Matthew Keylock

I agree with many of the comments and observations and support the idea that done right, more information can really help. However, this requires a little more of a strategic approach than many retailers are taking and ideally informed with personalized customer details too.

On a recent restaurant visit...

Lots of great suggestions here.

Per some comments, having a clear objective is really important, but so too is working out how you plan to measure whether you are achieving the objective. Ultimately, data that is connected across media and shopping sources can allow you to truly know whether...

Marketers too often ignore the negatives. For instance a 20% response rate is rarely looked at as an 80% non-response (failure?) rate. Knowing what works and what doesn't and what people like and dislike are all really powerful insights. While I don't fully support the approach taken as I...

Getting the measures of succes right is key too. I like Ben Sprecher's guidance. I'd also be sparing with the phrase "switchers" as this can be confused with trying "switch" competing brand loyals which is not a great strategy.

While a fan of "irony," I wouldn't like to speculate on the outcome. I guess the sales and consumer loyalty numbers will tell us the impact. Somehow, even by commenting I feel I'm adding to the "buzz." How exciting!

I must be an exception as my shopping experiences in Apple stores have all been terrible ... as much as I like the store feel and the products.

I can see lots of the right ingredients for great service, but it has never come together for me. In my...

Really like and agree with Ben Sprecher's response.

A few other observations from me:
1. I see retailers (and manufacturers for that matter) trying to apply traditional marketing and research approaches to the new world of customer data. They don't seem to latch on to the fact that...

I like the concept. I suspect it wouldn't translate directly to many of the large retailers that serve a broad consumer base. I tend to view tools like this as brand-enhancing not brand-defining and many retailers still have a way to go on brand-defining!

I do think it will be copied, and I agree with many comments that it won't necessarily translate into instant success without retailers getting the rest of their proposition right.

Household level data can really unlock a clear view of whether this is working, on which products, and for...

It can't be the only answer, but it has huge benefits. It's interesting that social tools are beginning to enable consumers to leverage group-scale buying power in some areas too. This could create some interesting dynamics for the traditional supplier-retailer relationships.