Notes from the presentation at Pubcon
Zappos Keynote at PubCon – Tony Hsieh CEO Zappos
• Zappos wants to own the three C’s: clothing, customer service, culture.
• Zappos labels their products “happiness in a box”. Delivering that experience through both digital channels and a tangible product.
• Zappos has grown gross merchandise sales from $1.6M in 2000 to over $1 billion in 2008 by focusing relentlessly on customer service – a potent digital marketing tool
• #1 driver of Zappos’ growth is from repeat customers and word of mouth. Put a focus into the customer experience, create something that is worth talking about. Let customers do the marketing for you through digital (and physical) channels.
• Customer service: What customers see first on the Zappos website:
o 24/7 1-800 number on every page
o Free shipping
o Free return shipping
o 365-day return policy
• What customers experience:
o Fast, accurate fulfillment
o Most customers are “surprise”-upgraded to overnight shipping (creates a WOW experience)
o Friendly, helpful, “above and beyond” customer service – even directing customers to competitors if they are looking for something Zappos doesn’t have
• What Zappos does internally:
o No call times, no sales-based performance goals for reps
o Run warehouse 24/7
o Inventory all products (no drop-shipping)
o 5 weeks of culture, core values, customer service and warehouse training for everyone in Las Vegas office
o Customer service is not just that department, it’s everyone
o Culture book – all employees contribute a few paragraphs. Except for typos, it is unedited. Everyone reads it.
Zappos Core Values
1. Deliver WOW through service
2. Embrace and drive change
3. Create fun and a little weirdness
4. Be Adventurous , Creative and Open Minded
5. Pursue Growth and learning
6. Build honest and open relationships with communications
7. Build a positive team and family spirit
8. Do more with less
9. Be passionate and determined
10. Be humble
Zappos examples of transparency about how they do business.
11. http://twitter.zappos.com/ ( Every employee is encouraged to Twitter)
12. “Ask Anything” newsletter
13. Extranet for vendors
14. Tours and reporter visits to the Zappos office ( unsupervised)
15. Zapposinsights.com
16. Live events at http://zapposinsights.com/live/
• Alignment: it does not matter what your core values are .. as long as you commit to them
• Vision : What ever you are thinking – Think Bigger . Chase the Vision , not the money
• Entrepreneur : What would you be passionate about doing for 10 years even if you never made a dime?
Evolution of the Zappos Brand
• 1999 Selection ( Inventory of shoes)
• 2003 Customer Service
• 2005 Culture and Core Values as our platform
• 2007 Personal emotional connection with customers
• 2009 Delivering Happiness
Book recommendation
• Peak – Chip Conley
• Tribal Leadership: Leveraging Natural Groups to Build a Thriving Organization
• The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich
• The Happiness Hypothesis: Finding Modern Truth in Ancient Wisdom
Zappos Keynote at PubCon – Tony Hsieh CEO Zappos
• Zappos wants to own the three C’s: clothing, customer service, culture.
• Zappos labels their products “happiness in a box”. Delivering that experience through both digital channels and a tangible product.
• Zappos has grown gross merchandise sales from $1.6M in 2000 to over $1 billion in 2008 by focusing relentlessly on customer service – a potent digital marketing tool
• #1 driver of Zappos’ growth is from repeat customers and word of mouth. Put a focus into the customer experience, create something that is worth talking about. Let customers do the marketing for you through digital (and physical) channels.
• Customer service: What customers see first on the Zappos website:
o 24/7 1-800 number on every page
o Free shipping
o Free return shipping
o 365-day return policy
• What customers experience:
o Fast, accurate fulfillment
o Most customers are “surprise”-upgraded to overnight shipping (creates a WOW experience)
o Friendly, helpful, “above and beyond” customer service – even directing customers to competitors if they are looking for something Zappos doesn’t have
• What Zappos does internally:
o No call times, no sales-based performance goals for reps
o Run warehouse 24/7
o Inventory all products (no drop-shipping)
o 5 weeks of culture, core values, customer service and warehouse training for everyone in Las Vegas office
o Customer service is not just that department, it’s everyone
o Culture book – all employees contribute a few paragraphs. Except for typos, it is unedited. Everyone reads it.
Zappos Core Values
1. Deliver WOW through service
2. Embrace and drive change
3. Create fun and a little weirdness
4. Be Adventurous , Creative and Open Minded
5. Pursue Growth and learning
6. Build honest and open relationships with communications
7. Build a positive team and family spirit
8. Do more with less
9. Be passionate and determined
10. Be humble
Zappos examples of transparency about how they do business.
11. http://twitter.zappos.com/ ( Every employee is encouraged to Twitter)
12. “Ask Anything” newsletter
13. Extranet for vendors
14. Tours and reporter visits to the Zappos office ( unsupervised)
15. Zapposinsights.com
16. Live events at http://zapposinsights.com/live/
• Alignment: it does not matter what your core values are .. as long as you commit to them
• Vision : What ever you are thinking – Think Bigger . Chase the Vision , not the money
• Entrepreneur : What would you be passionate about doing for 10 years even if you never made a dime?
Evolution of the Zappos Brand
• 1999 Selection ( Inventory of shoes)
• 2003 Customer Service
• 2005 Culture and Core Values as our platform
• 2007 Personal emotional connection with customers
• 2009 Delivering Happiness
Book recommendation
• Peak – Chip Conley
• Tribal Leadership: Leveraging Natural Groups to Build a Thriving Organization
• The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich
• The Happiness Hypothesis: Finding Modern Truth in Ancient Wisdom
Disclaimer: This blog post reflects my personal views only. AI tools may have been used for brevity, structure, or research support. Please independently verify any information before relying on it. This content does not represent the views of my employer, Infotech.com.
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