Linda Dickerhoof

VIPdesk

I am very happy to be working for VIPdesk as the company’s Director of Marketing and Public Relations. I live in Arlington, VA and am one of a small few who can claim to be an almost-native of the Washington D.C. metro area–my family moved to the area when I was 5 years old, and I never left. I love living in the Nation’s Capital and taking advantage of everything that the city has to offer.

An Outsiders View on Customer Loyalty In the Age of Groupon

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Posted on 2012-05-22

I love group buying sites. Whether it is Groupon, Living Social, or local fave Specialicious, it doesn’t matter. I love a good deal (and, according to my husband, I love buying crap I would never dream of spending money on were it sold at regular price). I have purchased haircuts, car detailing, carpet cleaning, mini golf, dry cleaning, tattoo removal, clothes, frozen yogurt, dinners out, house painting, yoga classes, garden supplies, a photo shoot and more.

And, as a marketer, when I get a chance to speak with the business owner who chose to market their business via a group buying site I often want to find out their impression of the process. Do they like working one group buying site over another? Do they get a lot of business? Is it too much business to handle? Do they make enough money overall to make it worth the initial hit from selling their product at almost always 50% off? And, the most important question, do they get repeat business?

As it has been a...

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Customer loyalty programs…you got some ‘splaining to do

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Posted on 2012-04-10

Yesterday morning at—of all places the gas station—I had an “a-ha!” moment. My realization: Your customer loyalty program—no matter how it can help them save time or money—will not automatically cut through the “clutter” of your customer’s lives. Instead, it is necessary to look at how your product or service fits into the lives of your customer and then explain your loyalty offering in a manner that resonates with your customer. While this simple thought is indeed one of the foundations of “loyalty marketing 101”, as marketers all too often we are quite focused on the intricacies of the product or service we are marketing and forget how it really fits into the tapestry that is the lives of our customers.

The impetus for this return to the importance of “loyalty marketing 101” is this: I saved 50 cents/gallon on gas yesterday at my local Shell gas station. The reason I was able to save 50 cents/gallon on gas goes back to a trip that I made last week to the...

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TODAY’S LUXURY PURCHASE: Research, Reviews and Deals

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Posted on 2012-03-06

This blog post was originally written by Loyalty 360 and appeared on Loyalty Management Online.

It’s no surprise that the average consumer is concerned with value in the current economic environment. Interestingly, this sentiment expands to the luxury market as well. According to a recent survey from Empathica Inc., a leading provider of Customer Experience Management (CEM) solutions, 30% of luxury consumers bragged about getting a good deal on their purchase. The Empathica Consumer Insights Study[1] of 5,000 North Americans reveals how consumers research and communicate information about their luxury purchases.
There is good value and reasoning in pursuing research on the subject of luxury retail experience and the...

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Apple’s Customers Just Won’t Kick The Habit

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Posted on 2012-02-16

In full disclosure, I am a big fan of Apple. I have an iPad, a MacBook Pro, several iPods of various sized, and (most recently acquired) an iPhone. I have all of these Apple products for two reasons: first, because they are cool gadgets that make my life easier. And second, because every experience I have with Apple is a positive experience. Which is why I was surprised when I read a recent Customer Management IQ article comparing Apple to a cable company.

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Dunkin Donuts is #1!

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Posted on 2012-02-09

I found it very timely earlier this week, when I read that the news that Dunkin’ Donuts has been recognized for the sixth straight year by the Brand Keys Customer Loyalty Engagement Index as the number one in customer loyalty in the coffee category.

I say that this is timely as I made a rare trip to Dunkin Donuts over the weekend to get my husband coffee and a donut for his birthday…to be honest, I usually don’t go to Dunkin Donuts for the simple...

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The key to customer loyalty

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Posted on 2012-01-19

I often pay attention to research being conducted in the customer loyalty space, in order to stay abreast of recent developments, which is how I discovered the article “The Key to Customer Loyalty”, a piece on Forbes.com reviewing results of a recent PricewaterhouseCoopers review of the customer experience across a range of industries.

I found these five statistics gleaned via the PricewaterhouseCoopers review to be very interesting:

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Live from School of WOM in Chicago!

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Posted on 2011-05-10

WOMMA kicked off their annual Spring event, the School of WOM, on Mon May 9 at the Swissotel in Chicago. This is the second annual School of WOM that I have attended, and I am as impressed as always with the caliber of the speakers at every event–it is always a tremendous opportunity to stay on the cutting-edge of the industry as well as network with some serious thought leaders.

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Banking on Stellar Customer Service

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Posted on 2011-03-15

I recently had to pay a visit to the local branch of the bank that holds my mortgage and before I left was told that if I was eligible for free premium checking (with free checks no less), free savings, and a free safe deposit box. While a nice offer—it wasn’t enough to even tempt me to transfer my allegiance from Wachovia. The reason is simple—Wachovia may not give me a free safe deposit box or free checks, however they do provide something that is priceless—stellar customer service and support.

I have been a Wachovia customer for a little over three years because of my mother. She loves Wachovia, and convinced me that I should give them a shot—a choice which has paid off time and time again. No matter the customer service channel—in a branch or on the phone—I have always been surprised and delighted by the level of service that...

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