EXP. Magazine 2022 - Curated By Ogilvy

EXP.

EXPERIENCE

THE “FULL-FUNNEL VALUE” OF E-COMMERCE IN ASIA THREE TIPS TO BECOMING A MORE PRODUCT-LED ORGANIZATION PUTTING CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE BACK ON THE MAP

EXP 2022

IS YOUR BRAND READY FOR A POSTDIGITAL WORLD?

BUILDING A CULTURE OF EXPERIMENTATION FOUR REASONS EXPERIMENTATION MATTERS TO YOUR BUSINESS 1

the next eight weeks could change your life.

Well, the life of your business that is.

USER DESIRABILIT Y

Experience development carries risk. And often development begins without effectively articulating the why, what, and how that will ensure success.

Bottle Rocket’s eight-week strategy program is designed to help you create a vision for the future, provide clarity to everyone involved, and offer the confidence needed to chart a path to effective and efficient development.

Let us help mitigate risk and jumpstart your experience journey to sustainable, long-term growth.

Value Usable

TECH/OPS FEASIBILIT Y

BUSINESS VIABILIT Y

Supportable Feasible

Viable

Scalable

Measurable

•

Mitigates Risk

•

Unlocks Velocity

•

Focuses on Outcomes

HELLO@BOT TLEROCKETSTUDIOS.COM

EXPERIENCE STRATEGY THAT DRIVES OUTCOMES

EXPERIENCE

QR CODES: BACK FROM THE DEAD TIM BURKE, EICOFF

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CONTENTS

EXP 2022

A LOYAL CUSTOMER IS NOT THE SAME AS A FOREVER CUSTOMER MICHELLE WILDENAUER, MARY ENGLISH, THE L ACEK GROUP

MSCHF CONTINUES TO MAKE MISCHIEF PETER KL AYMAN, BOT TLE ROCKET

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THE 7 KEY PILLARS OF CX MATURIT Y R AJAT K ANODIA, VERTICURL

34 54 64

NOW, NEW, NEXT 6

24

Building A Culture of Experimentation Ari Sheinkin, IBM The Rebirth of Social Communities Arnaud Vanhemelryck, Social Lab

Why Time Is the Newest Experience Currency / Kaleeta McDade,

Ogilvy Experience 30

The Importance of CDPs in Today’s

Consumer-Driven World / Karl Schneider, Verticurl 33

The Diversity of People in the Labor Market / Eduardo Kras, Jüssi 42

The Who, What, Why, and How of

Scaled Agile and Its Benefits to Businesses / Rachel Matz, Bottle Rocket 49

Unlocking 500% Opportunity: How

Brand Equity Powers Breakout

Commerce Experiences / Dan Saltzman, Ogilvy 64

77

90

94

The Power of User Feedback: Inciting Change for the Better / Deb Gelman, Bottle Rocket In a World Full of Complications, Let’s Get Back to the Basics / Steve Soechtig, Ogilvy Experience I’m All Ears: The Importance of Deep Listening in the Design Process Steve Clements, Bottle Rocket

By experience experts for experience experts, EXP. is a magazine for anyone that believes in the power of experience and thrives off innovation.

EXPERIENCE MAGA ZINE 2022

2021 EXPERIENCES WE LOVE What’s Your Why? Innovation on Purpose / Tara Nesbitt, Amplitude 14

Robots Continue Their Path to Home Automation Dominance / Luke Wallace, Bottle Rocket 16

26

The Shaper of Things to Come / Mike Tidmarsh, Ogilvy

Tide Successfully Bridges the Physical and Digital Divide / Tim Duncan, Bottle Rocket 28

45

The Device I Wish I Would Have Had / Doina Harris, Simon Data

Nintendo Switches Attention to Mobile / Brooke Grief, Iterable 46

EXP 2022

52

Staying Alive: How Consistency, Love, and a Little Technology Is Helping My Passion Grow / Audrey Dubie, Bottle Rocket

LOOKING FORWARD TO 2022 9

Is Your Brand Ready for a Post-Digital World / Rajesh Midha, Ogilvy Experience 18

25

38

Is the Cutting Edge the Only Place to Innovate?

Matthew Tobias, Bottle Rocket

58

¿Por Qué Quesadillas? / Thomas Butta, Airship

61

Design + Tech = Better Together / Alex Cohen, Bottle Rocket

70

How I Became An Accidental Brand Loyalist / Andrew Sevin, Bottle Rocket

72

54

62

On the Road to Recovery Without Leaving the Couch / Terri Casterton, Bottle Rocket 68

How Gather Helped Our Teams Work “Better Together” / Greer Crow, Bottle Rocket 80

Vans: An Off the Wall Experience / Mathieu Gillain, Social Lab

86

Better Together. Wherever. / Becky Mason, Bottle Rocket

82

Gucci Leads Luxury in the Virtual Try-On / Alex Hummel, Ogilvy 92

A People-First Look at the Metaverse / Al Nolan, Bottle Rocket

Honey, I Shrunk the Restaurant! / Tony Daussat, Bottle Rocket Why Marketing and Product Teams Should Bet on Customer Behaviors / Peter Klayman, Bottle Rocket

A Renewed Mandate: Employee Onboarding / Stephen Partridge, Ogilvy 40

Three Tips to Becoming A More Product-Led Organization / Alex Cohen, Bottle Rocket Know Me, Guide Me, Wow Me: A Re-introduction

to E-Commerce Personalization / Amanda Elam, Bloomreach 75

78

Why Today’s Customer Expects Synergy / Steve Soechtig, Rajesh Midha, Ogilvy Experience Making API Experience a Project Priority / Danny Baggett, Bottle Rocket

Putting Customer Experience Back on the Map / Al Harnisch, Radar 84

The “Full-funnel Value” of eCommerce in Asia / Jeremy Webb, Ogilvy Asia 86

EDITOR: Rajesh Midha MANAGING EDITOR: Jana Boone DESIGN AND ART DIRECTION: Stefani Guest, Laura Berner, Andrew Ashton ILLUSTRATIONS: Illustrate By Me, https:// illustratebyme.com PICTURE EDITOR: Laura Berner CREATIVE INSPIRATION: Devika Bulchandani EXPERIENCE INSPIRATION: Steve Soechtig PUBLISHER: Bottle Rocket Studios, an Ogilvy Experience Company CONTRIBUTING COMPANIES AND ENTITIES: After the Glass Breaks, Airship, Amplitude, Bloomreach, Bottle Rocket, Eicoff, IBM, Iterable, Jüssi, Liftoff by Bottle Rocket, Ogilvy, Ogilvy Experience, Radar, Simon Data, Social Lab, The Lacek Group, Verticurl PRINTING: Creative Color LLC, Garland, TX 75040 EXP. Magazine. © 2022. All Rights Reserved. Neither this publication nor any part of it may be reproduced, stored, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic,

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mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior written consent of EXP Magazine. Published by Bottle Rocket Studios, Dallas, TX 75254.

Where opinion is expressed it is that of the authors and does not necessarily coincide with the editorial views of the publisher or editorial staff of EXP Magazine.

EXPERIENCE LET TER FROM THE EDITOR

Rajesh Midha

2021 was a year that challenged us, changed us, and brought historical transformations in technology and experiences.

No one can argue that 2021 was a year full

of

massive

transformations,

both

personally and professionally. Last year, the pandemic forced us all to live, work, and communicate in ways we may have never before considered. We watched from inside EXP 2022

our homes as the digital world around us advanced years in only a few months.

But what is helpful to remember is that innovation doesn’t matter if it doesn’t drive brand value. We often say it’s the intersection of technology viability, customer desirability, and business value

Some brands that had existing digital

that creates experiences that will stand

solutions or rapidly iterated to create

the test of time and ultimately become

new ways for consumers to interact saw

imperatives in our lives. This is the supreme

rapid adoption of their digital solutions.

trifecta for brands and technologists alike.

And we know that with change comes innovation. But this year, we didn’t just experience innovation for innovations sake, but rather we witnessed new applications of technology and the emergence of new business concepts to meet the everchanging needs of today’s customers.

Amazing, inspirational brand experiences materialized

almost

daily

and

new

interesting methods of interacting with brands were immediately at our fingertips.

As we move into an all new year with brand new challenges and discoveries, we hope that something in this publication will inspire you to action, drive you to try something new, or at the very least, make you think. And as we reflect back on 2021, its many trials, tribulations, and hardships, we hope this new year brings joy, success, and good fortune for you and those you cherish. Cheers to 2022 and best wishes for all the wonderment the new year brings.

Onward and upward.

Rajesh Midha Editor, EXP.

5

EXPERIENCE

BUILDING A CULTURE OF EXPERIMENTATION THERE’S REAL POWER IN DATA-DRIVEN MARKETING

WRIT TEN BY: ARI SHEINKIN,

VICE PRESIDENT, EXPERIENCE ENGINE, IBM

I work for IBM, so it won’t surprise you that I believe in data-driven marketing. Having helped dozens of organizations use data to transform for growth, I’ve come to recognize that the most successful companies do something beyond their data-lake, their martech or their AI/ML; they build a culture of experimentation. In the simplest terms that means they experiment – a lot. At a deeper level, they use tools like a/b and multivariate testing to reshape their culture to be more user-centric, more boldly creative, less afraid of failure, more agile and more fun.

If you haven’t experienced it yet, here are four reasons why experimentation matters to your business.

EXPERIMENTATION GIVES YOU THE BEST USER DATA IN THE WORLD In a digital world, the most valuable data for decision making doesn’t sit in a database, you can’t query it or ask a data scientist. In a digital world, you create your own insight by putting your experience into the market as a structured experiment. This starts by taking your most imaginative idea (maybe the one you were afraid to pitch) and surrounding it with testable hypotheses. Better than focus groups or research, every user click is unfiltered feedback on your message, your design, your product, your experience. It’s the best data in the world, it’s direct

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from your user, and it’s free.

EXPERIENCE

EXPERIMENTATION MARRIES THE ART AND SCIENCE OF MARKETING

EXPERIMENTATION CHANGES YOUR CULTURE

Marketing is a balance between the artistic

Every

process and the scientific method. Despite

become more agile and more data driven.

the perceived conflict, I have never met a

Experimentation offers a practical path. First,

creative

more

it changes the organization’s sense of risk

insight into user behavior. Similarly, I’ve never

by lowering the cost of failure. In a culture

met an analytics person who doesn’t want

of experimentation, well designed projects

their data to help share the user experience.

can’t fail, they always create new learning.

Experimentation

Second, experimentation increases speed by

divide

person

by

who

doesn’t

bridges

making

want

the

analytics

traditional

part

of

company

I

consult

with

wants

to

the

shifting the focus from planning to getting into

creative process. Every creative choice is

market. It has been amazing to watch parts of

an opportunity to test, and every test is an

IBM evolve from quarterly planning to real-

opportunity to push the bounds of creativity.

time decision making. Finally, it democratizes data by putting power into the hands of the

EXPERIMENTATION DELIVERS BUSINESS RESULTS FAST It’s amazing the difference a word can make.

Or a color. Or the placement of a button. In my first year introducing experimentation to IBM, we averaged triple digit improvement across

marketer.

