Category Archives: Customer Experience

Examples of how small wins can enhance the customer experience

An example of Small Wins Innovation

The Cheesecake Factory We love going to Hawaii. The sun, surf, people are all amazing. Every year we try and go to a restaurant called The Cheesecake Factory. Every year it’s packed. I have often wondered why. Then it hit me. They do lots of little things really well. Or what I call Small Wins Innovation. – the meals are plentiful – service is friendly – the cheesecakes are to die for – there is a great buzz – the location on the main street helps – ... Read more

How small wins can change behaviour

‘Around 55,000 Australians go to hospital with a heart attack every year and around one third of those are repeat heart attacks.’ Associate Professor Clara Chow, The George Institute for Global Health in Sydney In an effort to reduce these alarming figures particularly the repeat rate the researchers tried something new. They sent a series of simple text messages to the patients (4 per week) for 6 months in an attempt to improve their health. Patient received texts such as: ... Read more

Here’s a small win – win

I found this sign and drinking dish outside of a cafe in Coogee, Sydney. It made me smile. Also a smart move. Lots of dog walkers go past this cafe on the beach. A small win – win for the dog and you. Small, thoughtful changes can make a big difference. Read more

Here’s a new way of selling cars that works

My existing car is 8 years old so I trudged off to the various car yards to have a look at what’s new. What I did notice was how the salesperson talked about the price. Previously it was always – go with the cheapest price and then there was all the add ons. These always seemed to be hidden or in the fine print which consumers (I suspect) found annoying. But the salesperson on the weekend used a different approach. He gave me the total retail figure say $24000. Then said: ... Read more

How to innovate – one small win at a time*

Disruptive innovation is everywhere it seems. There’s an ongoing fixation with the next Uber, Netflix, WhatsApp or Airbnb. Even perennial technology darlings such as Twitter or Facebook seem, well, so yesterday. It’s intoxicating, heady stuff as one technological change can seemingly transform an industry and lead to growth rates going through the roof. But for every game-changing success there are thousands of failures which are not so glamorous. The lesson therefore is to dream big but to ... Read more

What’s the ultimate consumer response?

When I went to business school (some time ago I admit), we were told that marketing was all about satisfying a targeted consumer needs and wants at an acceptable margin. This is a sound idea approach as far as it goes. But it is not enough anymore. I believe the ultimate consumer response nowadays is thank you. Thank you for making the experience better, faster or simpler. It’s the goal in my small wins innovation approach. In the example here I noticed that in the Nanjing Airport ... Read more

Why packaging design matters

I love this example of packaging design. It’s a sun tan screening lotion. I imagine the ingredients are much the same as other products. But what makes the difference is the packaging. Notice the clip at the top. Suddenly I can imagine using this and attaching it to my jeans or board shorts or golf bag. Price has become a secondary issue. The leaders of this brand have produced a design that enhances the customer experience. It’s a small change but it works. A classic win ... Read more

Why are printers so ugly?

This is a picture of my printer at my home office. Everything else is beautifully designed yet I cringe when I have to look at my black box in the corner. Surely the printing companies can do better? Great design is now a consumer and customer expectation. Imagine if our mobile phones still looked like big, clunky bricks? Printers need to be disrupted. Please Apple and Jonathon Ivy (head of design) buy a printing brand and design something that is wonderful. Consumers and your bottom line ... Read more

The Starbucks customer experience

I have been running a number of courses and workshops in Shanghai and Hong Kong on Small Wins Innovation. One of the group activities we do is to visit a Starbucks site and search for small, new ideas. Participants are fascinated with this exercise because it’s like they are seeing Starbucks for the first time. They come back with numerous images of lots of small ideas and discuss what works, what they can learn and apply to their business. Invariably they come to the conclusion that ... Read more

What can you customise?

It’s been out for a few years now but Coco-Cola has been placing various names on their bottles. This idea was created and tested in Australia and then rolled out to the various Coca-Cola businesses. All the indications are that it is working. This made me think. What can you customise in your product, service or consumer experience. Perhaps I could customise my books or ebooks for example? It’s a nice example of a win – win. The customer feels special and hopefully it ... Read more