UnSelling: The New Customer Experience

Chapter 36What Happens When You Pivot and No One Notices?

When we look at pulse, each of the pulse points are opportunities. Sometimes, the interaction is so good or bad that the line changes direction, or pivots. We define pivot as a point of decision where an individual decides to make a choice that redefines his or her relationship with a brand—for better or for worse.

Companies can also pivot. For a company, these are the changes in direction that become brand defining. Moving in a new direction can be a scary thing. It can also be what defines the brands that survive and those that don't.

When I was a teenager, in every convenience store you were sure to find two things: more teenagers and a pile of AutoTrader magazines on AutoTrader-branded racks. When a car meant freedom and you only had a limited budget, the newspaper pages were filled with possibilities. If you wanted to sell a car, you'd have to get your ad and picture in before noon Saturday and then it would appear in the weekly magazine.

So when I was speaking in Atlanta at AutoTrader's conference and met the senior vice president at Cox AutoTrader.com, Ian MacDonald, the first thing I said to him was how I loved the magazine.

“Yeah, we stopped printing those. They haven't been on shelves for years.”

Well, that was awkward. He went on to tell me that not only had the print division of AutoTrader.com closed down but that, amazingly, no one had even noticed.

Ian MacDonald, who joined AutoTrader.com 11 years ago after ...