When I started, IBM had seven live tests all run through our CIO. Today we have thousands of experiments conceived by hundreds of marketers across media, web, email, events and more.

our target metrics in digital. As an example,

Experimentation brings agile to life, makes data

increasing the color contrast between the

accessible, infuses scientific thinking into the

call-to-action button and the background

fabric of creative work and makes money. Once

on our web pages drove over 100% higher

you experience a culture of experimentation,

engagement within days.

you never go back.

From those modest early tests, we moved on to big, bold audience personalization experiments that delivered up to 2,000% better performance. In turn, these results inspired more traditional parts of the business to join the movement. Today we use experimentation to bridge the physical and digital worlds to create holistic customer journey innovation.

“Today we use experimentation to bridge the physical and digital worlds to create holistic customer journey innovation.”

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The world is going hybrid with IBM. Today, your business needs to keep things moving—and be prepared for what’s next. With IBM, you can do both.

By bringing your data together across clouds, you can modernize applications, automate IT processes, predict and manage operational issues, and help keep private data secured. That’s why so many businesses are working with IBM. ibm.com

IBM and the IBM logo are trademarks of International Business Machines Corporation, registered in many jurisdictions worldwide. Other product and service names might be trademarks of IBM or other companies. A current list of IBM trademarks is available at ibm.com/trademark. ©International Business Machines Corp. 2021. B34335

WRIT TEN BY: AL NOL AN,

HEAD OF TECHNICAL CONSULTING, BOTTLE ROCKET

meta/human

A People-First Look at the Metaverse

Meta wants you to think that it invented the

commonplace. They have been teaching us

metaverse. In a number of ways they will -

how to co-exist in persistent 3D spaces for

just by deciding. In 10 years there will be no

years now. Without the burden of promoting

shortage of white papers and case studies

something as grand as a “Metaverse” the

written about how the Facebook transition

groundwork is now laid for what is now not

to Meta was a watershed moment that saved

so scary. What was novel before is now a

the notion of a sustainable, capitalized

proper noun that one of the most powerful

metaverse. Why wouldn’t a hiring blitz, a

companies in the world is renaming itself

full-throated rebrand and an intentional

after.

multi-year, multi-billion dollar investment give them that moniker – the inventors of the metaverse?

What is also unique are the circumstances by which this conversation has arisen. There are now several conglomerates worth $1

We will not remember that before October

trillion who have maybe maxed out their

of 2021, the metaverse existed in the form

market cap for the moment. There are only

of Fortnite, Roblox, Second Life and even

so many companies to buy that make sense

physical installations like The Void in San

so combined revenue and brand equity may

Francisco have existed for years. The idea

have apexed. Incomes might be stabilizing

of shared virtual environments had been

soon and consumers need new stimuli; to

popularized long before the term metaverse

supplement travel. And social media has

and tales of its lore will hopefully persist.

taken it’s share of blows over the last several

However, where we are now feels different.

With the advent of democratized technology from Nvidia & Microsoft’s Mesh and even Apple’s Memojis have done something powerful: they’ve made shared virtual spaces

years. Consumers need to be inspired to consider new things but what is there that can inspire a jaded social itch? And home is the new work... is the new home. People are falling back in love with their own living

ENTER: THE METAVERSE. spaces and making investments to ensure their qualities of life. What is needed is new real estate – new digital real estate.

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EXPERIENCE

WRIT TEN BY: PETER KL AYMAN,

VP, BUSINESS STRATEGY, BOTTLE ROCKET

“TURNS OUT MSCHF IS A LABORATORY OF VIRALITY THAT WE CAN ALL LEARN FROM.”

MSCHF CONTINUES TO MAKE MISCHIEF Most of you are asking yourself, MSCHF, what is that? For those in the know, you may be wondering, what lessons can be learned from a company that created a jamming device for Alexa using ultrasonic speakers and collaborated with Lil Nas X to create shoes with human blood in them that resulted in getting sued by Nike (yes you read that right)?

Turns out MSCHF is a laboratory of virality that we can all learn from. What’s the premise of their business? Well, it’s complicated and at the same time entirely simple. Every two weeks they release a new “product.” If you ask MSCHF’s CEO, he will say “We’re trying to do stuff that the world can’t even define.”

(Business Insider). I’d say they are succeeding.

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https://mschf.xyz/

EXPERIENCE

11

“For me, this is how it all began. A few years ago, I was sucked into the dark hole that is MSCHF when a friend sent me a cryptic Reddit post.”

As you can imagine, I was instantly intrigued.

By downloading the MSCHF app, I’ve been able to stay in the know about all their newest drops.

After two years of following the business, I’m still not entirely sure how they make money; however, I’ve learned a lot from them. Here’s a few key learnings that can apply to pretty much any business.

4. Both Bottle Rocket and industry research

1. MSCHF is great at building MVPs, truly

shows that friends are a great driver of new

boiling down experiences to their most essen-

user acquisition. MSCHF knows this and con-

tial parts. No more, no less.

sistently creates “share worthy” content, thus

2. Not every MSCHF product is a hit, but

constantly growing their user base.

the sheer volume of experiences keeps me coming back. Users will allow for experimentation if there is a demonstrated history of value exchange.

3. MSCHF masters engagement channels.

They leverage push notifications, SMS, and in-app messaging well, and they know exactly which to use and when.

5. The future of experiences span physical and digital. Whether we look at Spots Revenge or Eight Tlve, MSCHF knows cross-channel physical and digital engagement is key.

Rebels always point out important things, although their tactics might not always be the most socially appropriate. MSCHF is no different. If your organization wants to implement iterative solutions that drive virality and brand love, there’s a lot that can be learned from this rebel called MSCHF.

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Great products are built with great data. amplitude.com

EXPERIENCE

What’s Your Why? Innovation on Purpose Written By:

TARA NESBITT Sr. Partner Marketing Manager, Amplitude

If you know me, you would know that I spend

Imagine you owned a brick-and-mortar at

a lot of time thinking about things that are a

the beginning of 2020. Your business would

bit ordinary from an extraordinary point of

have undoubtedly faced many challenges

view. When I think about innovation in the

in the past 18 months. Fortunately, Shopify

past year, I think about it through a brand’s

found their “why” as a brand and quickly

“why”. It’s all about the “Golden Circle”.

stepped in with tools that empowered

The Golden Circle was first introduced and

businesses to launch online operations

described by Simon Sinek during a TEDx

overnight

Talk in 2009. In his talk, Sinek explains that

terminals into e-commerce stores.

by

converting

the most successful businesses in the world “think, act and communicate” the same way and that this way is diametrically opposed to that of less successful brands.

WHAT WHAT: YOUR PURPOSE

What Do You Do? The Result of the Why. Proof.

HOW

HOW: YOUR PURPOSE

Specific Actions Taken to Realise Your Why.

WHY: YOUR PURPOSE

What is Your Cause? What Do You Believe?

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WHY

point

of

sale

In 2020, we saw not only the effects of a

So what is the connection between Simon

global pandemic but also racial injustice

Sinek’s “Golden Circle” and these short

in America. While many brands did things

snippets of innovation from Shopify, Netflix,

in the moment to address these injustices,

and Apple? These brands know how to do

Netflix has fully leaned in and made

ordinary innovation, solely based on why

considerable investments around building

they exist; Shopify’s purpose is to provide a

a programming strategy that is central to

platform for business owners to start, grow

Black audiences. They have continued to

and manage a business, Netflix’s purpose is

highlight the Black perspective well beyond

to entertain the world and Apple’s purpose

the stereotypical storyline and role.

is to create products that enrich people’s lives. It’s the extraordinary innovation that This past year, we saw innovation in many

they each demonstrated this past year

sizes and one of the smallest forms of

through their ability to use their “why” to

innovations came at Apple’s World Wide

reimagine what is.

Developer Conference 2021 with Focus Mode. This small innovation in a world with so much noise and distractions has allowed users to personalize and reduce notifications in a world that feels always on.

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Written By:

Luke Wallace

Robots Continue Their Path to Home Automation Dominance

VP of Application Development, Bottle Rocket

Sci-Fi movies continue to inspire technologists around the world, and often the wildest ideas from just a few years ago become the household technology of tomorrow. We’re seeing the path to both humanoid robots (we could call these the C-3PO type robots), and the more utilitarian helper bots (perhaps known as the R2-D2 type). Both have made significant progress this year.

Boston Dynamics has taken their humanoid robots named Atlas far beyond walking, now performing full dance routines and parkour. I see these robots someday being humanoid helpers in the home. Why replace all your light switches with automatic ones, when your robot could walk around and turn the lights on or off for you while you are away? And checking on your elderly parents can be done remotely, much like the movie Robot & Frank so adeptly illustrated. We’re still years away from a home version from Boston Dynamics, but that only allows more time for the technology to be refined.

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Image source: Boston Dynamics

EXPERIENCE For those that may be leery of a five-foot tall robot with hands walking around their house, the Amazon Astro is being released this year to early previews, and provides much of the R2-D2 experience, with a telescoping camera for monitoring your home remotely, and the ability to follow it’s commanders, whether they be adult or child. With a built-in display, it could serve as an Echo Show device and display information, as well as provide Alexa-style auditory information.

I’m very excited that more general-purpose robots are on the horizon. I’d rather have technology that adapts to my world, than to adapt my world to the technology. Nascent forms like robot vacuums and pet feeders with cameras are nice to prove out use cases, but I believe eventually we’ll see more general purpose robots like Astro that can then control simpler robots themselves.

Image Credit: Tech Talks

The sophisticated logic for scheduling and coordination can be handled by a singular source, which can then either delegate to lower form robots, or interact directly with the same devices that humans use. A humanoid robot that loads your current dishwasher is more likely than a self-contained robot dishwasher with all the necessary parts to load and unload dishes to your cabinets.

Time will tell how quickly these will be adopted, but much like smartphones I imagine that a few early adopters will pave the way for a lifestyle change that is even more significant.

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EXPERIENCE

IS YOUR BRAND READY FOR A P O S T - D I G I T A L

18

WORLD?

WRIT TEN BY: R AJESH MIDHA,

PRESIDENT, OGILV Y EXPERIENCE

“THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN DIGITAL ENGAGEMENT AND COMPANY GROWTH HAS NEVER BEEN FELT MORE INTENSELY THAN DURING THE PANDEMIC...”

Brands trying to navigate today’s

that in North America, digital adoption

competitive environment are facing

(meaning customer interactions that

a digital dilemma. It’s no secret that

happen digitally) grew by 58 percent,

digital

become

to an average of 65 percent. Globally,

fundamental to every industry. They’re

digital adoption grew by 61 percent to

the primary vehicle for engaging with

an average of 58 percent.

experiences

have

customers and, quite frankly, surviving in the virtual era.

The indicators are pointing toward a world where digital interactions,

digital

such as touch screens and interactive

engagement and company growth

tablets, are no longer just “nice to

has never been felt more intensely

haves.” But if a brand hasn’t already

than during the pandemic: Custom-

made the decision to digitally adapt, it

ers

has more than likely missed its window

The

relationship

waved

between

goodbye

to

in-person

interactions and embraced the online

for

world. In fact, research from McKinsey

Progress suggests that more than half

has shown that organizations that

(55 percent) of businesses that haven’t

experimented with and invested in

started the process yet believe they

new digital technologies during the

have less than a year before they start

pandemic are twice as likely to report

to suffer financially and lose market

improved revenue growth than those

share.

that didn’t. Now, as everyone continues to adapt, businesses must tackle the realities of digital transformations and think about them in a more fluid way.

transformation.

