkout as possible. Then… follow up. Have me complete a bit of profile each week when I come back…. and for heaven’s sake, would you segment your email list so I can receive what I’m interested in?
4. I’m more than a coupon monger. Market to me intelligently. Yes, everyone loves a discount — but I’m more than that as a consumer. Show me something about the product I didn’t know. Give me sizing advice. Suggest uses. And unless you really want me shopping deals all the time, then make sure I understand and appreciate your brand — and realize that the brand isn’t what comes through on the price tag… it’s what comes through in my experiences in your store.
5. You don’t know me at all. And please don’t imagine you can imagine who I am — instead, do the research. Invite me in for a chat. Look at the digital fingerprints I leave on your site. And don’t brush that information off — it’s the most important stuff you can know about me.

So that’s a start. Remember, you’ve got my email address.

–Customer