Andrew Mackie, business catalyst

More harm than good

Today I received a handwritten note from a local real estate agent informing me that she has 'a genuine buyer looking for a property in this vicinity'. I was impressed by the time and attention she had given me until I realised that it was a photocopy, made on coloured paper to appear genuine. I don't like being taken for a ride - even one that lasts only a few seconds - and most definitely will not be trusting her with the sale of my house.

On the weekend I needed to use a service station restroom but didn’t need fuel. As I was deciding what unnecessary item I would buy from the service station store in reciprocation, I encountered a sign sternly informing me that toilets were for customer use only. As I don’t pay for the use of toilets, I felt relieved of the need to reciprocate and left without buying anything at all.

Last week I visited a tea shop. Below every display of teapots and other expensive items were signs informing me that if I broke anything I must pay for it. I had assumed that this was the case before I read the sign - now I felt accused of being both careless and unwilling to take responsibility for my actions. Instead of freely touching and interacting with the beautiful teapots - a commitment/consistency step toward purchase - I stood at the same respectful distance I would give priceless Ming Dynasty china in a museum.

More harm than good.

Evil Feedback, Truth & Transparency

Feedback is crucial to the success of systems - by use of sensory cues, designers remove user uncertainty, informing them that their actions are understood by the system and correct for their task.

As with all good things, however, there are people who use feedback for evil. Consider the poker/slot/fruit machine, designed to separate fools and their money. I’ve tried one machine and found it to provide inconsistent feedback, greatly rewarding modest windfalls with dazzling sound and light displays and allowing losses to go all but unnoticed. The feedback I despised the most was the machine giving 'you've won' feedback when someone bet a dollar and 'won' fifty cents (ie. they lost fifty cents). Evil.

Another obvious contender to win evil feedback awards are the cigarette manufacturers who, in adding nicotine, allow their cigarettes to give new users a mild high - feedback that the product is beneficial to you – when the reality is quite different.

Mainstream organisations often use feedback in ways which are cunning, if not necessarily evil. Consider, for instance, the use of MSG (Monosodium Glutamate) in foods. In Malcolm Gladwell's typically insightful article, 'The Ketchup Conundrum', he points out that MSG has a taste which is pure umami, the fifth fundamental taste of the human palate and a marker of protein in foods. Manufacturers who add MSG to their foods may therefore be providing their food products with feedback that implies wholesomeness - protein - where this may not be the case.

Don’t be tempted to join these companies in provide misleading feedback in your products. Take a long term view of business, building your brand by frequently delivering on and exceeding customer expectations. This calls you to a higher standard of truth and transaperency, now valued by increasingly aware consumers.

My favourite truthful & transparent product of late is Another Bloody Water. Just reading the naked truth on the label or website is enough to make you smile, a powerful use of a Liking trigger that raises this product from a commodity to something remarkable.

Do your products, packaging & promotions provide accurate feedback, reflecting the utility that users can expect to receive from you?

How can you use truth & transparency to increase the appeal of your products?