I admit it. I am a demanding consumer. But, aren't we all? We want everything better, faster, easier, and more personalized than ever before. We want to feel like we're important to the companies we do business with. But why is it that despite every marketing milestone and breakthrough many web experiences often fail to meet our expectations?

Blame company structure or budget or legacy systems or leadership or the weather. But the more you excuse it, the worse it gets.

I've made a career out of studying, advocating for, and creating customer experiences and sharing them with clients, in columns, speeches, a book, and now this blog.

So, forget the excuses. Here you'll find a consumer perspective on what works, what doesn't, who's getting it right, and who's still in the dark.

Straight-forward. Unfiltered. Customer fanaticism.




« Thank You, Nike | Main | TJ Maxx to Own the Moment »

April 22, 2007

Kohler's Sexy Toilet Test-Drive

Kohler Have you met Jo?

She sells toilets.

Well, not just any toilets, Kohler Class Five Flushing Technology.

Kohler knows that, like most anything, seeing is believing. So Jo shows us how the toilets work. She's no subservient chicken, but Jo will flush away just about anything you tell her to. The large bag of dog food (stored in the shower???), the marbles, the bra hanging out of the hamper, the mini bottles of shampoo. Or the wastebasket--oops, Jo says that's too big.

Turned on yet?

Well if you don't think that sounds sexy, then you haven't met Jo. She stands in the middle of this bathroom in her plumber's uniform, flirting away. She'll even tell you to "stop tickling" if your mouse, um, strays from the flushables.

If you're still not intrigued by her, maybe your friends will be--according to the site, Jo wants to meet them. Check it out. See what you think. I understand the delights and temptations of viral marketing but in this instance, Kohler may have been effective at flushing away a little more than just what's lying around the bathroom.

April 22, 2007 in Branded Manufactures | Permalink | Bookmark

TrackBack

TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.typepad.com/t/trackback/191329/17866698

Listed below are links to weblogs that reference Kohler's Sexy Toilet Test-Drive:

Comments

Jo certainly makes a compelling case to go buy a new toilet -- whether you need one or not.

A site you might be interested in is: www.thebar.com. Like the Kohler site, it's persona driven. In thebar.com's case, the persona is Jack the bartender. He tells stories as he mixes drinks, you can ask him questions, and he knows who you are.

When you register he greets you by name. In fact, to prove how well he knows you Jack adds a little comment that's relevant to you. So, I live in Cincinnati. When I logged in to the site this afternoon Jack said, "Hi, John. It looks like rain in Ohio."

The site is owned by Diageo and it's an ingenious way for them to market their brands (Johnnie Walker, Smirnoff, Capt. Morgan, for example). When you register you are asked quite a few questions (too many if you ask me) about your drinking habits. Jack will also ask you to provide a fuller profile on what/how you drink. He says it's so they can customize the content for me. Maybe so. It just keeps me from visiting the site more often.

Posted by: John | Apr 25, 2007 5:06:12 PM

I recognized the bartender from thebar.com. He is Brian Gallivan, a comedian from The Second City in Chicago. Next time you are in Chicago, I would definitely check it out before he leaves.

http://secondcity.com/?id=theatres/chicago/mainstage/cast

Posted by: Matt | May 11, 2007 3:39:57 PM

Post a comment