"It's still up to the brand to create that winning experience for its customers."

I stole that from one of this month's articles to underscore that, in the scramble to compete in a customized-experience world, companies can't afford to lose sight of who they are any more than they can afford to forget (or ignore) what their customers really value.

There are many reasons for this. One is that at the end of the day, it's your people who deliver the experiences your best customers value - and your brand that binds them together (ideally) around a relevant and differentiated position.

Another is that as important as interactive, digital touchpoints are to your customers, and as strategically smart as mass-customized, personalized services are to your future, without a brand strategy to define what customers can expect, your efforts will inevitably fall flat.  

Of course, this is often where companies like ours come in. To help companies figure out where these trends cross over and where strategies align (or diverge). But at the end of the day, the perception of brand is the reality of experience. And that starts by knowing what it is.

Best,

Michael Hinshaw
Managing Director
MCorp Consulting

In brief, this is (and will
continue to be) an
evolutionary process.
For now, we're looking at
a combination of:

- Clicks
- Mentions
- RTs (retweets)
- Reach (of a tweet)

Our baseline (0) is a
Tweet that has reached
only my approximately
3000 followers, and
opened (read) only an
average number of
times.

Insights and Influence in 140 Characters or Less…

When it comes to customer experience, here's a fact many companies still have trouble coming to terms with: Perception = Reality. Bottom line? Experience is subjective. You can't make customers do anything. At least, not for long. Today, over 80% of all customers said they'll walk after a single bad customer experience. The question is, how are you bringing your best customers closer? And where do you erect barriers that push them away?

Customers are "smarter," and more empowered than ever. You can't expect them to buy your empty promises, complicated loyalty programs, {insert initiative here}, and expect them to fall in line. They want to be served instantly, constantly and thoroughly, on their terms, at their convenience, via their individually preferred methods, whenever they want from wherever they are.

That's why winning and keeping customers in the years ahead will be based on how well your company understands and meets customer needs, how easy you are to do business with, and how relevant your touchpoints are. In short, your customers aren't sitting still - and neither is your competition (particularly those you don't know about). The new rules of the game are already defined, and the ball's in your court....

1.) Pick-up lines and customer experience... http://ow.ly/4OTww
Effective CEX is more courtship than pickup, modulated to the prey…err…object of your affections, rather than your own agenda. I also like the article's reminder that in Tweets and Facebook, you can't lose the big picture in the heat of an ongoing conversation or soliloquy. Someone who's friending or following you for the first time may not know much beyond your last tweet. So keep your voice and brand intact no matter what the situation or what you may feel in the heat of the moment. (Tweet Score: 88)

2.) Re-orient the customer experience around what customers value… http://ow.ly/4ORqU
After dozens of newsletters and hundreds of posts, it's always good to get a reality check: If we forget to pay attention to what the customer cares about, CEX and CRM initiatives are nothing more than hot air. And what do customers care about most? "Value in use." I like how succinct that phrase is in communicating a concept that can encompass everything from how a product or service is conceptualized to how it's sold and supported. Just because it's simple, doesn't mean it's simple-minded. (Tweet Score: 78)

3.) Why have a loyalty program that doesn't actually build loyalty? http://ow.ly/4XA7C
Ah redemption. We all seek it, and yet apparently we're also happy to let it go to waste. According to a recent study of loyalty programs, of the $48 billion in annual loyalty program rewards, a full 16 billion go to waste. Yes, that's billion with a b. If you think that's a nice savings for the issuer, I'd ask you to look at it through another lens. Loyalty programs are more than a snare to get a customer: they can also create strong word-of-mouth and…dare I say…actual loyalty. (Sorry for the annoying pop-up ad on this post.) (Tweet Score: 68)

4.) Consistency in a brand's messaging is paramount, but let the customer decide the what, when, and how of their experience. http://ow.ly/4Xy24
"Based on these findings, it is in every brand's best interest to find ways to cater to these consumers and make movements between channels simple and seamless." Based on what findings?! Ha, got you. Read the article. Lots of food for thought - and action - from the excellent Idea Engineers. Personal doesn't just mean, "Hi Bambi! Nice to see you again, here's our special on shotguns this week."  (Tweet Score: 64)

5.) "Companies must understnad the customer experience as a whole, even in places where the company may not be." http://ow.ly/5246A
I kind of love how this article, written for a room full of insurance technology folks, explains our world of contemporary customer experience at its most fundamental. It breaks it down without talking down, but also without the jargon, shortcuts and speed that we professionals use when talking to one another. If you have a client who needs things spelled out, you might take a page from this example. (Tweet Score: 63)

6.) Reading: "Customer Experience for the Gen Y, Digital Native" http://ow.ly/4XxwE
More on how social media (and Gen Y expectations) have changed the customer relationship landscape. Captured from and presented in a Twitter interview and exchange, this is a great counterpoint to the format of the previous article. Together, they illustrate what seems to have become the theme of this month's most popular tweets: customize the product and experience to suit your audience. (Tweet Score: 62)

7.) Reading: "How Philips Uses Net Promoter Scores to Understand Customers" http://ow.ly/4RoGf
I get all tingly when a post talks about listening in on cyber chatter and triangulating the results. (Why yes I DO like submarine movies, why do you ask?) It's been awhile since we've talked about Net Promoter Scores here, but it's good to see a company putting customer listening tools into place and then actually (gasp) listening. Another example of what it takes to create a customer-centric organization. (Tweet Score: 49)

8.) Apple Store 2.0: Why Customer Experience Leaders Should Care http://ow.ly/54wKg
Here's Apple…yet again…with a possible game-changer, this time in its in-store experience. Adding technology (on its own product platform, of course) to its customer service, their goal is to improve the customer's in-store experience and service, not foist off (expensive) human interaction into a (low-cost) self-help track like some supermarket self-check line. (Oh how I love those self-check lines. But I digress.) Customers get product information, hands-on time with an iPad, a behind-the-scenes look at the queue, and a way to summon help in the form of a human, nerd glasses, skinny jeans and all. (Tweet
Score: 48)

9.) Market Research needs an overhaul http://ow.ly/4Xygk
Binders full of stats, endless powerpoints, quarterly emails with impregnable diagrams, all of which get filed away by people too busy to decipher them. If that's how market research looks to those of you in large organizations, then read here for a better way. Believe it or not, there is a role for intuition, or knowledge of one's customer base, what Temkin calls "contextual insight." More action! More advice! More distributed access! And more help so that clients can help themselves, yes, absolutely, amen. (Tweet Score: 44)

10.) Reading: "Innovating the Customer Experience" http://ow.ly/524vm
Why are we all so enamored of innovation and how do we find the people to do it? This post is all over the place but it's an interesting journey, and I especially like where it ends up: Know your customer and find your innovators. (Tweet Score: 43)