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The 24-Hour Customer
Book

The 24-Hour Customer

New Rules for Winning in a Time-Starved, Always-Connected Economy

Adrian C. Ott
HarperBusiness, 2010
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Editorial Rating

8

Qualities

  • Innovative

Recommendation

No one has enough time today. In her heavily researched book, corporate strategist Adrian C. Ott explores this issue and its implications for businesses. She proposes innovative practices that transform consumers’ increasing lack of time into a fulcrum that can boost sales. Conscious of her readers’ time limitations, Ott provides handy “Two-Minute” capsules that summarize each chapter’s main points. getAbstract recommends Ott’s timely advice and her new methodologies for increasing your sales while saving your customers time and trouble.

Summary

So Many Choices, So Little Time

Consumers face a multitude of product choices, and customer loyalty is dwindling. People suffer so many demands for their time that companies have difficulty creating advertising and marketing that holds consumers attention. Shoppers increasingly protect their precious time and tune out anything overtly commercial.

In this “media-rich, mobile, multitasking world,” companies must focus on and gain buyers’ attention and time. Consider Ty’s Beanie Babies, the extremely popular stuffed animals. Beanie Babies eventually faced competition from Ganz, the company that manufactures Webkinz, a similar menagerie with an extra incentive: online avatars of each cuddly critter. Ty had a well-known brand name, a cheaper price and attractive channels for distribution. To compete with Webkinz, Ty developed a “Beanie Babies 2.0 virtual world.” But Ty could not displace Webkinz. Parents limited their children’s online playtime for Webkinz toys, and kids had no additional time for Beanie Babies.

Marketers should worry less about “customer preference, brand recognition and product satisfaction,” and more about consumers’ available time. Assessing the...

About the Author

Corporate strategist Adrian C. Ott is founder and CEO of Exponential Edge Inc. She regularly speaks at universities and industry events and has contributed to Fast Company, Strategy & Leadership Journal and other major publications. Prior to founding Exponential Edge, she was a Hewlett-Packard executive for 15 years. She holds an MBA from Harvard Business School and a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of California, Berkeley.

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