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How many McDonalds locations do you think youve been to across the U.S.? Ten, maybe twenty? One TikTok creator is aiming to hit all 13,589 of them. Posting under the handle @donnyboys10, the creator kicked off the challenge in July 2024 and has since visited 275 locations across the country, including stops in Illinois, California, Oregon, and Arizona. Each McDonalds gets its own rating out of 10, complete with a short review and a tour of the facilities. So far not every location has been up to par. @donnyboys10 I like McDonalds more then you #mcdonalds #fyp #donnyboys #fyp @McDonalds Laugh Now Cry Later – Drake A McDonalds on Hollywood Boulevard in Los Angeles came in at just 3 out of 10. The TikToker wrote: This very famous iconic location was absolute shambles. The main complaints were the bathrooms, as well as the food being overpriced. I almost didnt even want to pay for it. @donnyboys10 Hollywood dreams, McDonalds nightmares #donnyboys #goingtoeverymcdonaldsintheus #mcdonalds #hollywood @McDonalds Party In The U.S.A. – Miley Cyrus An Encinitas, California, location scored a solid 9. Everything was available. Everything was clean, the TikTok review said, noting that even the bathrooms were super luxurious. @donnyboys10 So close to 100k followers #donnyboys #goingtoeverymcdonaldsintheus #mcdonalds #fyp @McDonalds The Sweet Escape – Gwen Stefani Throughout the challenge, @donnyboys10 has built an impressive following of more than 128,000, with several videos racking up millions of views. In the comments, many fans request to be tagged when their local McDonalds gets reviewed. Im a day one, respect for you man, one user commented. Bro is slowly getting closer to my McDonald’s, another wrote. According to the Daily Dot, @donnyboys10 averages 60 to 90 McDonalds visits per month. At that pace, it would take him about 15 years to visit every single McDonalds in the U.S. (assuming no new locations open in that time). When Fast Company connected with @donnyboys10 over email, he was more optimistic, estimating the challenge would take about nine years to complete. For now, hes juggling his nationwide McDonalds tour with a part-time job and pursuing a bachelors degree. At the start there was one other person involved and we did it together, he told Fast Company. As the challenge got harder and we needed to visit locations farther from where we were from, he stepped back and left the challenge to only me. But that hasnt stopped him. I wanted to start this not only so I could go to McDonalds. I try to pick places that I genuinely want to travel to, he said. Besides going to every McDonalds in the U.S., it has always been my dream to go to every city in the United States. Fans can donate to help cover the costsor buy him a Happy Mealvia a GoFundMe linked in his bio. His favorite location so far? The famous blue McDonalds in Sedona, Arizona, where the traditional golden arches are painted to match the skyline and preserve the areas natural beauty. The worst? Between third and Pine in Seattle, or most McDonalds in downtown Portland.
Category:
E-Commerce
If youve ever fancied yourself on American Idol, you can now audition for the newest singing competitionwithout ever leaving home. In partnership with iHeartRadio, TikTok announced its Next Up: Live Music singing competition this week, with auditions taking place entirely within the app. Aspiring stars can submit auditions now through Aug. 11 by uploading an original song with the hashtag #nextuplivemusicwhich already has over 1,000 posts at the time of writing. The top 50 creators will advance to the Semi-Finals, where theyll perform via livestream. Scores will be determined by likes, views, comments, and shares, as well as feedback from a panel of judges. Fans can follow rising artists in real time, engage directly with their performances, and help shape their path to the spotlight, the press release explains. The final 12 performers will then take the stage live at the iHeartRadio Theater in Burbank, California, on Sept. 28. The competition is open to anyone in the U.S. over 18, but there are several requirements entrants must meet. Hopefuls must have at least 50,000 TikTok followers with real engagement (i.e. not bot activity). They must own the rights to at least one original song and cannot be signed to a major record label. For those who meet the criteria and feel ready to take a shot, TikTok adds, this isnt just a contest, its a launchpad. The platform has already helped launch the careers of numerous artists, including Olivia Rodrigo and Pink Pantheress. TikTok has long been a launchpad for musical talent, helping undiscovered artists break through and reach global audiences, TikTok executive Shen Gao said in the press release. Next Up: LIVE Music is building on that legacy by turning discovery into a shared, real-time experience.
