Friday, May 03, 2013

J.C. Penney Apologizes. Now What?

J.C. Penney has issued a new advertisement apologizing to its customers for the mistakes that the firm made during the past year or so.   I have to commend the move.  It takes guts to come out with such a commercial, acknowledging serious merchandising/pricing errors.  However, customers needed to hear this message.  Moreover, the message is strong and effective not simply because of the apology, but because it includes an explicit invitation for customers to return.  What else is needed?  J.C. Penney needs to follow up this ad by explaining to customers what has changed.  What did they learn from these mistakes?  How have they rectified past errors?  What will be different when customers return?  The firm has to answer these questions to overcome the hesitation that some customers will have about returning to the stores.  

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