How Netflix Has Botched Social Engagement

Hi, jabailo.  It does definitely seem that the new interface was designed specifically w/ TVs and "couch top" computing, as well as mobile devices, in mind.

It is strange that Netflix didn't roll this out, therefore, as an alternate interface specifically for users accessing Netflix with those devices or setups.  As you implicitly point out, what works well for one browser or device does not necessarily translate well to another.

I have my computer hooked up to my 32" LCD using an HDMI cable, and I sit on my couch to run it with a wireless dinovo mini keyboard/pad.    So, having icons that size for the big screen, read from a distance, is a great innovation for me.

In fact, I read websites in this configuration (which I call Couchtop Computing).

I am surprised actually that despite 15 years of web design, many sites do not scale right or do not use the cannonical web syntaxes for text causing all sorts of distortions when using simple resizing in the browser.

In that same sense, the Kindle PC interface is much better for reading using the Couch Top than many web pages because I can size the text cleanly to the larger screen for distance reading.

Joe, you say, "Most users hate the change." To back that up you link us to a Huffpost Tech poll. Please, Joseph, better said that a very vocal portion of Netflix users hate the change and leave it at that.  

Chris,

As countless companies have found in the past, a sure way to empower your competitors is to make your customers dissatisfied. The fact that there are advantages to Facebook does not negate the fact that people who are dissatisfied enough will consider leaving more seriously - and the competition will find it easier to catch up, find funding, and attract a critical mass. Myspace thought it had it made, but complacency killed it; it stopped adding features, and left users wanting what its competitors provided.

Chris, you are correct that money talks, but to dismiss customer concerns wholesale is a dangerous game.  This is why companies have customer relations departments.

It is very true that Netflix's competition is limited -- but alternative options definitely exist (Blockbuster, most notably -- but also online options like Hulu and offline options like Redbox).  That does not mean that customer concerns are irrelevant, however.  Customer feedback informs future income.  Knowing what your customers are thinking is invaluable (even if you don't agree with them).

What this comes down to is that 1) Netflix already has lost some business over the UI debacle and 2) by refusing to engage with customers, Netflix leaves itself open to competitors as they become more viable.  Amazon (just to pick an example) already offers an "all-you-can-eat" pricing model for over 5,000 selections and has already siphoned off a few Netflix subscribers.  As it and other competitors grow and offer more selections, Netflix's risk for losing its dominating market position exponentially increases.  Customer relations is not a battle that Netflix can afford to lose.

At the very least, there is room for improvement.  While the UI change was part of the inspiration for this article, Netflix does not engage meaningfully on social media at all.  They are using social networks as lecterns for marketing messages -- not true PR and customer relations platforms.  The "social" aspect of social media is lost on Netflix.

Ah! Well stated. That's the reason why we detest monopolies. Netflix now has the aura on invisibility and as such just as you stated their feathres won't be ruffled by what they perceived as blind rage. The underlying message behind their silence is that "if u don't like the new interface, go bring back Blockbuster if you can".

"It is amazing how companies differ in their public faces. Some are ready to adapt social media and risk all the pitfalls thereof, but others just ignore it all."

This is a painful reminder that the much acclaimed corporate social media strategy is a farse. Just like the standard PR you referenced, corporate social media is all about corporate publicity stunt and has nothing to do with engaging customers.

Netflix Corporate account on Twitter is dead. It shows no committment to 76,000 + followers. 

Why should they care what anyone thinks?  There's no competition.  Apple TV and Amazon unboxed's pay-per-view are no match for Netflix's all-in-one all-you-can-eat pricing.  And the ability to fall back to getting a disc for things that aren't available online.  If there was a credible competitor, and people had a choice to go somewhere else for the same service, things would be different.  The assumption that a service provider must listen to comments coming from any channel just because that channel exists is false.  The only channel that matters is income.  And they'll keep getting it as long as there's no one else people can turn to.  So you don't like what they're doing:  do you dislike it enough to give up your subscription?

Netflix isn't alone in this.  Does Facebook care about the ruckus after user interface changes nobody likes?  Is there someplace else to go?  (Will Google+ become a credible choice, and force them to take note of user dissatisfaction?)

There are hundred's of "idiot's guides" to management. None of them seem to help much. Instead, we see the same cognitive traps we saw 50 years ago, unwillingness to admit to mistakes, uneresponsiveness, and a lack of common sense it executive's responses.

It's a shame, but until we have a good way of training people to be less falible in the respects that matter for management, and a better way of selecting managers than the peter principle, we'll continue to see this.

It is amazing how companies differ in their public faces. Some are ready to adapt social media and risk all the pitfalls thereof, but others just ignore it all.

I suppose someone high up in the executive suite may know what they're doing, but sometime you wonder. Or maybe the guys in the corner offices don't get the word from the worker on lower floors.

There should be an idiot's guide to management.