Thinking Through The "3 U's"...

I'm updating some thinking on the "3 U's".  The word and idea of "Unity" doesn't quite work even though there is some overlap in my thinking.  So here's another take swapping the idea of "ubiquity" for "unity".  Seems more appropriate.  Let me know what you think. 

Usefulness
Any experience is useful when it's meaningful and serves a purpose.  Currently much of marketing still breaks down into self-serving gimmicks and interruptions that offer little value. Much of what's offered in digital is no exception.  While the majority of criticism is of traditional advertising, the fact of the matter is that interruptive based traditional digital advertising is not much better.  These are the digital gimmicks that work to get your attention but are usually done so poorly that they offer no value whatsoever.  Usefulness is the exact opposite.

Utility
Utility = interaction that delights us in some way.  But hold the iPhone.  The industry has hijacked the word delight and brainwashed us to think that only companies like Apple and Disney are capable of serving it up.  Let me tell you a story about the "no-frills" Craigslist, which just happened this morning.  My wife took pictures of a large playset we wanted to sell.  She uploaded them at 10:00 A.M.  By noon, she had several people interested and she sold the set in time for a late lunch.  We had the set dismantled, picked up and were $100.00 richer that evening.  That's delight in the application economy.

Ubiquity
We are living in a fragmented world with what seems like infinite touch points available to us.  Brands and businesses who can distribute value across these endless touch points in effective ways will tap into new markets and solidify existing ones.  Even though some of us are interacting through multiple social channels—we can now find people just like ourselves who we trust and see what they like/dislike.  This influences our decisions from the stuff we buy to the things we recommend to each other.  The best marketing in the world tries to simulate this, but usually ends up coming off as contrived.  Meaningful interactions through multiple networks and channels leads to authentic word of mouth references and ultimately affinity.

Comments

[Simon]

Excellent post David. I totally agree with what you say, but would add that I think the environment in which the application is first noted is critical. Whether it is on the advertiser's homepage, a specific social site or a blog such as this; the universe (I was never good at alliterative challenges...) will influence the genesis (or lack, thereof) of the conversation

Best
Simon

[tina b]

hi david - as always, great thinking. usefulness and utility are very close concepts - how about usability - being an easy experience that encourages / drives repeat usage.

[Trisha]

I think Ubiquity definitely sums it up quite well. The whole idea is to be highly visible, but with soooo many websites out there working to reach B2C markets without an established route, businesses absolutely must work to be universally approachable.

(To clarify a bit, some B2C markets have an established route, like services targeting webmasters can simply post on a webmaster board, etc)

In any case, it certainly doesn't hurt to be "universally approachable." Business is, after all, based in 'trusted transactions.' If a potential client feels they know you on a personal level, it would be much easier to get rid of that 'potential' and make them a solid client.

On the other two - I think "Usefulness" might be better worded as "Usability" since "Utility" seems to work best as "Usefulness" ... in my mind anyways. Everyone thinks differently =P In any case, inside the context of those notions, I definitely and whole-heartedly agree =)

[Ike]

As you know -- I have a soft spot for Venns.

[David Cushman]

Thank you for a neat illustration, I've referred to it in the conversation that is emerging from this post http://preview.tinyurl.com/2pzrqp which I think is on a very similar theme. You refer to applications, I'm thinking about widgets.
Be great if you join in. Best dc

[Flavia Moteiro]

Good Post!! :)

[Jacob Morgan]

Hi David,

I would argue for scarcity for ubiquity although it seems that the application for ubiquity in your example is slightly different.

I believe scarcity is the new ubiquity (I think Seth Godin said this, not sure though) and that by trying to go after everybody you end up getting nobody.

Granted the communication channels should be expanded, I think different markets/consumers use different channels. The goal should be not to dominate all the channels but to focus your efforts on the channels your target customers are using.

[mahei]

How about "Understanding"? this is where the applications understand your 'surfing' behaviour. It then makes recommendations based on your habits of what you're read, or listened to combined with the community recommendations like Amazon's recommendations tool.

Thoughts anyone?

[Rob Findlay]

Bruce Temkin over at Forrester talks about the three must haves in any Customer Experience, which I've embellished slightly - is it easy to use and accessible, is it usable and informative, is it engaging and on brand? I think these apply to ANY touchpoint and interaction.