Sothebyshomes co m Customer Experience Strategy The

Sothebyshomes. co m Customer Experience Strategy

The New Sothebyshomes. com Customer Experience After reviewing Existing site and documentation Weblogs Company branding Limited, high-level conversations with management High level budgets This document will Propose a vision for a best-in-breed Sothebyshomes. com Provide a roadmap for execution Describe future work products and deliverables Outline challenges and next steps 2 Web Strategy

Vision 3 Web Strategy

Vision A best-in-breed Sothebyshomes. com should become: A brand driver that communicates key values and attributes A customer relationship life-cycle hub that delivers user-focused functionality Brand Driver Relationship Lifecycle z Hub Learning Lab A learning lab that enables the collection of business intelligence 4 Web Strategy

Vision Communicate key values and attributes The website should translate key brand values and attributes through its design, copy, information architecture and functionality Values Uniqueness Integrity Knowledge Quality Attributes Client-Focused Artful Innovative Transparent 5 The Web Design Copy Info Architecture Functionality Web Strategy

Vision Be a focal point in the relationship cycle Sothebyshomes. com should help manage the relationship among: Prospects and current clients Agents, branch office management and affiliates Business management (EVPs, CEO) Internal IT and development vendors External Players Branch Managers Buyer Affiliate Agent Sotheby’s Homes Website Customer Experience Development Vendor Internal IT Customer Experience effort Seller CEO/ EVPs External players (media, investors, co-brokers, financial analysts) 6 Web Strategy

Vision Deliver user-focused functionality aligned with a relationship lifecycle Through a compelling user experience, the site should become a key lever in the client relationship lifecycle. Develop and deliver content and functionality, both unrestricted and password protected, that meet user needs, promote interaction and strengthen relationships online Relationship Lifecycle Awareness Delivery Customer Relationship Management 7 Web Strategy

Vision Address offline challenges While communicating the brand’s values and attributes online, the site should help to shape and address SIR’s response to offline challenges related to: Responsiveness toward clients Communication of industry knowledge Connectedness to sales transaction social dynamics Unique market position 8 Web Strategy

Vision Become a learning lab that collects business intelligence about user needs and wants Through continued monitoring, the site should establish the user experience framework that informs and influences future product development, as well as enhancements of existing functionality Future Products Current Site Phase 1 Future Phases Site Metrics Lead Management Usability Feedback Continuing Research Current Applications 9 Web Strategy

Roadmap 10 Web Strategy

Roadmap Two pronged approach, gradually building a strategic, user-focused online presence while tactically implementing current high priorities Introduce user-centered design methods to develop strategic priorities and IT-vendor solutions Launch tactical pain-improvements in next two quarters Strategic Tactical Research Stakeholders/ Usability/Competitors Prioritize Quantitative Analysis Identify Top ‘#’ Pain Points Execute Build 11 Iterate CRM with User Feedback Transition IT Vendor RFP Web Strategy

Roadmap: Strategic Introduce user-centered design methods to account for all stakeholders Regardless of live interpersonal interactions, website is the center of the relationship to all stakeholders Define stakeholders, competitive sets and business success factors Perform deeper research through interviews, focus groups and contextual inquiries into stakeholders’ needs, wants and tasks Obtain quantitative, qualitative and psychographic data of users types through 3 rd party research and ratings agencies 12 Web Strategy

Roadmap: Strategic Deliver solutions according to users’ needs User Centered Design Process: Design. Build. Test. Iterate. Heuristic and usability analyses like Cognitive Walkthroughs highlight existing task completion problems Competitive and Quantitative Gap analyses suggest best-inbreed functionality and prioritization Place usability testing into build plans Maintain online surveys and questionnaires to monitor postlaunch effectiveness and gather feedback to reprioritize Employ CX contractors/add staff as warranted 13 Web Strategy

Roadmap: Strategic Fully express the brand develop CRM to create a collaborative partnership with users Develop registration strategy and password-protected content and functionality Refine current solution-centric functionality to develop a personalized environment with push campaigns based on user profiles, needs and wants Create features to collect business intelligence and monitor site usage, SEO and metrics for quality improvement 14 Web Strategy

Roadmap: Tactical Identify top ‘X’ pain points and fix now with current IT vendor Prioritize current proposed functionality and execute the biggest bang for the buck that satisfies the most pained stakeholders Execute ‘quick-win’ usability and visual design improvements identified through strategic analysis Execute all outstanding bug and maintenance issues Upgrade back-end functionality only to the degree that we need it to launch chosen prioritized functionality Execute through 3 Q 09 15 Web Strategy

Roadmap: Tactical Transition to new IT vendor relationship Site is complex enough now that any IT vendor must be treated as a development partner, not just fixer of one-offs Begin RFP process to identify, vet and negotiate with appropriate vendors, potentially including NRT web services Requires renewed internal commitment to maintenance costs and deeper internal IT and CX staffing Transition in 4 Q 09 16 Web Strategy

Future Deliverables 17 Web Strategy

Future Deliverables Deeper Stakeholder Research Interviews/Focus Groups: performed amongst all stakeholders and regions; standard inquiries into know-yourcustomer, their attitudes, needs, wants and quantitative behavior Contextual Inquiry: direct observation of agents, branch managers and buyers/sellers in the field; develops model of how users try to execute tasks and the barriers they encounter Qualitative data: purchase third party attitudinal and behavioral data from likes of Net. Ratings, Com. Score, Hitwise, Forrester/Gartner Success factors and barriers: developed mainly with the business to define metrics 18 Web Strategy

Future Deliverables User Experience Analysis Usability Testing and Cognitive Walkthroughs: through labs or in-house, provide tasks for users to perform and track success/failure and roadblocks Heuristic Analysis: using best practice criteria defined by 15 years of web industry academic research, evaluate how well the site conveys its navigation, brand content Competitive Analysis: define competitors, and judge the site’s relative position amongst them; perform quantitative functional gap analysis to identifies gaps and leads and suggest new functionality Weblogs: defines baseline metrics and traffic patterns Personas: defines idealized user types that suggest proposed tasks 19 Web Strategy

Future Deliverables Customer Relationship Management: providing continuous feedback Online Surveys: short, inconspicuous, opt-in calls for feedback; easily quantifiable Password-Protected Content: move agent/client relationship more online; real time transaction data; increasing stickiness in exchange for deeper business intelligence Push Marketing: customer relationship should continue past the sale/inquiry Lead Router 20 Web Strategy

Next Steps 21 Web Strategy

Challenges for Sothebyshomes. com The following specific challenges need to be taken into consideration: Success factors need to be enlarged to encompass CRM view Current allocated resources are low compared to sites of similar size and complexity Not enough cooks, plenty of chefs In-house technical resources should be as strong as CX 22 Web Strategy

Next Steps § With Business: Deep interviews to define stakeholders, competitive sets and success metrics § With Field: Begin research effort through interviews and focus groups across all regions § With CX: Heuristic and Competitive Analyses § With Vendor(s): Pain-point fixes and/or begin RFP process 23 Web Strategy