A

study

from

Why? Because the way consumers want to access information is constantly

subject

to

change.

Think

about Blockbuster as an example — takes you back, right? In its heyday, it was one of the largest and most

GO DIGITAL OR GET LEFT BEHIND.

successful VHS rental companies in the world. The company eventually

Brands that were able to create

evolved with the times and began

meaningful

between

selling DVDs, but filed for bankrupt-

their businesses and customers, even

cy as it failed to keep up with the

during these distant times, will be the

likes of Netflix and the DVD-by-mail

ones that continue to compete and

phenomenon. Fast forward a decade

win in this uncertain market. The same

and it no longer exists because

research from McKinsey has shown

streaming

connections

services

dominate

the

market and set the pace for entrants.

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EXPERIENCE Missing that critical window for transformation, in the midst of new digital expectations, meant that Blockbuster almost automatically became irrelevant in the minds of consumers looking for the next best experience.

The sheer advancement in digital resources that most brands have made means we’re swiftly moving from the era of digital transformation and into the post-digital transformation age.

Business leaders who have learned to adapt to the seismic changes over the past 18 months or so are now asking themselves, “What’s next?” What does the post-digital transformation age look like, and what can brands do to prepare? Here are three suggestions.

INTERACTIONS, BOTH PHYSICAL AND DIGITAL, HAVE THEREFORE NEVER BEEN MORE IMPORTANT TO A BRAND’S CONNECTION WITH CUSTOMERS.”

DIFFERENTIATE YOUR BRAND. The reality is that digital-native chal-

enable customers to order online or on

must shift their thinking from simply

lengers are disrupting all industries.

the app and then pick up their orders

providing an interface for users to

COVID-19 heightened this trend and

without leaving their cars. These lanes

creating the best possible experience

radically accelerated the need for

have proven so successful that, after

that lives up to customer expectations.

transformation. New and exciting tech-

being introduced in 2019, 62 percent

nologies come into the mix every day,

of new stores that were opened last

leaving companies battling to meet

year included a Chipotlane. And the

somewhat unreasonable expectations,

strategy is paying off. By doubling

though by no means is this unjust.

down

Consumers, who have constant access

Chipotle has seen sales grow by 177

to digital applications, now reasonably

percent in one year, with nearly half

expect that they can always get the

of its sales now coming from digital

information they want in a matter of

channels.

seconds.

a

digital-first

approach,

EMOTIONAL CONNECTION. Even

though

new

technologies

emerge over time, the key success criteria of a digital experience remain timeless. Even 10 years ago, brands kept

buzzwords

like

“frictionless,”

Clearly, then, long-term growth now

“personalized,” and “contextual” front

That’s why staying ahead of the pack

lies in creating digital change, sup-

of mind when designing their experi-

and crafting the next generation of

ported by investment, which will see

ences. These features are still import-

digital experiences is essential to

a brand through the next 36 months,

ant, but now consumers expect them

survival. The way to do this is by rec-

not 12. What’s important to remember,

with everything they do. Customers

ognizing and personally serving the

not just for QSRs, but for all sectors,

know that the moment an experience

customer behind the screen. Knowing

is that as soon as a digital experience

fails to be personalized, seamless and

them, their preferences, their likes and

is brought to market, it’s time to be

attention-grabbing, they can turn to

their norms has become mandatory

thinking about the next wave of itera-

many other competitors. Now more

and will be essential in differentiating

tion to stay relevant and in demand.

than ever, the emotional connection

any one brand from others.

20

on

LEVERAGE YOUR BRAND FOR AN

Customers don’t see competition in

Let’s take QSR (quick service restau-

the same way businesses do. We’ve

rants) as an example sector, which is

been

often acknowledged as a frontrunner

ences, no matter the sector, and to

in digital trends. Right now, Chipotle

immediately begin comparing our last

is showing other QSRs the ropes.

experience to the next one. And, with

The company recently opened up

some amazing experiences out there

“Chipotlanes” at new stores, which

for comparison, companies of all types

trained

to

compare

experi-

that a consumer forms with your brand matters. It may be the only thing that can truly make a brand stand out from the sea of sameness in which customers view a company as no different from its competition.

EXPERIENCE That’s why, nowadays, the brand itself

In the current market, digital experi-

has become the value a company

ences look increasingly similar. Every

holds;

be

website and mobile application have

unique to that brand. Think about

the same layout, the same menu style,

yourself as a consumer: More often

even the same visuals. Brands are

than not, your perception of brands

stuck in the sea of sameness and are

and

options

no longer unique. If customers search

available to you actually come from

and find a specific website or mobile

your engagement with experiences.

application that looks like every other

Brand and experience have become

experience, they’re going to start to

two sides of the same coin, whereby

find new ways to differentiate. More

the experience has grown to become

than likely, that means looking for

the avenue for the expression of the

some other means of comparison. If

brand.

they’re on the purchase journey, they

any

your

Today,

experience

awareness

customers

should

of

often

discover

new brands outside of typical brand activation

or

advertising

most convenient fulfillment.

channels.

The important thing to recognize

Oftentimes, we start the purchase

is they’re looking for convenience.

journey with a Google search. But what

They’re not truly choosing a specific

many people don’t realize is that some

brand for any other reason. This makes

of the largest search engines or start-

the emotional connection opportunity

ing points aren’t Google, but rather

of even greater importance. Brands

YouTube and Amazon. The purchasing

need to capitalize on that opportunity

journey no longer begins with building

by evaluating the market and its audi-

awareness of a brand; instead, we’re

ence, understand the customers’ ex-

starting with a search and engaging

plicit needs and implicit expectations,

with that brand ourselves.

discover those underlying emotional

Brand experiences — both physical and digital — have therefore never been more important to a brand’s connection with customers. Research from Forrester reveals that 70 percent of emotionally engaged consumers spend two times or more on brands they are loyal to, compared with 49 percent with low emotional engagement. Because of the infinite options customers have at their fingertips, emotional connections will be a key driver for loyalty for years to come.

AVOID THE COMMODITIZATION PITFALL.

Consumers’

buying

decisions

are

often complicated by indecisiveness.

This is the so-called “messy middle,” meaning the complex journey consumers follow on the path to making a purchase. Businesses have mere seconds to grab the attention of a potential customer, so differentiating themselves from the competition and ensuring that their experience is as pain-free as possible is paramount.

22

might look for the lowest price or the

triggers and explore how best they can be leveraged to drive specific actions.

THE OPPORTUNITY OF THE NEW DIGITAL CHALLENGE.

Although the post-digital transformation age is uncharted territory, the leap is well worth the risk. Every company out there must be willing to go beyond simply

providing

interactions

and

interfaces, or risk fading into the background much like Blockbuster. Without a

guaranteed

recipe

for

success,

brands must connect with their customers to truly personalize the experience, stir an emotional response, and create a more seamless purchasing journey.

The opportunity to understand and recognize the emotional state of the consumer is there to be leveraged.

Only through creating such emphasized change will brands be able to drive action, and this doesn’t necessarily mean transaction. It could also mean loyalty, advocacy, or further engagement.

Either

way,

brands

should be measuring the effectiveness of these three digital tactics to constantly iterate and ensure their brand experience is crafted to suit the next generation of customers.

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON: BUILTIN.COM

Stay on top

competition of the

By combining deep expertise in performance media and a smart use of ad-tech, Ogilvy Social.Lab can increase the Return of Ad Spend (ROAS) of your Amazon Advertising campaigns by up to 45%.

Mathieu Gillain @ mathieu.gillain@social-lab.eu.

EXPERIENCE

THE REBIRTH OF SOCIAL COMMUNITIES WRIT TEN BY: ARNAUD VANHEMELRYCK,

GLOBAL SOCIAL DIRECTOR,

SOCIAL L AB

Approximately 10 years ago, social

As a result of the drastic changes in the

In this new Red Paper, we will explore

communities were considered the digital

social distribution algorithms, more and

what makes of an effective social

marketing Holy Grail. At that time, the

more social communities were progres-

community, why you should care, what

organic reach of social platforms was

sively ignored in favour of niche paid

you should learn from them, and, im-

still double-digit and it was uncommon

media targeting tactics, which ultimately

portantly the new business models of

that marketeers had to invest in paid

proved to perform better. This is mainly

community-focused platforms that are

media to reach their customers. If you

explained by the fact that many brands

emerging.

were a brand with an active community

were competing to attract customers

(read with a large chunk of followers), it

into their communities using tactics like

is likely that your page engagement and

Like Ads, easy contests or rewards, and,

interactions were extremely high.

as a result, unconsciously attracted a

Fast forward to 2021: organic reach is at its all-time low, page engagement hardly takes off despite smart content marketing plans, and media investment is becoming a no-brainer if you want to reach specific audience segments. Even

large number of ‘fans’ that had very little real connection with the brand. Paid media targeting offered the opportunity to reconquest quality customers and keep them engaged within the brand communications.

if you owned a large community in the

Social communities however still provide

2010s, today’s algorithms determining

added value to their members in a

organic reach prevents you addressing

crowded, mistrusted and sometimes

more than 1-5% of your followers (excep-

toxic social media environment. While

tion occurs).

communities may not be the answer to every short-term business objective, they can prove helpful in the long run and act as a useful addition to your digital marketing strategy.

GET THE FULL DOWNLOAD.

EXPERIENCE

HONEY, I SHRUNK THE RESTAURANT! Written By:

TONY DAUSSAT

It turns out that for some, the ROI is not

With Gen Z, mobile order preference grew

worth all of the hassle and expense that

to 65% in 2021 vs 41% in 2020. So as this

comes with open dining rooms.

next generation of spenders continue to

This has pivoted the way these companies have been thinking about restaurant real estate. The future is smaller footprints and

Managing Experience Design Strategist,

ghost kitchens. To wit, Taco Bell served 4MM

Bottle Rocket

more cars in 2021 than in 2020–expediting their option to shrink store footprints from

products

and

services–businesses

must

react at the speed of customer expectations, not the speed of the boardroom. For most in the fast-food and QSR space, that means a lot less real estate and a lot more connected experiences. It means bringing the dining

We’re feeling more and more like the end

2,500 sqft to 1,325 sqft with a variety of lanes

of the pandemic is here and yet, in the fast

focused on Mobile and Drive-Thru. Another

food world, Take-Out and Drive-Thru are still

big fast-food player, Wendy’s, is doubling

eating Dine-In’s lunch. (See what I did there?)

down on the shrinking dine-in bet and plans

The days of sitting inside a fast-food joint,

to open 700 delivery-only ghost kitchens

seeing a bunch of full tables are gone

by 2025.

forever. The days of killer mobile ordering

As vaccination proof check-points become mandatory for dine-in eating across many parts of the country, juggernauts such as McDonalds, Chick-fil-A and Taco Bell continue altogether.

25

influence the way we interact with brands,

to

shut

down

indoor

dining

experiences to the guest when, where and how they want it.

experience are here...and that lane is not slowing down.

