Issue 8 ready to go

Wednesday, March 31, 2010

It’s been a baptism of fire over the last few months learning all about redline, but now I am pleased to say that Issue 8 is printed and ready to go!

Subscribers should be receiving their copy early next week and it’s packed full of great articles, and great competitions.

We take a look at some of the hot topics facing business today, including social media marketing – should you be doing it, how to do it - and exporting to China. Both of these subjects seem to be under the spotlight at the moment – the latest issue of unlimited has just landed on my desk with a special report on China, and there was a great social media marketing story recently on stuff about Giapo – a boutique ice-cream store in Auckland which has used Twitter and Facebook to great effect.

That’s not to say that social media is for everyone, so make sure you check out Issue 8 to work out if it’s something you should be looking at.

We’ve also got some great competitions coming up, including the chance to win an iPhone and a one-on-one session with a social media marketing expert.

I’d love to hear what you think about our latest issue, so once you’ve had the opportunity to look through, remember to post a comment, and we’ll use the feedback to help us plan future issues.

Never rest on your laurels

Thursday, March 25, 2010

One of the advantages of social media marketing is that it’s constantly improving our ‘connectedness’. For businesses, this can mean valuable input and feedback from customers on all manner of things – service, products, quality, new ideas - the list goes on.

Here at New Zealand Post we’re always interested to hear what customers have to say about our products and about how we could improve them. As a result of customer feedback we’ve recently removed the 70mm thickness restriction on our ParcelPost Postage Included Bags, improved the dedicated Trade Me page on our website so it’s easier to use, and introduced RedClick – an online lodgement tool for international parcel and courier items.

And just last week we changed the lodgement times for VolumePost 3 so that you can now lodge anytime from 8am to 5pm Monday to Friday.

We’re constantly looking to improve our existing products and services so if you have any ideas on how they could be improved just let us know and we’ll look into it.
I read an article recently which highlighted the difficulty faced by many small businesses. A company in America was suffering somewhat due to the recent economic downturn and so in an effort to tighten their belts they ditched their annual direct mailing budget and replaced it with email.

However, a 25% drop in orders compared to the same time last year had them quickly reconsidering their decision. Whilst initially blaming the drop on the recession, the company was surprised to start hearing from customers they never got their ‘reminder’ in the mail. A postcard mailing soon recouped the loss and made the company think again about the role of direct mail and its importance to customers. In the future the company is planning to use e-marketing to complement the direct mail piece, not replace it.

And that really is the crux of the matter – when new communications methods come along there is a temptation to throw out the old, but we need to ensure we don’t throw out the baby with the bathwater. It’s about the mix, and the new choices simply give us more potential ingredients.
Have you ever been frustrated by a website? Got lost navigating around, not been able to find the information you want?

In a country where computer ownership and usage is so high, company websites are often the first point of contact for a potential customer. When we get there we have high expectations of being able to find out exactly what we want to know. And the experience we have on that site will immediately give us an impression of that company.

Here at New Zealand Post we are working to overhaul our website and improve the customer experience it delivers. As we progress we’d love your feedback and opinions on what does and doesn’t work.

We are currently evaluating three potential concepts for our site navigation and we’d love you tell us what you think.

The evaluation takes 5 - 10 minutes during which you will be given a series of tasks to complete, there are no right or wrong answers, and all information you provide will be kept confidential.

As a thank you, each participant will go in the draw to win a $100 Prezzy Card. Just click here and give it a go.

Of course, if you have any additional comments you can post them here at redline and we will add them to the feedback.

Tempted to Twitter?

Thursday, March 4, 2010

I never thought the day would come when I would venture into the world known as Twitter. However, they’ve found my weak point, or rather Mojo coffee has. Talking to a friend the other day I found out that Mojo has been known to send out ‘Tweets’ offering cheap coffees during quiet times. Being someone who loves my coffee so much more when it comes in a disposable cup made by someone else, I decided the time had come to finally find out more.

It wasn’t as easy as I’d hoped – it seemed to involve an awful lot of text messages to and fro, but finally I had my very own Twitter account! So far I’m only following Mojo, but if you have any suggestions of others I should check out, let me know.

Thanks for your comments about great things you’ve received in the mail following last week’s blog – lollies are winging their way out to the lucky commentator as I write!

Speaking of receiving lovely things through the mail, if you know any homesick Kiwis check out our latest competition ‘Love from New Zealand’ and you could win an overseas trip when you send them an international package from your local PostShop.