Brilliant Experiences.

The world has transformed dramatically before our eyes. Customer service is dead. Simply having satisfied customers is not good enough anymore. The marketplace has evolved from a Service Economy to an Experience Economy, and the most insightful and prepared leaders are constantly shaping brilliant customer experiences and delivering brilliant company profits. There is definitely a tight correlation between the two. Achieving a superior level of customer engagement and customer loyalty requires something much greater than a high level of service – it requires a brilliant experience that engages all FIVE human senses and captures the imagination. Every product or service still requires a unique competitive set of differentiated technical, functional, image and pricing dimensions, but a successful brand and company must now have a powerful brand narrative and consistently deliver an "integrated experience" that helps people think and feel bigger and better about themselves - and their future potential. We want to be inspired and connected. Walt Disney understood this concept better than anyone else and was the pioneer of this "experience-centered" business strategy more than 50 years ago. Disney is now the most powerful brand ever created and highly differentiated from the other nearly-100 million large and small businesses on this small planet. What brilliant experiences have shaped your life and business success? How can you cultivate a new brilliant Customer Experience Mindset for your team and organization?     

The world changed overnight. You probably didn’t notice. The significant change from a Service Economy to an Experience Economy was officially announced in the best-selling book, The Experience Economy (Pine, Gilmore, 1999). This important Harvard Business School Press book declared that excellent customer service alone no longer builds strong customer loyalty, retention and advocacy, and the most successful leadership teams are building and shaping products and services that create an exceptional value proposition - and deliver a unique and impressive experience that has customers raving and begging for more. Disney, The Ritz-Carlton Hotel, Air Emirates, Capital Grille, Tesla, Northern Trust, Vail Resorts, Apple, Amazon, Uber, Starbucks, Norwegian Cruise Lines, Victoria Secrets, and many others have cracked the brilliant customer experience code. You can learn how The Ritz-Carlton Hotel delivers a brilliant experience in The New Gold Standard: 5 Leadership Principles for Creating a Legendary Customer Experience Courtesy of the Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company (Michelli,2008), or how Disney does it in The Disney Way: Harnessing the Management Secrets of Disney in Your Company (Capodagli, Jackson, 2006), or the secrets to Starbucks in Pour Your Heart Into It: How Starbucks Built a Company One Cup at a Time (Schultz, 2012). All best-selling books and recommended reads for every leader serious about building a world-class organization. According to a recent Customers 2020 Report, customer experience has overtaken price and new product differentiation as the key brand differentiator. You may have a shiny, new blue product and your competitors also have an impressive blue product. Provide a clean, sparkling hotel room with fluffy pillows, fresh gourmet coffee, and over-sized towels for your guests, and your competitors can often do the same. How can you compete and win?

The current business landscape is rugged with steep, rocky cliffs and deep valleys. Leading and winning in the modern world is not for the faint of heart. In America, six million small businesses and more than 20,000 large corporations are struggling to compete, differentiate, and capture market share across 900 industries. The Red Oceans are bloody and becoming more concentrated with bigger sharks. Leaders are challenged to keep their companies and business models relevant in a fast-changing world. We talk about finding Blue Oceans, but the simple truth is that finding those beautiful, uncontested spaces with large margins and no competition is a tough nut to crack. We don’t always have the vision, leadership or capabilities to adapt to fierce new forces of nature. The road ahead requires a new, better focus on building and shaping brilliant customer experiences. The most important and predictable element for delivering a brilliant customer experience is magic - a highly talented, agile, and engaged employee. Great people matter a lot; these precious employees are rare and powerful resources that provide the "rocket fuel" in creating and delivering a brilliant customer experience. Fail to realize this and you fail brilliantly. 

The first goal of a business is sustainability, then profit. Fight to remain relevant in your respective market or quickly face the full wrath and brutal judgement of The Invisible Hand. The best business leaders are obsessed with attracting, engaging, and retaining profitable and loyal customers. Often they are also obsessed with attracting, engaging, and retaining the most talented and committed employees. The two go hand in hand.  In The Loyalty Effect: The Hidden Force Behind Growth, Profit, and Lasting Value (1996) by Frederick Reichheld, a global thought leader on the topic of customer loyalty, a 5% improvement in your customer retention rate often results in a 25%-100% increase in the profitability for your company. Loyal customers are highly profitable customers. Your most talented and engaged team members are very important success factors in the quality and consistency of the brilliant experience you are capable of delivering for your customers. Don't screw it up; the consequences are severe. Create a brilliant experience for your talented employees - and they will deliver a brilliant experience for your valuable customers. This is the secret sauce to the Experience Economy. And now you know the rest of the story. How will you lead and shape brilliant experiences for both your employees and customers this year?

Let's Create More Sparks: Robert is a curious Irish-Canadian and well-traveled American who naturally enjoys story telling that includes lots of interesting facts and figures. Stats and data points help tell powerful stories. Interesting quotes and good books bring vivid colors and memorable shapes to a story. Good stories inspire the human spirit. Ideally you found an idea or two in this LinkedIn article that can now be used as a fantastic conversation starter with friends or colleagues over a cup of coffee on a leisurely Saturday afternoon.