EXPERIENCE

Written By:

MIKE TIDMARSH Global Chief Technology Officer, Ogilvy

THE SHAPER OF THINGS TO COME 26

“IN THE WOODWORKING GAME POWER HAS MOSTLY BEEN A SUBSTITUTE FOR SPEED AND MUSCLE, NOT FOR SKILL...”

They’ve achieved this by creating a unique on-tool interface that allows patterns to be very easily created either directly on the device, or on software like Adobe Illustrator (then uploaded onto the machine over WiFi or memory stick as standard SVG files). These uploaded designs then show up on the devices screen for precise placement on the

My Grandfather was a carpenter. He was the

To the uninitiated, you might be wondering

real deal – possessing old-school skills with

what a CNC router does, why this tool is

hand-tools that now feel closer to artisanal

different, and why it’s worth reading about

artistry than they do industrial graft. In his

even if your business (or even your weekends)

home town, his work was prolific – from the

isn’t preoccupied by timber selection and

neighbor’s front door to the filling station

woodgrain direction.

roof to the church pews – his talents helped to shape them all.

In simple terms, it’s a cutting device – computer controlled – that uses a rotating

workpiece, along with an on-screen, SatNavlike experience guiding the user which way to push and how quickly. Servos in the cutter head then guide its precise placement to ensure unerring, repeatable accuracy in the cut. A five year old could do it.

SECOND, THERE’S THE DEVICE’S OS.

Amidst this, he succeed in sharing his

blade to very precisely cut wood to exact

The tool is powered by a unique Operating

passion with me. The smell of sawdust

patterns that can be programmed into

System. Since its initial market release,

triggers an immediate sense memory of

it. Which isn’t a new concept – CNC

the OS has had eight upgrades – adding

childhood weekends messing around in his

has existed for a long time. However,

incremental capability to the tool with

workshop. Perhaps unsurprisingly, I now

a

have a workshop of my own. It’s not nearly as

this

few

things

are

very

different

with

every release. So no longer is the tool

–

and

especially

the

static – it’s been fundamentally redefined

productive as my grandfather’s – I’ve chosen

experience that’s been built around it.

into an object that regularly reinvents and

a different profession to feed my family – but

Collectively it offers some useful lessons

refreshes itself, overhauling and improving

I often wonder what he’d make of it were

for any business currently wrestling with the

the

he still alive. Or, more specifically, what

digitization of its products and services.

wundertool

he’d make of the tools – the power tools – it contains. And, in particular, one that arrived earlier this year.

FIRST, THERE’S THE MACHINE ITSELF.

on-tool

THIRDLY,

‘PLATFORM’.

experience

THERE’S

as

THE

it

evolves.

ORIGIN

It’s handheld, meaning it can be taken and

Were it just the tool in isolation it would

used pretty much anywhere. ‘Traditional’

already be impressive. But the whole system

CNC requires a fixed piece of plant, specialist

has been built around the platform concept,

facilities and dedicated human operators

connecting users as an online community to

to program it – all of which serve to limit its

share not only tips, experience and advice,

application, and make it the preserve of light

but also to create a market through which

industrials. Out of the reach of individual

digital designs can be bought and sold –

trades people – and not even the same

instantly opening up ways for users to create

universe as the hobbyist. Making it portable

a new revenue stream. Together with the

required its designers and makers solve a

regular OS updates, this platform opens up a

Shaper’s new tool, the Origin – a portable,

number of difficult experience challenges –

rich seam of ongoing customer engagement

handheld CNC router – is a game changer in

from making it super easy to create and load

where for the owner there’s direct and

this regard, as it uses power not only to work

complex patterns for cutting, right through

immediate value from doing so.

faster, but to very directly substitute for skill

to making a machine that’s pushed around

in the making process. Which is handy for

by humans able to cut with laser-accurate

those of us whose skills don’t quite match

precision … regardless of how ham-handed

our passion – but, viewed through a wider

the operator.

THE SHAPER ORIGIN. In the woodworking game, power has mostly been a substitute for speed and muscle, not for skill – power tools are, if you like, the faster and more efficient way to convert lumber into sawdust and firewood (and occasionally furniture).

lens, also conceivably the first in a range of connected tools that will help to spearhead growth in the power tool market from $25Bn in 2021 to its projected $33Bn by 2028. But I’m ahead of myself...

27

For those holding onto such crafts as one of the remaining bastions that’s largely techfree, Shaper’s Origin may be an unwelcome arrival. For me and, I like to think my grandfather would share this opinion, it’s the start of new era of purely additive connected creativity.

Checkout Shapertools.com for more info.

EXPERIENCE

Think about the apps you like or use most on your smartphone and chances are none of them Written By:

TIM DUNCAN Product Growth Lead, Bottle Rocket

include any kind of physical interaction with the brand behind that app. When I wrote this, the top five free iOS apps in the U.S. were TikTok, YouTube, PUBG, Instagram and Snapchat, none of which include a physical interaction with the brand that supports these five apps. The 2020’s

TIDE SUCCESSFULLY BRIDGES THE PHYSICAL AND DIGITAL DIVIDE

will be the decade where apps that bridge the physical and digital divide will start to bubble up to the top of your most used or loved app list.

This happened to me in 2021 with the new Tide app which successfully spans both the physical and digital side of the customer experience equation in a way that reminded me a bit of my first Uber ride. I was left surprised, satisfied, and excited about my future dry-cleaning needs and for the future of customer experiences in general as there is one giant difference between Uber and Tide’s experiences. Uber was a business born on digital with no back history or baggage to deal with. Tide is owned

by P&G, an industry stalwart, that has now successfully transformed to meet the needs of their customers in a digital-first manner.

EXPERIENCE

A friend of mine told me about this new app

After being alerted on my phone that my

after seeing a set of Tide lockers installed in

clothes were to be picked up a couple days

their apartment complex and using it a couple

later, I walked back to the locker to pick up

of times. I am always looking for ways to make

my clothes. The clothes came back in a nice,

my life easier and dry cleaning isn’t something

reusable, branded clothes bag for future use.

I am ever excited about. I decided to check out the app for myself.

I was totally satisfied with my experience and think it is a prime example of a brand that has

After entering my home address, the Tide

both successfully transformed digitally and

app directed me to gather my clothes into a

created an experience that bridges the physical

disposable bag for my first time (it comes back

and digital divide in a seamless and delightful

in a nice blue clothes bag for future use FYI)

way. While it’s not an AR filter to turn you into a

and head to the closest locker (which was within

dog like Snapchat, it provides a key value to me

walking distance) to drop off my clothes.

as a Tide customer–it saves me time and makes dry cleaning easy.

29

EXPERIENCE

LBB: You joined Ogilvy Experience earlier this year - congrats! What was it about the role that was intriguing to you?

Kaleeta: We are living in a world where all of our expectations have changed. In 2020 we languished in our homes looking at the same four walls, yearning for something that moved us. After 20 years of doing experiences, I wanted to be 1) somewhere that was designled and had creativity as a core business, (2) in a location that was amenable to the needs of my family, and (3) in a position where I could positively impact the world. Ogilvy is a whole vibe, it is the OG for creative as a practice.

Having an opportunity to mix Ogilvy emotional brand creative and experience design at an enterprise level is a riveting partnership.

LBB: In your view - and especially given the events of the last 18 months with COVID19 - how are people’s expectations around customer experience changing? And what does this mean for experience agencies?

Kaleeta: Creating more time for living and not being ‘busy’. No one will get out of this ‘normal’, and no one wants our past reality to be normal.

Time is the newest experience currency. Values and value, brands that are able to balance their products and purpose. People want to change the world, one purchase at a time. Moving from

Why Time Is the Newest Experience Currency Kaleeta McDade, the global executive creative director for Ogilvy Experience, speaks to LBB’s Addison Capper about consumers changing the world, why no one wants our past reality to be normal, and joining the “OG for creative.”

transactions to lifestyles, leveraging brand partnerships to provide authenticity in new spaces. It’s no longer about running shoes, it’s wellness. It’s not just a burger, it’s a creative partnership with a top rap star. Experience agencies must balance function with emotion to

differentiate

transactions

from

brand

relationships.

AN INTERVIEW WITH: K ALEETA MCDADE, GLOBAL EXECUTIVE CREATIVE DIRECTOR, OGILV Y EXPERIENCE

EXPERIENCE LBB: What have been the biggest widespread changes in customer experience brought on by the pandemic?

Kaleeta:

Scarcity

creates

innovation.

Restaurants creating newly formed outdoor spaces, groceries at your front door, movie releases on your streaming service, QR code payments. Some industries may never return to their former lustre - movie theaters, big-box retail. Our skin hunger will cause many currently struggling industries, like travel and beauty products, to rebound with a vengeance. In the words of Little Finger, ‘chaos isn’t a pit, it’s a ladder’. I’m excited to see what new businesses will emerge.

LBB: I always feel like ‘customer experience’ is such a huge term. It could really include any step of the advertising journey! How do you define that term and the work that you do?

For example, being able to touch the product,

design thinkers to create something new.

smell it - any sensorial connection we cannot

Framing the brand experience end to end IS

achieve digitally. Physical retailers will have to

the new Ogilvy. The Big Idea + Design Thinking

double down on having unique engagements

are giving birth to a bastard child called

or

Experience.

begin

to

leverage

their

locations

as

Kaleeta: Experience can mean everything

additional warehouse capabilities. The always-

and nothing because the definition is so vast.

on expectation and delivery demands require

There is little ‘e’ and big ‘E’ experience. Little e

numerous fulfillment locations to advance

experience is digital-only, advertising only - any

operational efficiencies and meet consumer

way we continue to lead with our respective

demands.

singular

capabilities.

We

build

systems

vertically and expect them to go horizontally.

Big E is the horizontal, it is off- and on-platform, it is any touchpoint a human has with a brand

LBB:

LBB: How did you wind up in this field? Was it a bit of a happy accident or something you consciously pursued?

Kaleeta: Careless planning.

When

working

with

clients,

what’s

more important when it comes to designing

LBB: What does the next year hold for you, your new job, and the field that you operate in?

experiences - efficiency or emotion? Why?

and the relationship that ensues. In the relationship, advertising is the pickup line or the first date, big E is the marriage. We turn 30

“Experience agencies must balance function with emotion to differentiate transactions from brand relationships.”

seconds of emotion into 30 minutes, 30 hours, and hopefully 30 years of brand affinity.

LBB: COVID saw a huge focus on e-commerce and a lot of companies paring back their physical footprint - what do you think the future holds for physical retail experiences?

Kaleeta: Everything we do is based on human needs, the need to connect, feel significant, variety etc. We experience these through our five senses. A physical retailer must balance its brand experience with the needs of the customer, enabled by the five senses.

Kaleeta: This sounds like a cop-out… both.

Kaleeta: We are defined by our people, our

Efficiency

functional,

work, and the way we impact the world. We will

emotion without efficiency is fleeting. Ogilvy

be loud, we will be formidable, and authentic.

partners with clients to frame what problem we

Influencing culture is the ultimate goal.

without

emotion

is

are solving for and for whom. We define what can be delivered that balances science and art.

LBB: What advice would you give to more traditional

creatives

looking

to

get

into

experience?

