Good ideas are like bad pennies — they just keep turning up, don’t they?
Case in point: The renewed and refreshing focus on customer experiences.
In the past few weeks alone, we’ve heard inspiring stories and wisdom from Ken Schmidt, Jeanne Bliss, Karen Abramson, Daniel Burrus, and others, all focused on the good things that happen when companies devote themselves to creating memorable customer experiences.
Now comes the economics behind customer experiences — namely, those experiences are good for your customers and your business.
In “The Experience Economy,” authors Joseph Pine and James Gilmore argue that as goods and services become commoditized, your ability to create meaningful experiences for your clients becomes more profitable.
In some cases, they become transformational. Starbucks, for instance, transformed an entire industry by turning coffee into a destination — and an experience.
Bob Dean, a Business Learning Institute instructor and one of only a handful of certified “Experience Economy experts” — says huge opportunities await the CPAs and other professional service providers who figure out how to differentiate themselves from the competition by building memorable experiences for their customers. Those who do will create fiercely loyal customers — and make a ton of money in the process.
“Customer satisfaction alone isn’t enough to create loyalty,” Bob said. “What’s needed is a more intimate customer experience between the service provider and client, and the ability to identify and eliminate customer sacrifice.”
And by the way, none of this is imperative. It’s still a free country, and you’re welcome to do nothing. Know this, though: Bob says the price you’ll pay for your inaction might be extinction itself.
Watch my interview with Dean in its entirety.
Want to learn more?
Check out Bob’s upcoming BLI and MACPA programs:
- Jan. 4 webcast: “Business Innovation in the Experience Economy“
- Customized learning: “Making Learning Stick: Foundations“
- Customized learning: “Making Learning Stick: Immersion and Application“