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E-Commerce
How are we doing against the industry benchmark? This question made me recoil, and I felt my body tense up. I heard it twice in a short period of time at two different organizations. In both cases, the question led toward the same outcome: justifying current performance and not seeking true excellence. Ever since customer satisfaction and employee engagement surveys began, survey companies have been selling benchmark data to their clients. I have personally been involved with surveys for over three decades and I consistently object to the practice. In short, survey providers who cannot help their clients truly address the issues discovered sell them excuses about why they are good enough. Yes, it makes me mad. Why? Because it is the ultimate deception. As long as there is a lengthy list of bottom feeders in your industry, you are safe. You are not that bad. And with this false sense of security, you will make the biggest mistake: understanding your customers and creating exceptional value that will be worth the price and profit margins you charge. Two cases exemplify the issue Let me explain using two examples. In the first, the organization was celebrating an improved Net Promoter Score (NPS). Their 10-point jump sounded very respectable. But it was based on a 9% sample of its customers. Where are the other 91% of your customers, I asked. If they refuse to respond to a 5 minute survey, how committed are they to a long-term profitable relationship? Stop celebrating relative successes and instead examine the true essence of your customer relationships. In the second case, the company enjoyed close to a 90% response rate from its employees and celebrated beating the benchmark by double digit points. Cause for celebration, right? Think again. The company is a top industry performer and should never compare itself to the average. This companys expectations are very different than the expectations of number 50 on the industry list. It ought to determine how to lead the industry, not follow it! Benchmarkingthe wrong perspective Using industry benchmarks has its flaws: Regression to the mean: Benchmarking directs the attention to the industry average, not the leaders. Imitation over innovation: When focusing on competitors perspectives, one imitates their practices, not creating new one to delight customers. Competitors over customers: Focusing on competitors provides the wrong reference point for business value creation. Instead, focus on the customers. Blind context: Companies factor many decisions into creating and delivering value, which is then reflected in their customer scores. Profitability, market segments, and cost positioning are a few factors that can direct different strategies and therefore different customer engagement. Lowering standards: Benchmarking often results in relaxed performance standards. If the mean is acceptable, so is the justification to ignore the performance of competitors exceeding it. Future backwards: Customer scores reflect past performance and past value delivery. Companies may already be innovating, but those new developments are not part of the overall discussion as they are not reflected in the scores. But beyond these arguments, there is simple trust. The business truth we ought to consider above all. Is 50% customer satisfaction a good or bad number? If the industry benchmark is 22%, you are killing it. Keep it up If the industry benchmark is 83%, you are in trouble. Do you understand how ridiculous this conclusion is? Fifty percent of your customers are not happy with the value you deliver. They are at risk of switching to the competition. Should that a big enough red flag for immediate attention? In the empowered-customer era, we can no longer afford to compromise and play with the number. We live in a world where every customer is a segment of one. A personal brand using our product or solutions to promote their brand. They create content publicly and share their opinions. No, 50% customer satisfaction should not be considered good results. Unless, of course, you decide to get rid of the other 50% of your customer base. The pursuit of absolute performance In the late 1970s, benchmarking was first introduced by Xerox Corporation to compare themselves to their intense Japanese competitors and ensure they raise their performance bar. The original purpose was constant improvements and adopting best practices. But like many great concepts, it has become a method to relax the pursuit of excellence. Even for the bottom feeders in any benchmark, the goal was to become average, not exceptional. In a time when we are concerned about the impact of AI on organizations and performance, we can be confident that average work will be automated and taken over by AI. True exceptional value will be the survivor of the fittest. If your response level is low, it means your customers do not believe the sincerity of the dialogue you proclaim to conduct. If your employees do not take the time to respond, your situation is dire. The current state of surveys does not seem to produce the sincere dialogue necessary to truly improve relationships (customers or employees). We need to rethink this system. The addiction to the false sense of security peddled by survey companies with benchmark data should end. It is the pursuit of relative performance over ultimate performance. Relative performance focuses on the good enough vis a vis the competition. Ultimate performance is delightful and surprising customers, so they have no reason to consider any other provider. The former creates a false sense of security the latter ensures business continuity. To achieve ultimate performance, we ought to establish a true dialogue with our customers. A dialogue in which customers take the time to provide the insights and organizations address it sincerely, completely, and on time. This is not a one-time event but rather an ongoing dialogue about the performance process, ensuring that we are always ahead, not with the industry average, but with our customers expectations. In a world of ultimate performance, the real question we ought to ask is How can we outdo the current performance and value? Lior Arussy is chairperson of ImprintCX and author of Dare to Author!
Category:
E-Commerce
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