Kaleeta: There has always been left and right brain creatives, it is the war that has waged for eons. Traditional creatives already DO aspects of experience, it is pairing this with system

31

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON: LBBONLINE.COM

DELIVERING VALUABLE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE POWERED BY MARTECH

Experience Management

Marketing Operations

MarTech Enablement

Consulting Services

Ready to prepare your business for success?

Contact us at www.verticurl.com

EXPERIENCE

The Importance of CDPs in Today’s Consumer-Driven World CDPS AND THEIR BENEFITS EXPLAINED

WRITTEN BY: K ARL SCHNEIDER, VP TECHNOLOGY, VERTICURL

tools that all of your different teams use so that they’re actually all on the same page. Bad data is the scourge of Martech stacks. A Martech stack can be looked at like a Formula One car,

The line between CTOs and CMOs continues to blur. This not only means better, more personalized experiences for customers, but it also means more audience understanding, greater automation, and the ability to reach customers anywhere at any time. One important element in any Martech stack is a Customer Data Platform, or CDP. But what is a CDP and what can it do for your business?

the marketing teams as the drivers, and the data as the fuel. You wouldn’t expect a Formula One driver to win a race if you put regular gas inside of that car. A CDP is important because it makes it easy to collect data from different disparate places, manage it, govern it, and then connect it into your wider ecosystem. And it’s not just about having the data and having access to it; it’s being able to action it into a marketing automation campaigns or being able

WHAT IS A CDP? A CDP is it’s a platform to collect, unify, resolve, and activate your data inside of your Martech ecosystem. Why is that really important? Data democratization, or a 360-degree view of your customers, is no longer a nice to have. It’s now a requirement.

And that view must be persistent in all the main

33

to leverage it for your commerce platform.

Additionally, marketing teams are continuously looking for ways to move faster. And having a system that brings that all of your data together so you can orchestrate that symphony in a really well-mannered way is another big key benefit of a CDP.

EXPERIENCE WHY IS CDP IMPORTANT SPECIFICALLY FOR COMMERCE?

In today’s day and age, if you can’t connect your that offline,

A CDP is important for Ecommerce because of Amazon, in

you’re kind of dead in the water.

online, and “started on the web and finished in store” data,

a single word. Amazon is the gold standard right now for Ecommerce experiences. They have been for quite some time. Even back decades ago, Amazon was already doing what they do now when they were known as the world’s largest bookstore. They were leveraging cross-selling and

HOW DO YOU KNOW IF YOUR COMPANY IS READY TO TAKE ON A CDP? Consider these things:

up-selling techniques like “you might also be interested in”

•

Your brand is having trouble responding to leader-

or “other folks looked at this one,” which is very basic per-

ship data insight/analytics requests that are cross

sonalization for an Ecommerce experience. But at the time

channel in nature. This likely means that data is

they were the only ones doing it. Fast forward 25 years and

stored separately and pivot tables are required to

most people would agree Amazon knows what you want to

bring it all together.

buy before you know you want to buy it.

•

The part to remember is that your customers/ prospects

Your brand is ready to go to the next level and activate the existing Martech stack in a bigger way.

have gotten used to Amazon as well, so they know what’s

•

possible. Sometimes people refer to it as the Amazon Effect.

Your brand is in the process of creating an industry-leading customer experience platform and a

Everyone for the most part knows what that experience

360-degree view of the customer is not available.

is like where they can get to what they want really quickly.

They can get related things very quickly. Again, they feel

If any of those situations sound familiar, its likely time for

like Amazon knows them better than they know themselves.

a CDP. Here are a few questions that can help your brand

They know what’s possible and they expect that same level

prepare for that journey:

of personalization everywhere they interact online.

The reason Amazon is able to do what it does is because of CDP functionality. Amazon combines all of the different data attributes that customers are serving up through

1.

Where’s the data?

2.

What teams use the data?

3.

What tools/Martech stack components are currently in

digital body language, along with third-party data they’re acquiring and some first party data that customers don’t even know they are providing at times (through conversational devices, etc.). Behind the scenes, Amazon is stitching all this seemingly disparate data together in order to get the perfect 360-degree view of their customers, their interests, and most importantly, intent. By doing this, they basically make it so easy to be a customer that you can’t not be a cus-

place?

4.

How long does it take to launch a campaign?

5.

What is the current process of bringing cross-channel analytics together?

These types of questions, among others, can help determine where challenges may lie and what a CDP platform could help with.

tomer. They’ve eliminated all the friction that could exist in the process of taking a customer from thought to purchase.

And in this process, Amazon has essentially trained people on what an optimal buying experience should be like. The best way to try to compete with such a personalized experience is to ensure that your brand has all of the same activation opportunities and that your brand has all of the same tools at your disposal.

An ancillary benefit of a CDP is that it could

“A CDP is important because it makes it easy to collect data from different disparate places, manage it, govern it, and then connect it into your wider ecosystem.“

It’s not just about having all the data available. It has to be data that’s relevant specifically to the relationship you’re trying to have, and it’s got to be available in real time. Period. The End. CDP’s can provide that kind of functionality. Tech stacks that don’t have a CDP as the hub connecting everything will suffer latency issues and will likely be limited to maybe a 300-degree view of the customer, not the 360-degree view that you will get from a CDP.

34

somewhat inherently force a new level of standardization across the company, especially if the company is notorious for working in silos. When thinking through a CDP implementation, conversations will need to be had about the value of the data, how to treat the data, what to do with the data, what data is needed versus what’s available, etc.

If you have any questions about whether or not your organization is ready to implement a CDP or if you need help leveraging

your existing CDP to its fullest extent, drop us a line. We’d love to connect. hello@ogilvyexperience.com.

When data works smarter, tv works harder.

EXPERIENCE

WRIT TEN BY: TIM BURKE,

GROUP CREATIVE

DIRECTOR, EICOFF

QR CODES:

BACK FROM THE

DEAD 36

Like that favorite soap-opera character you swore perished in a fiery plane crash over the Amazon, QR codes (surprise!) have risen from the ashes. Sparked by the pandemic and the need for touchless everything, these forgotten little boxes have newfound acceptance.

And for marketers, this resurgence brings opportunity. From branding to lead generation, QR codes are engaging consumers in innovative and effective ways. So, as you stare into that matrix of shapes, here are few thoughts for consideration.

EXPERIENCE WHEN PLACING A QR CODE, DON’T SIMPLY SLAP IT ON. Think of your brand. Think of the experience you

wish

to

create.

And

think

about

motivating a response. You can customize your QR code to include your logo, tagline, a message and/or color palette. You can offer consumers meaningful next steps – from exclusive

savings

to

educational

videos

to app downloads. As an example, look at what Burger King served up last year during the VMAs.

EMBRACE THE DISTRACTION-FREE PATH. QR codes can seamlessly bridge the offline to online world. Whether it’s on a train billboard or in a Connected-TV commercial, the code can easily and directly transport a consumer to the destination of your choice. No search bar needed. No SEO wars to battle. And straightforward measurement.

TAKE IT ONE STEP FURTHER WITH DYNAMIC QR CODES. These special bits of coding can process things like time of day and location. Based on that information, they can direct scanners to different web pages, promotional offers or videos. You can create geographically tailored landing pages or share time-relevant offers all with the same QR code. Think one code for your breakfast, lunch and dinner specials.

FIND INSPIRATION IN OTHERS’ EFFORTS. To hype Pop Smoke’s latest album, promoters took an old school poster approach, only hidden in the images were new video snippets viewable via Snapchat. Campbell’s soup has enlisted QR codes to drive consumers to a

I know, QR codes in cemeteries may sound

music and cooking microsite. TikTok used

tacky, but imagine if every time you visited your

QR code billboards to showcase unsigned

mom there was a different video of her still

artists. Greeting cards, direct mailers, even

reminding you to “clean up your room” or “eat

gravestones now feature QR code options.

your vegetables.” It could be amazing.

The road to acceptance has been a strange one, but consumers are all-in on QR codes.

So, take another look. And when you do, think about the experience you want to create.

37

Why Marketing and Product Teams Should Bet on Customer Behaviors CUSTOMER CENTRICIT Y IS THE UNIFYING PRINCIPLE THAT BRINGS THESE TEAMS TOGETHER.

WRIT TEN BY: PETER KL AYMAN,

VP, BUSINESS STRATEGY, BOTTLE ROCKET

When Galileo proved that the earth was not the center of the universe, it shattered long-held beliefs across every aspect of society. It may seem like organizational success depends on hitting certain metrics or KPIs. Marketing teams need to prove ROI, and product teams need to solve for engagement and retention.

If we invest in those teams, we’re sure to win. Right? If a SaaS-minded Galileo were alive today, he’d say the above strategy lacks customer centricity. Customers don’t

revolve

around

businesses—businesses

revolve around customers, specifically their digital behaviors, actions, and preferences.

HOW TO BRIDGE THE GAP BETWEEN MARKETING AND PRODUCT Marketing and product teams are two wings of the same bird. If they don’t flap in sync, the bird won’t take flight.

Marketing and product teams usually have their eyes on different benchmarks—and they rightly should— but sooner or later, the lines blur, and goals overlap.

For instance, who is responsible for engagement? Is it the marketing folks who have to usher in customers to actually engage? Or is it the product team who has to capitalize on those acquisitions and drum up product usage? The answer is both—one cannot be successful without the other.

38

EXPERIENCE

If we strip away all the jargon and industry buzzwords, we can say that these two teams are responsible for copy, art, and code. Marketing professionals leverage their skills to design copy and art.

Product teams create product experiences through the language of code. In the end,

“Getting people through the door is an exciting accomplishment for any company. But what will you do to keep them there?”

they’re both “talking” to the same person in two different ways. When a prospect fills out a form or a user abandons a cart, those behaviors are the customer talking back. Those digital conversations can be connected so that both teams walk away with new insights about the same customer.

The unifying principle for both of these teams is, of course, the customer. Aligning your company’s

marketing

and

product

teams

around a common vision is a worthwhile

INVEST EARLY AND OFTEN IN FIRSTPART Y, BEHAVIORAL DATA

FIND ONE NORTH STAR METRIC THAT REFLECTS CUSTOMER MOTIVATION

Who your customers are and what they want are

Depending on the maturity level of your

two different things. Third-party demographic

company’s product analytics, you may be

data like age, location, and occupation helps

distracted by a wild amount of KPIs or metrics.

confirm who you should talk to, but not what

This can become a never-ending rabbit hole

they want or what they value.

that eats away attention and money. Worse,

Suppose you’re targeting two individuals with the same demographic data—they’re both

you’re still left wondering how to make your product better and satisfy customers.

female SVPs at a big financial firm located in

In this scenario, the way forward is discovering

New York City. What are the chances they’ll use

your company’s North Star metric—the data

Whether you’re a scrappy startup or a tenured

your digital app exactly the same way? Will they

point that serves as the keystone locking all

corporation, every business consists of people,

click the same CTA buttons throughout your

other metrics together. In Amplitude’s North

processes,

those

ad campaign? Will they buy the same items

Star Playbook, there are three primary benefits

pillars come together for the sole purpose

or share the same links? Maybe, but you won’t

to the North Star metric:

of delivering value, your business becomes

know until you look.

investment that can’t be numerically quantified.

and

technology.

