What do Joe the Plumber and Customers Have in Common?
I feel bad for Joe the Plumber. The REAL Joe the Plumber, not the group of low and middle-class Americans he symbolically represents. Well I feel sorry for many of them too, but that's another blog. Joe went from being an anonymous guy to the day's major news story in a matter of hours. Most people say they can't imagine how that feels, but the way they're treated by businesses can make them feel that way sometimes.
I was reading an article on data mining in the financial industry in the New York Times yesterday and it made me think of what happened to Joe, and how easy it is to access information that most people think is private.
Most people think their personal information is personal. They're weary of online scams that ask for their social security number, keep close track of their credit cards, and think twice before giving their name to a telemarketer. What many don't realize is that there are files on them readily available, and that at a moment's notice they could be Joe the Plumber'ed and have every detail of their life put under a magnifying glass.
A few years ago I worked at a national news network, and occasionally I'd get a call from a producer who needed information on a list of people for a story they were working on. I'd put in a call to our research department, giving them names, birthdates, addresses, phone numbers, or anything else we had on the subjects. Within an hour or two I'd get a full report on the person. It included credit history, partial social security, all past and present addresses and phone numbers, spouse, siblings, children, employment history, taxes owed, property and vehicles owned, closest neighbors and their addresses and phone numbers, co-workers and their addresses and phone numbers, and arrest records.
Now, many businesses have access to the same databases used to compile those reports. That shouldn't be a surprise to anyone involved in marketing. But it might be a surprise to your customers if you choose to use that information to send them targeted offers. In the NYT story, banks and credit card companies were trying to lure people with poor credit histories into taking on more debt. Given the mess the banks have gotten themselves into, I don't think anyone today would defend that as a good idea.
Use customer data wisely. The banks in the story went wrong when they said in the offer "we know you have bad credit, here's your offer." Joe the Plumber didn't appreciate the world knowing that he had a tax lien against his house, or that his real name isn't even Joe. Customers won't appreciate you micro-targeting them via mail, phone, or even email if you use information they believed was private. Segmented marketing is one thing, but telling customers how you've grouped them can give them an uneasy feeling. Don't make them feel like they've been Joe the Plumber'ed.
Related Entries
- Privacy versus Savings and Convenience
- Rummaging Through the Brand Bone Yard
- Guest Blogger Justin Honaman: The Relationship Imperative -- Measure, Learn, Act...Quickly!
Jeremy,
You make a great point. It's very important for companies to ask themselves what data they're obtaining from -- and using on -- their customers, and, more importantly, why. Just because some customers will naively provide all kinds of personal information, doesn't mean it's a good practice for businesses to ask for and use it. We certainly have been reminded recently that unscrupulous business practices have a way of backfiring!
With the threat of identity theft looming so large, I am amazed at the personal information companies request of their customers. Recently I was trying out a new gym, and they asked for my driver's license number when I signed in. My father is a (now retired) computer programmer who from my childhood years has impressed upon me the danger of giving away personal data. So I reasoned with them that they really didn't need my DL # for my one-time workout. They almost wouldn't let me use their facilities ("company policy", I kept being told), but they finally succumbed. Then, this past weekend I had to rent 20 chairs for a party, and the company asked for my DL #. They said that's how they identify all of their customers in their database! Once again, I refused to give it, and in this case they firmly refused to rent to me. Eventually, unbeknownst to them, I gave them a fake DL # and proceeded with my rental. This is one possible backlash from companies collecting and using personal information in inappropriate ways: consumers are going to wise up and give even more incorrect data than they already do. Then where will marketers be?