DM News, January 8, 2007

Don’t Let Password Forgetfulness Lose the Order

By Kenneth G. Kraetzer, CBSI, Harrison, New York

With concern that I might begin to sound like Andy Rooney or even Hershall Gordon Lewis, may I bring attention to several challenges to providing excellent on-line service through my own experiences?

It used to be easy to order things on-line, just decide what you want, type in a credit card number, and hit the purchase button.  Now it seems that most on-line marketers have listened to marketing types like me and ask new customers to go through an account opening process.  Asking customers to set up on-line accounts is sound marketing strategy but frustration can be added to the customer experience that can lose orders should be monitored.  Although direct marketing training is to always gather customer purchase data, the first priority is to complete each sale. 

1. Provide an option for customers to simply make their purchase.

Sometimes customers simply want to make a quick convenience purchase and not be bothered with a log-in request.  It can be frustrating to attempt to make a purchase and then receive a prompt, “You have an account, please log-in”.   To access the account, a user id and password is typically required.  If the customer is responding to an outbound email, frequently the user id is provided.  The challenge is how many passwords and for how long can the public be expected to remember?  

Scott Samios, of San Francisco based Offermatica, comments “Very important to monitor click through rates during the on-line checkout process, if you ask potential customers to open an account before they are committed to placing the order, they may they bail out”. 

2. Make it easy for customers to retrieve their password

It doesn’t matter how routine the purchase, needing to set up an account to buy movie tickets put me over the “Tipping Point”.  Many on-line marketers do a good job of immediately emailing back a password or question clue that can help provide access.  Sometimes customers find it easier to simply open up a new account, but doesn’t that negate all of the internet’s power to collect data enabling informed purchase recommendations and rewards to be offered?

Stamford, CT based consultant Jane Weber comments, “Keep the annoyance factors down, consumers have choices.  An on-line account or cookies frequently provides customers with benefits such as collaborative filtering of product offers, but make it real easy for them to retrieve passwords”.

3. Maintain account history by supporting password reset options.

Amazon.com sends me frequent email offers based on the several orders a year I place for business projects and teaching.  A feature of Amazon that I really like is “Wish List”, which allows me to note books of interest that might fit into a future order.  Seldom do I visit the Amazon site that I do not designate titles of interest which adds to Amazon’s ability to make relevant recommendations.  I also like to give books as gifts and find it very convenient that they keep the addresses that have been sent to previously.  These are powerful account features that support brand preference and pricing.  Not being able to quickly access an account with these benefits is a frustration.

Joe Anthony, Program Director at IBM Tivoli Integrated Identity Management comments, “Companies should consider offering challenge-response questions for password reset options to help with the forgotten password frustration.  This would extend the account registration process, but provides some additional tools in the identity theft battle.  However, make sure to only capture information that is needed, and securely protect it.  Questions that include mother's maiden name, social security number and other similar items should be avoided."  

4. Terms and Conditions may need to be presented

Having spent much career time in the financial services industry, it is certainly understandable that web marketers may want to have their Terms and Conditions reviewed and approved by new customers.  Perhaps this can be done by a “Click Through” rather than requiring an account to be opened.

Attorney David Carlin of Reed Smith LLP in New York City comments, “Many web marketers are concerned about liability, enforceability of their sales terms, fraud prevention, and copyright infringement issues, and of course any one appealing to minors must conform to requirements of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act”.

5. Accommodate multiple email addresses per account

My relationship with Amazon was going great until one recent Saturday when I tried to order from my home computer using my personal email address and could not get into my account.  The prompts asked for other email addresses I may have used but this did help, so I opened a new account based on my personal email address to place an order.  Later, I searched many Amazon web pages to find a “Click to Call” button to reach call center customer service.  The service rep could not provide access to my primary account, move past purchase history into the new account, or even accept a phone order.  Nothing seemed to work.

6. Super service will retain customers

 Despite the best efforts to assist customers through on-line means, some orders should be handled as exceptions, especially for established customers.  Although security issues can be an issue, experienced customer service reps. should be empowered to handle exception needs and requests.  This can help maintain the loyalty of frequent customers, even if like me, they have trouble remembering their passwords.  

My story does have a happy ending as I gave Amazon customer service another try and a very polite service rep found my primary account, provided access to my thirty book wish list, and worked out a new password so I could go back and use the stored data in that account.  I am so happy to not have to go back to searching bookstores.

Mr. Kraetzer is a VP at CBSI, a credit card program marketing firm located Harrison, NY and serves as an Adjunct Professor in the Direct Marketing Master’s Program at Mercy College in Dobbs Ferry, NY.  He can be reached at kkraetzer@CBSIservices.com.