When

customer-centric.

WHY PRODUCT TEAMS CAN’T DEPEND ON GOOGLE ANALY TICS

responses to surveys which sounds more useful than it actually is. These are shallow insights because what a customer finds valuable now

The problem with Google Analytics is that it

could change at any moment. The only way

works well for what it’s designed for—learning

you’ll know when to adapt your product in

where your customers come from. But traffic

step with the economic zeitgeist is by paying

does not reveal motivation—only behaviors

constant attention to customer behaviors.

can do that. For this reason, a dependence on Google Analytics can widen the gap between marketing

and

product

teams.

Achieving

customer centricity is only possible when a company’s people, processes, and technology are aligned. In most cases, it all starts with a change at the leadership level.

but the most customer-centric companies know that this “mother metric” needs to be rooted

during their first session with the service were the ones who saw the company’s true value.

its customers. The more behavioral history

desires, continuously experiment with new

that find early success with Google Analytics

features, and predict change before it happens.

39

Your North Star will be unique to your business,

in the future interests of the company and

lead to sustained product growth. Companies

you do to keep them there?

sustainable, product-led growth.

who place three or more DVDs in their queue

product roadmaps with confirmed customer

accomplishment for any company. But what will

It enables teams to focus on impact and

data, what you’re really doing is investing

but it doesn’t spark the kind of questions that

Getting people through the door is an exciting

•

discovered their North Star metric: customers

you’re able to cultivate, the deeper and richer

functionality.

It helps teams align and communicate.

When you invest in first-party, behavioral

authentic user behavior, you can then pair your

its

•

in what your customers value. In 2005, Netflix

a mainstay technology for marketing teams,

outgrow

but decentralized decision-making.

customer’s heart is to watch how they behave.

your insights will become. With a catalog of

ultimately

It helps prioritize and accelerate informed

The best way to discern what’s going on in the

To be clear, Google Analytics will likely remain

will

•

Some third-party aggregators will include

Once you find a telling pattern of behavior, your marketing and product teams can design and iterate with a clear goal post in sight—the value your customers seek in your product.

Netflix figured out that one metric was better than twenty, and if they went all-in on that, they would likely manifest customer retention and subscription revenue.

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON: AMPLITUDE.COM

EXPERIENCE

WRIT TEN BY: STEPHEN PARTRIDGE,

MARKETING STRATEGY DIRECTOR, OGILV Y

A Renewed Mandate: Employee Onboarding Hiring is a lot of work in the best of times. As

Your onboarding process must demonstrate your

businesses grapple with “The Great Resignation,”

company values and the way you work. Amidst the

high turnover and lack of retention are taking a

new realities of remote and hybrid work, you may

considerable toll on leaders and teams across

face new challenges and new questions. How do

industries. Key to retaining employees is developing

we deliver on our culture now? What does the team

the ability to inspire, motivate, and uplift employees

dynamic look like in mixed work environments? Have

to be an active, invested part of your organization.

our managers been adequately equipped to deal

Employee retention is everyone’s job—not just

with these challenges?

HR’s—and it starts with well-planned onboarding.

This guide from the Employee Experience team at

Onboarding is an often-overlooked component

Ogilvy shows the business benefits of optimizing

of

before

your onboarding strategy as a key driver of employee

an employee’s first day. Successful, intentional

retention and satisfaction, as well as the implications

onboarding sets employees up for success in

for a future of hybrid work environments.

engaged

employees,

and

it

starts

significant ways, but many companies brush off this key stage in the employee journey as “Here’s your desk” or largely an exercise in paperwork. Instead, companies should embrace onboarding as a way to make a first—and lasting—impression.

40

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON: OGILV Y.COM

WHAT DO A DATA SCI ENTIST AND A COPYWRITER HAVE IN COMMON?

BOTH WORK AT JÜSSI We bring together talents from different disciplines and with diverse skill sets because we understand that this is a prerequisite to solve the challenges of the digital world.

Partner with scientists, advertisers, artists, developers, strategists, consultants, engineers, travelers and digital lovers. Jüssi is more than a performance agency.

We are a business agency.

THE BUSINESS AGENCY

Want to leverage your results?

Talk to our experts. contato@jussi.com.br

EXPERIENCE

The diversity of people in the labor market The importance of understanding and seeking the difference in small and large companies.

WRIT TEN BY: EDUARDO KR ÁS, AGILE ANALYST, JÜSSI

With the subject “diversity” on the rise, the

The fact is that these small attitudes affect

need to have teams that include different

those who have lived with this all their lives,

ethnicities,

having to prove and defend themselves all

races,

sexual

orientations,

among other factors are increasingly being reevaluated and rethought in small and large companies. Including different people guarantees a series of opportunities for development, innovation, different views on the final product, and a motivating work environment.

I remember a manager, important to my career, who when he arrived at the fintech company where I worked, started a positive revolution in the company’s processes; things were improving and the area in which he worked was getting in order, only there was one problem, he was Black, and there were no Black managers in the company.

He didn’t get the same respect, but it was something implicit, that I as a white man didn’t realize either. At one point he was questioned and corrected in the middle of a chat with the whole company; no head had ever been confronted like this in the almost four years I worked there, in a “public square”. After not receiving support from those above him, and even after being induced not to “cause any more trouble”, he decided to resign. The company lost out, our team lost out, I lost out.

42

the time.

And the question that remains is: would we, the privileged ones, besides giving opportunities to those who had to fight twice as hard, make a real space for these people? Will we just include them to fill the “inclusion space” or, in fact, judge their real capabilities and soft skills?

As a gay man, it took me a while to feel open to talking about my sexual orientation, or even to demonstrate attitudes that would make people think that I really was. The fear of being joked or of not being respected for what I added as a professional was always great, and although today I am openly gay, I find myself wanting to correct some of my attitudes, in automatic mode, for fear of not being accepted. I always had great women leaders, but I saw that the concern in demonstrating their competences was very great, could it be that if they were men this was already an automatic proof of efficiency?

My point is, places that don’t embrace the small differences will lose talent.

20.5% According to the IBGE

Census, women still earn

about 20.5% less than men

60%

5%

In Brazil, about 60% of

LGBT people hide their

sexual orientation at work.

Few companies reach

5% of disabled people in their workforce.

56.6%

90%

According to IBGE, in

Formal employment is low

about 56.6% more than the

90% still have prostitution

2019 white people earned

We will go to the places that accept us

It goes far beyond fulfilling the prerequisites,

as we are, as we want to be and act, and

but rather the study opportunities they have

many places are already applying these

had during their lives

evolutions, either because we have good

investing in these people could be the

representatives who are fighting for our

beginning of this change. Now the question

rights or as a matter of strategy.

remains: have you looked at your colleagues,

It is extremely important that great leaders

and that perhaps

do they follow the same pattern?

not only seek to bring these differences

Do you want to talk to me about diversity?

into the company, but also understand

Indicate companies and NGOs that are

them, understand the historical context that

making a difference? Talk to me through

involves people of color, women, LGBTQIA+,

the e-mail eduardo.frank@jussi.com.br, and

people with disabilities, among others, and

so that you don’t miss out on our content,

seek to have a real vision of the difficulties

register your e-mail and we will notify you of

that these people encounter during their

every update. See you next time!

professional career.

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON: PULSO.JUSSI.COM.BR

43

Black population

for trans people, around

as their source of income.

Using First-Party Data to Improve the Travel Planning Experience By: Doina Harris, Chief Product Officer at Simon Data

A closer look at how Tripadvisor’s access to first party traveler data and new technology was a

game-changer during the Covid pandemic as the company overhauled how it helped travelers plan their post-pandemic trips.

behavior and real-time visibility in existing inventory (hotel availability, capacity, price) to make it easy to navigate the new complicated world of travel. When a user looked for a destination, Tripadvisor would monitor prices and deliver a message in real-time via a user’s preferred channel of changes since the

It’s March 2020, and the majority of the world has

customer’s last browse.

been in upheaval. The travel industry is at a standstill.

Fast forward 18 months into 2021 as we emerge from the pandemic and one thing is for sure – Covid drove significant structural changes in traveler behavior and spending patterns, as well as business models for companies within the tourism and hospitality industry. Most brands ended up in a reactive mode for most of 2020, cutting costs, hunkering down, and planning a rebound. However, Tripadvisor invested in innovations to improve the travel experience and capitalized on downtime during the pandemic to reinvent itself.

Tripadvisor’s marketing team, equipped with rich engagement data, an aggregated view of traveler and diner behavior, and real-time capabilities, built and created hyper-personalized campaigns without touching one line of code. This innovation allowed them to develop experiences for global members, triggering off of high intent signals that seamlessly adjusted to travel rule changes as Covid evolved.

As pandemic conditions eased, catalyzed by vaccines, travel started to rebound. Tripadvisor’s

These types of actions, driven by a combination of data identification, nimble data selection by marketers, and ability to act, empowered marketers to innovate the customer experience and level-up brand recognition during a particularly painful time for travel operators.

marketing team used their insights about traveler

Request a demo with Simon Data – give us a shout at hello@simondata.com

simondata.com

EXPERIENCE

The Device I Wish I Would Have Had Written By:

DOINA HARRIS

Chief Product Officer, Simon Data

Children’s enjoyment of music is visible

The best way to answer this question

The design of the product was also made

from a very early age. However, they are

is by looking at innovation from a kid’s

with kids in mind. The large figurines are

dependent on the adults around them to

perspective. At this age, children can’t

ideal for little hands- and big drops. It is

“activate” their enjoyment. This activation

read, but they have started playing with

rugged, has a sturdy handle, and can even

often comes at the hands of increasing

figurines. Jooki takes this familiarity and

deal with splashes. Jooki has all the bells

screen time.

turns it into a vehicle for music. After parents

and whistles of any modern tech device-

preset playlists or books onto the figures,

Bluetooth, WiFi, and streaming services.

kids choose what they want to listen to

However, this product’s real beauty is

by selecting an animal and placing it on

enabling children to be independent. It

the speaker. For example, the dolphin will

allows them to play the music they want in a

play dancing music, and the shark will play

low complexity environment.

For example, from the early age of three, my kids would ask us to play songs to the point I became their personal DJ. Their demands are how iPads initially made their way into their hands which solved one problem but created a new issue of increasing screen time.

kids

were

younger.

The

concept

behind Jooki is simple- give kids the power to play the music they want without needing screens. Their approach flips tech dependency on its head and really focuses on children’s “workflow”. It asks the basic question, “how can we enable kids to play the music they want without a screen or the ability to read.”

45

play music without being introduced to screens too early.

Enter Jooki, a device I wish existed when my

lullabies. As a result, kids as young as 3 can

This high-tech product delivers music to children in a low-tech way. Without code or screens, kids can play music based on things that are already familiar to them.

I’m so excited about this product; I plan to purchase it as a birthday present for my nieces and nephew when they turn three!

EXPERIENCE

NINTENDO SWITCHES ATTENTION TO MOBILE Written By:

BROOKE GRIEF

Content Marketing Manager, Iterable

At Iterable, we’re all about creating a personalized crosschannel experience that shows brands are paying attention to customer behavior. I recently had my own seamless cross-channel experience, courtesy of Nintendo.

