DEEPER DIVES: Adding More Options Doesn't Improve Customer Experience

Good Morning,

First, as always, thank you for joining.

"People will only associate your brand with one thing." — Sean Riley, Dude Wipes

That’s a strong statement. It’s one of those things that’s true (or false) depending on the context.

It did however inspire a few of my posts last week. It aligns with my personal philosophy for retail and eCommerce that “less is more”; at least for the majority.

You should always stack what you’re great at, and get as much as you can from that position.

It’s part of what I shared on Friday when I wrote that retailers and eCommerce brands need to get more intentional about their strategy.

This isn’t just a sentiment for retailers. No matter what you are doing, being focused and deliberate puts you in a better position.

You may have noticed a started to mix it up last week. I introduced a new video format to what I share on LinkedIn. It was very intentional. To provide a different way for people to engage with what I’m putting out, and to get a better understanding of what I’m like (behind the words).

For everyone who’s new, The archive of past issues is still a work in progress. There’s about 6 weeks posted there to get into.

If there’s anyone in your network that you think would like what I write, please consider forwarding it to them. They can sign up here!

Here’s what this issue brings:

• Home Improvement is wildly popular. How you buy your stuff isn’t. Is Home Depot missing an opportunity to dominate customer experience in its market?
  

• Get a crash course in latest last mile innovation projects. These are all infrastructure, vehicles or differentiated models.
  

• Have you been considereing adding more video to connect with customers? Phones are fun but not always the best option. This powerful open source (and FREE) desktop software lets jump in with no risk.

Home Depot Is Starting To Feel Like The Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde Of Retail

Have you ever wondered how the same group of people can seem to make completely opposite decisions at the same time?

Me too.

Home Depot made a splash a couple of weeks ago with their acquisition of SRS Distribution.

SRS is a leading residential specialty trade distribution company that serves professional roofers, landscapers, and pool contractors across multiple verticals.

The acquisition connects with Home Depot’s strategic goals. They are looking to strengthen their position in the building materials industry while increasing market share with professional contractors.

The ability to provide more professional services makes Home Depot stickier for consumers. They become a more attractive “one-stop-shop” for home improvement needs, and are differentiated from competitors.

All good so far.

Then, what did they do this week?

Announce a partnership with Instacart… 🫣

On the surface, you might be able to see how this makes sense.

For the direct to consumer business, a big focus for them is enhancing their digital platforms to create a better online shopping experience.

They know that for the uninitiated, their stores and product offering can feel intimidating.

And when a market is getting tight, any reason that makes a customer uncomfortable is a fast path to “no”.

Here’s how Home Depot officially packaged the partnership:

For me, this doesn’t make sense.

Introducing a rapid delivery service using Instacart’s Big and Bulky service to improve (and grow) online sales?

When was the last time you bought a $600+ grill without even looking at it?

Ladders … ultrafast delivery for a ladder? What job is happening where there’s a realization that they forgot their 16’ A frame ladder?

So, if anything, this will be used for smaller purchases and not big ones.

But if you have consumers using the service to get other items, what type of customer experience will they receive?

Instacart Shopper’s are notorious for the amount of texts they send and substitutions they make.

When it’s bread, a substitution for Pepperidge Farm or Sara Lee doesn’t matter. But you don’t have the same leeway when it comes to building materials.

This partnership does nothing but introduce risk and disappointment. When your strategic goals are to improve customer experience, this is a strange way to go about it.

Do It Better

If I were working with Home Depot, and the goal was to improve the customer experience and get to digital dominance, here’s what I would do:

• Develop a customized Chatbot. I know that sounds “blah”, but here’s why.
  
  Home Depot is data rich. They have been in the game a long time. Having an AI assistant that can support customers on the type of renovation they are doing, help build budgets and make sure they hit the asthetic they want, is huge.
  
  Home Depot woud immediately be the consumer’s choice. And since building material suppliers sell a lot of commoditized or exclusive skus, it’s easier to keep the sale.
  
  This gives consumers more control. It helps them develop a deeper understanding of their project.
  Sales or upsell opportunities are often lost because of a knowledge gap. People get embarassed asking too many questions. No one cares about asking Gee (ChatGPT) to explain it again.
  

• Improved online search. Home Depot struggles with item relevance and suggesting like products. Work to make this easier for people to find the things they are interested in.
  
  Make it very clear which items are store stock, standard order (regular lead times) or custom orders (extended lead times).
  

• Add transparency to material costs. Home renovations and professional installations get expensive. Helping customers understand the current state of the market will give them more confidence in their decisions.
  
  Don’t believe me?
  
  Next time you are looking to make a purchase on Amazon (US or Canada), try the website CamelCamelCamel before you buy. The site will show you a history of that price since it was listed on Amazon. Your decision will be heavily influced if you see you are at the lowest price something has ever been offered (or the highest).

How your operations execute has never been more important. If you want to improve customer experience, generate more sales and increase repeat buys you have to win a consumer’s trust. The faster you can do that through clear information and transparency, the better.

Line Extensions Aren’t Innovation. Get A TLDR On How You Might Receive A Delivery In The (Near) Future

One of the reasons that I talk so much about last mile (as opposed to other parts of Supply Chain) is because of how much innovation is happening.

Speaking specifically to logistics, warehousing and transportation (a distinction versus last mile delivery) are innovating too.

A lot of what you see in those two areas is about automation - either with robots and robotics in warehoues, or self-driving trucks for first and middle mile movements.

Last mile gets its fair share of drones, but there are definitely more wild ideas looking to stick.

How Crazy Is Too Crazy?

Pipedream hit headlines recently.

Pipedream is a logistics tech company that has developed an autonomous underground delivery system. They are looking to change the way goods are transported in cities. Their underground network of delivery robots are set up to carry food, packages, groceries, and other consumer goods.

There’s another company that has been at this same idea for a while now, CargoFish. Robert (the CargoFish founder) and I bump heads from time to time on LinkedIn, but I respect his vision and his passion for the work that he is doing. They were just awarded a grant to continue developing their system.

Next, there are multiple companies working on airships to efficiently and effectively move large amounts of freight. Anuma Aerospace has made some interesting progress in PVL (partial vacuum lift) cargo ships.

These things can vertically take off and land, have unlimited range (solar powered), produce zero emissions and have the (theoretical) capacity and capability to replace cargo jets and long haul tractor trailers.

There’s a wave of eBike models hitting the market. Everything from full pedal to all electric. Operating in densely populated areas where congestion is high, they are making more deliveries every day.

Amazon and UPS are building highly customized solutions around these vehicles to create better proximity to market operational execution.

DutchX has Project Blue, which is looking to use major waterways in and around cities to perform more sustainable middle mile delivery.

Needless to say, there is a lot going on, with more ideas bubbling to the surface each day.

If You Want To Stand Out, You Have To Stand Up. It’s Never Been Easier To Produce High Quality Video

I’ve shared a few different tools. From data analytics, to GIS platforms to route optimization.

A little something different this week. Here’s a video of a new tool that’s helping me get more of my message out to the community. If you are interested in broadening your content strategy to connect with more customers - check it out.

P.S. I left the subtitles autogenerated. There are a couple of mistakes but I wanted to show everyone how accurate it was.

P.P.S. Yes, those are tacos on my shirt.

That’s it for this week. Thanks for being here.