The other night I dusted off my Nintendo Switch, something I hadn’t touched since the early days of the pandemic. “Animal Crossing: New Horizons” was huge during lockdown—it was first released March 20, 2020. A friend of mine, however, just recently dove into the game.

She texted me, asking if she could come to my island to get fruit. This meant I had to launch the game and remember how to play for a bit.

As I’m re-learning which buttons do what, I notice my phone buzz. An important aside: Nintendo is a brand that takes full advantage of their mobile app—it makes life way easier to create an account and quickly buy games. So, I hear my phone buzz and notice a push notification from Nintendo. Mind you, I still have Animal Crossing open on my Switch. The push notification reads “You can use voice chat in Animal Crossing: New Horizons.”

46

EXPERIENCE As a marketer, this really stood out to me.

Nintendo noticed that I was playing Animal Crossing via my account on my Switch, could tell that I hadn’t played for a while, and knew that I had a friend coming to my island. All of these data points combined led to this incredibly relevant push notification. Because there isn’t a way to share this kind of notification mid-game on the Switch (plus it would disrupt the game if there was), Nintendo brilliantly used the next-best channel to capture my attention: mobile.

Not only was this a super relevant text, but it

This attention to detail and consistent customer

happened while I was playing the game. This

experience

timely content shows not only an impressive

improving customer relationships. This, in turn,

level of automation, but an extreme attention

improves customer lifetime value. Other brands

to detail at the same time. They’re on top of it.

should strive to create automated, seamless

I’ve been a Nintendo user since the N64 days

cross-channel experiences, like Nintendo’s, to

and seeing this digital transformation assures

meet customers where they are, when it’s most

me that Nintendo is up-to-speed with the latest

impactful.

builds

trust

with

customers—

technology capabilities. It strengthened my loyalty and trust in the brand and I’ll continue to be a Switch user, maybe I’ll even try voice chat in Animal Crossing.

“ NINTENDO

BRILLIANTLY USED THE NEXT-BEST CHANNEL TO CAPTURE MY ATTENTION: MOBILE.

“

47

Meet your modern customers’ modern needs.

Experience-first. Value-based. Data-driven.

Transform the way you build personalized, cross-channel experiences.

iterable.com/takethenextstep

EXPERIENCE

T H E W H O , W H AT, W H Y, A N D H O W

of scaled agile AND ITS BENEFITS TO BUSINESSES

1

W H AT ?

3

Scaled Agile Framework (SAFe)

WRIT TEN BY: R ACHEL MATZ, SENIOR SAFE & AGILE COACH, SPC 5.1, BOTTLE ROCKET

WHY? •

www.scaledagileframework.com

Provides a flexible, customizable framework that enables ongoing enterprise agility

SAFe is a proven knowledge base of practices, competencies and integrated principles for achieving Business Agility at scale.

•

Aligns the organization’s business and technical goals

•

Improves organizational performance and outcomes (see graphic)

•

Provides scalable, repeatable, and sustainable processes

“Over 70% of the Fortune 100 US Companies have certified SAFe practitioners and consultants already on site.” –Scaled Agile Inc.

2

WHO? Large organizations with numerous teams, who need to all work together for the ongoing and sustainable delivery of value to their customers.

“Achieving Business Agility means that the entire organization - not just development - is engaged in continually and proactively delivering innovative business solutions faster than the competition.”

– Dean Leffingwell, creator of SAFe

49

4

HOW? If your organization is ready transform the way you work, we have many SAFe Certified practitioners that can help train, build, coach and/or transform your organization using Scaled Agile best practices. Contact us at hello@bottlerocketstudios.com.

Creative experiences that make an impact.

INTRODUCING

EXPERIENCE

In a digital first world, it takes more than just a great experience to stand out. Because of the rapid pace of change we all live in, combined with the continued maturation of the digital consumer and the equal maturation of platforms and technology, the new expectation for all businesses in all verticals is that the brand will offer value through the experience itself. Our thousands of global experience experts help our clients define, design, build, and operationalize every interaction with their customers and employees.

We define, build, and distribute tailored, personalized, and progressive communications that drive continuous acquisition, engagement, conversion, and enhanced customer lifetime value.

Technology & Operations

We design and build experiences that customers love and connect with, including mobile/web, AR/VR, conversational, CDP and DMP, commerce, CMS, and loyalty.

Communication

We help companies unleash their potential, help them understand their customers, and create experience strategies that transform businesses while creating customer value.

Interactions

Strategy

Solutions designed to drive sustainable growth We provide strategy, planning, implementation and integration of platform technologies, CRM data collection and management operations, commerce-as-aservice, and full experience factory services.

AN EXPERIENCE POWERHOUSE The Ogilvy Experience global network is made up of some of the best in the business. Backed by the power of Ogilvy, each of our specialty brands bring a unique set of capabilities and perspectives that intersect seamlessly together to deliver the right solution.

Let’s talk experience. Drop us a line at hello@ogilvyexperience.com to connect or learn more.

EXPERIENCE

STAYING ALIVE

HOW CONSISTENCY, LOVE, AND A LITTLE TECHNOLOGY IS HELPING MY PASSION GROW Written By:

AUDREY DUBIE Business Analyst, Bottle Rocket

The pandemic brought a whole new slew of complications, debates, requirements, and challenges. The silver lining that I hung most of my positive thoughts on, was the focused hikes with my small family. Finding trails, bike paths, and small mountains to climb with my two young boys, husband, and dog kept us all sane while trying to socially distance ourselves. The Saturday morning explorations helped us reconnect with each other and the nature around us.

52

EXPERIENCE

As a Green Mountain born Vermonter, I

Whatever the case, moving to a fully remote

I’ve learned how to check to see if it the

can fully appreciate nature’s beauty and

position and hiking on the weekends, I heard

plant truly needs water, and either delay the

wonder. I can’t seem to translate that same

the small voice telling me to adopt the next

watering, or following the instructions for the

beauty indoors. I always love and name my

indoor plant. I couldn’t resist and knew that

individual plant.

plants, shoutout to my massive new trees

I would need the help of reminders to keep

that I planted outside (specifically Teddy

the plant alive. His name is Charlie, by the

and LaVerne) but have not succeeded with

way.

keeping any plants alive within my house.

It could be the constant responsibilities of a mom of two boys or the constraints of my previous hectic life of getting to an office every day of the week that deterred me from noticing a dead leaf on a plant.

There

The ease of keeping Charlie alive catapulted me to becoming a green thumb enthusiast, and I purchased 3 more plants. After a year

are

a

multitude

of

plant

applications, and I chose Planta.

help

with Charlie, I’ve learned quite a bit about

Planta

indoor plants. There are easier plants and

tracks my plants, allows me to create virtual

more fussy ones.

rooms for where the plants are located within

watering, and you can try different options

There are methods to

my house, add pictures of my plants to see

for each plant. Having an app at my side

the growth, and most importantly, sends me

to help me identify watering consistency

reminders for watering and nutrition. Let me

and other issues is key. I’ve started to hone

tell you. The algorithm is spot on!

my instincts on when a plant needs to be watered, and isn’t that what every true green thumb can do?

This impactful digital experience helped me to bring small pieces of nature into my comfy home and keep them alive. I’m further encouraged to see how consistency, attention, water, and love can help ground me and inspire a passion.

This is what

should drive us within the digital experience industry.

Consistency, love, passion, and

maybe a little bit of water for growth!

53

EXPERIENCE

Is the Cutt ing Edge the Only Place to Innovate?

Innovation Doesn’t Always Have to Be About Technology Written By:

MATTHEW TOBIAS

Healthcare Program Manager, Bottle Rocket

What comes to mind when you visualize

While my stepson was having his experience,

Innovation doesn’t have to be a fancy new

innovation in healthcare?

You might think

I was having one as well. That piece of paper

piece of technology. It can be anything that

of a robot that zooms around a hospital

that I picked up at the beginning had all of

makes your experience better. That’s why

like a drug-dispensing Roomba or one of

the answers to all of the questions I didn’t

I love working at Bottle Rocket. We’ll work

those scanners that takes your temperature

even know I had about the vaccine for kids:

with you and your customers to map out

as you walk in just by staring at an iPad.

what was in it, how it was different than the

what a good experience is and then help

Cutting edge technology is cool.

adult version, what to expect that night and

you implement it with both cutting edge

the next day, etc.

technology and existing solutions in the

Or fire.

Or whatever the kids say these days. (As a stepparent I’m often told that I’m saying that But is the cutting edge the only

place to innovate?

Shortly after Pfizer’s vaccine was approved for 5–12-year-olds I took my stepson for his first shot at a local clinic. With any healthcare touchpoint a good experience can build trust in a provider, or a bad experience can send the patient seeking another provider.

No matter how much I reassured him on the drive over that the needle was no big deal, my stepson was convinced it would be the

perfect sequence.

“ Innovation doesn’t have

to be a fancy new piece of technology. It can be anything that makes your experience bett er. “

wrong).

worst pain in the history of pain.

When we walked into the room, I picked up a piece of paper while he was greeted with colors, Marvel super-heroes on the wall, and a smiling staff.

The nurse that

administered the shot reassured him it hurt less than the flu shot and was able to poke him and get him a DC super-hero sticker (my healthcare provider apparently has no brand loyalty to comic book universes) before he even knew what was happening.

15 minutes of SpongeBob later and we were out the door.

The boy’s experience was

as great as could be, but there is nothing particularly innovative about bright colors and distractions for children.

54

Again, a piece of paper with after-care instructions is hardly innovative.

You get

one every time you leave a clinic, but when did I get this one? it.

Right when I needed

Instead of growing my own anxiety as

I waited in line and peppering the poor nurse with all of the questions and scenarios I was dreaming up I was able to feel like my stepson was in good hands and move through quickly.

Customer references emphasize the firm’s strength as a partner, praising The Lacek Group’s ‘unpretentious, hard-working, highly experienced team’ that understands the business model of loyalty.”

THE FORRESTER WAVE™: LOYALTY SERVICE PROVIDERS, Q3 2021

When it comes to loyalty, engagement, experience and data-driven marketing, many of the world’s most admired brands trust us with their best customers.

DOWNLOAD THE FULL REPORT HERE:

lacek.com/forresterreport

An Ogilvy Experience Company

EXPERIENCE

A Loyal Customer Is Not the Same as a Forever Customer.

WRIT TEN BY: MICHELLE WILDENAUER,

MARY ENGLISH,

SENIOR DIRECTOR, STRATEGIC SERVICES, THE LACEK GROUP

GLOBAL LEAD, CRM &

LOYALT Y, OGILV Y EXPERIENCE

In today’s environment, loyalty is ripe for disruption.

If

your

program

incentivizes

customers to stick with your brand because it’s easy or convenient or familiar, that program might be due for an overhaul. Today’s modern loyalty platforms inspire as well as reward, and they may not even involve a formal program.

2020’s three largest forces—the pandemic, civil unrest, and divisive politics—continue to have far-reaching impacts on both our personal and work lives. Indeed, last year tens of thousands of businesses filed for bankruptcy, and well over 10,000 retail stores closed. But blaming this trio for recent business troubles is shortsighted.

In fact, 2019 experienced plenty of its own bankruptcy and Chapter 11 bankruptcy filings, and set its own record of retailer closings; plus, analysts back then were already predicting the demise of thousands of retailers in 2020.

56

“One powerful reason brands are failing is their reliance on tired strategies despite an evolving marketing landscape and changing customers.”

Why? One powerful reason brands are failing

Loyalty today is about the end-to-end customer

is their reliance on tired strategies despite an

experience and includes absolutely every

evolving marketing landscape and changing

brand touch point. In fact, loyalty is integral to

customers. Customers today are savvy and

everything a brand does.

expectant. They want to be recognized and rewarded for their business. They anticipate personalized service and targeted offers. And

Read more about our approach to Total Loyalty in our most recent whitepaper, available now.

they desire greater meaning from their brand interactions.

Yet brands often continue to sell to yesterday’s customers—the ones who carried loyalty punch cards in their wallets, who hadn’t yet discovered e-commerce, and who could sometimes be taken for granted.

These customers no longer exist.

Moreover, it’s a false premise that your brand has forever customers—loyalty is constantly changing and so are your customers. Today, loyalty is much bigger and broader than its ubiquitous programs, despite their valuable punches, miles, and points. Rather, a holistic loyalty strategy is critical to any brand’s longterm success.

57

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON: OGILV Y.COM

EXPERIENCE

¿POR QUÉ QUESADILLAS? Written By:

THOMAS BUTTA Chief Strategy and Marketing Officer, Airship

Quesadillas might seem like a strange thing

So, to protect the customer experience

For Chipotle, the digital payoff is plentiful —

to highlight as an amazing digital experience

and introduce more people to its app and

higher-frequency and more loyal customers,

innovation for 2021, but stick with me and

mobile ordering, the only way to order its

and better margins. Chipotle’s new digital

you’ll see how the ingredients can create an

top-requested quesadilla item is through the

imperative is indicative of what we’re seeing

app-vantage for your business too.

Chipotle app or Chipotle.com.

across multiple industry categories, age

Recently, Airship held its annual global

Chipotle is treating its app as a preferred

forum, Elevate 2021, for customers and

destination for its customers. Customers get

everyone interested in mastering mobile

a convenient, seamless, and easy experience,

app experiences. Great stories were shared

made possible by operational investments in

by leading brands, but none were as

digital kitchens and “Chipotlanes,” where

compelling as Chipotle’s decade-plus digital

there is neither a menuboard nor intercom,

transformation story.

as these are dedicated exclusively as drive-

According

to

Nicole

West,

VP

Digital

Strategy & Product, and as reported in its

Clearly, quesadillas as well as the market

latest earnings call, the brand now has 24.5

launch of a smoked brisket offering, which

million Chipotle Rewards members, a 40%

Chipotle Rewards members could order two

year-over-year increase, and its highest

days before anyone else, are just a couple

margin transaction, digital pickup orders,

of the tasty ways the brand aims to expand

now represents slightly more than half of

its digital engagement with existing and

digital sales in Q3 2021. It’s clear Chipotle

new customers. Chipotle also revamped

has more than a few things to teach everyone

Chipotle Rewards, its app-centric loyalty

about innovating the consumer’s digital

program introduced in 2019, to now give

experience.

customers more choice in how they prefer to

After years of being the top-requested menu item, it was just this year that Chipotle actually added quesadillas to its menu.

It turns out that quesadillas are a timeintensive item to prepare in-restaurant, which can slow down throughput.

58

thru pickup lanes for digital orders.

engage and be rewarded. Chipotle has even gamified the experience for the first time with bonus extras.

groups, and geographic markets.

EXPERIENCE

The importance of meaningful rewards was

driven

home

by

Elevate

keynote

speaker Jonathan Kay, co-founder and CEO of Apptopia, who shared data across quick-service-restaurant

(QSR)

brands

that mapped the direct links between rewards program membership, company revenues and app sessions. While free food is always an incentive to pull people in, it’s the continual care and feeding of these programs that sustain engagement, improve the customer’s experience and drive critical

Since launching its rewards program in 2019, Chipotle has far exceeded the market’s average usage, with the Q2 2021 peak a result from a retro-racing video game where loyalty members competed for prizes that included a new Tesla.

business results going forward.

As a point of comparison, Kay detailed Burger King’s nationwide rollout of its rewards program followed a week later by a celebrity-endorsed meal campaign.

Instead of directing consumers to its BK app, BK directed them to a website with a call to action to make their first order.

Even if customers were to type the website into their mobile phone to make their first order, BK didn’t capture those users — and

The big takeaway — and why quesadillas are one of the top digital innovations of 2021 — is this: We now have demonstrable data and compelling brand stories that point to the app as a preferred destination for creating the highest levels of value for both brands and consumers alike.

it shows in the comparative results. Similar campaigns by QSR brands drove customers to the app where they saw massive growth in downloads, with some brands increasing their entire Daily Active User base at rates of 30% to +50% greater three months after the original free food promotion ended.

Comparing results of similar campaigns from the top six fast food restaurants and its impact on app downloads and daily active app users three months after the promotion.

59

Available now — Elevate 2021 On-Demand Replays, a virtual platform filled with customer stories, market trends, best practices, innovations, and key strategies for creating and capturing new levels of value from mobile app experience. Whether you want to revisit a session, or experience Elevate 2021 for the first time, there’s plenty to get excited about.

Keynotes | Customer Spotlights | Customer Panels | Tech Labs

EXPERIENCE

design + tech = better together Written By:

ALEX COHEN VP, Product Management, Bottle Rocket

Last weekend, my wife, Carlie, planned a quick trip to visit her brother and sister-in-law in Atlanta. This was the first time she was traveling since the birth of our daughter, Leah, who is now three months old. Carlie was quite anxious about this trip. Not only was she leaving both kids with me with no adult supervision (ha!), but more concerning, she had a long day of travel ahead of her not knowing exactly where she was going to pump.

Carlie was NOT looking forward to pumping/storing her milk in uncomfortable airport bathrooms or some other borrowed space.

Carlie arrived in Atlanta needing a space immediately. She saw a sign near the women’s restroom to download an app called Mamava that would “help locate a freestanding lactation pod.” She downloaded the app, was directed to the nearest pod through the complicated Atlanta airport and was given a code to unlock the door. The experience was simple, seamless, and the tech worked flawlessly! Carlie’s heart rate dropped immediately followed by a giant sigh of relief and gratitude.

The lactation pod was spotless, comfortable, specifically

and to

designed

reduce

anxiety

for new mothers. Carlie couldn’t wait to tell her friends and others about those

Mamava, that

have

particularly experienced

similar anxiety-ridden situations.

This is advocacy at its best.

As a product professional (and appreciative spouse and father), I’d like to say congratulations to Mamava for leveraging the power of design and technology together to create a beautiful example of physical + digital +

61

human

experience.

EXPERIENCE

We’ve all been there. That long, meandering

Before kids, I spent a lot of time and money

In the sneaky world of mobile commerce,

journey

endless

on sneakers. Years later, I have come back to

active shopping cart “states” keep my recent

aisle of wonder. This is not an existential

it with quite a different experience. Not only

finds neatly tucked away, begging me to add

examination of social media. Heck, I’m not

do I follow Nike on Instagram, I also keep

more and ultimately check out. Three to five

questioning if Instagram is listening to me.

after many of their ambassadors like Tiger,

days later, I crack open that magical box, try

Are they invading my privacy? Not asking.

Serena, LeBron and Jeter to name a few.

on a bunch, keep what I like, return the rest

It’s all good. I am a willing participant and

Much of my golf looks are Nike too. Many

(free) and move on! It all happens from the

quite enjoy my handheld curated content

say good experiences are built upon some

chair I’m sitting in right now.

and commerce adventures.

modicum of convenience. This feels more

through

Instagram’s

Here’s how I see it. Instagram feeds my passions and presents me with hobbies, many I was unaware could fill my free time with joy.

Two such unexpected pandemic pastimes have kept me busy. Sneakers & BBQ.

like an outcome than a driver of engagement and it trivializes the complicated work the brand does to keep getting to know me.

Where Facebook didn’t grab me, Insta

I have 10 pairs in my cart right now. I think I’ll buy them all.

The other one I never saw coming was BBQ. Grilling. Smoking. Mmmm...

ultimately did. Do you get caught by those

Hobbies can be hard. I’m interested in

innocent product carousels in your feed? No

excelling at new things, but the startup work

matter the frequency they serve up a series

can be a steep climb. Like most, I don’t have

of Pegasus, Air Force 1 or vintage Blazer

an extra 10,000 hours laying around.

kicks, or maybe a Tiger Dri-Fit shirt, I’ll just

my kid’s video games, a quick cheat code

endlessly swipe left. Swipe. Swipe. Swipe.

can jump start things.

I pray each successive swipe yields me a new

A

treasure. Sometimes a sucker, other times

session had me thumbing thru mindless

they surprise me.

content until I came upon a sponsored ad

similar

Saturday

morning

Like

Instagram

for Traeger Grills. Let’s skip how this arrived in my feed. I was neither in the market for a grill, nor had I done any research online or in a real, live physical store. Heck this was April 2020, no one was going anywhere.

How I became an accidental brand loaylaist.

Sneakers & BBQ Written By:

ANDREW SEVIN Executive Vice President, Revenue, Bottle Rocket

EXPERIENCE

"I didn't set out to be known as a sneakerhead or become a pit master, but my Saturday swiping has surely enabled, fueled, even accelerated my love for both."

The sense of immediate community made

engaged in is surely connected to commerce

my onboarding simple.

outcomes, but it’s so much more than that.

I find myself deeply invested. I know several local butchers now. My pantry is full of spices

over to Traegergrills.com. I watched their well-curated library of YouTube videos, many showcasing a mid-50s man with perfect, flowing grey locks. He prepped the evening’s meal, put in on the Traeger, left for the afternoon, nonchalantly pulling his iPhone out to manage the time and temperature of his glorious brisket from the slick Traeger App. Only took a minute. Cheat code unlocked.

Who would pass up going from BBQ for beginners to Masterclass in one big-box store transaction? This was the type of hobby on-ramp I was looking for. Something to do where I didn’t have to be terrible for eternity.

I bought the $1,500 beauty the next day!

Trager has devised a well-integrated system where their recipe library loads “into” your grill via the app, with simple, step-by-step instructions. Prep it. Cook it for six hours.

Spritz it.

Wrap it. Cook it for two more

hours. You can even read notes from other registered users who have executed the recipe in their own perfect way!

63

made this crossover seem effortless.

and rubs. I follow many of Traeger’s brand

At first, I defended and promoted the

ambassadors like Meat Church, Snake River

brand blindly. A little more informed now,

Farms and Kendrick BBQ. I’ve driven out

I still haven’t studied the competition, and

of my way to test out local BBQ joints.

I

probably never will. I am no one on the social

recently got shut out of Matt Pittman’s (Meat

media landscape but am all too happy to

Church) ½ day class ($300!). I’ve gone mad.

loyally represent the Traeger brand free of

It’s impossible to measure my brand affinity

Intrigued, I clicked. I researched. I went

I think of Yeti as a lifestyle brand that has

charge in my own micro-influencer world.

based on the grill alone. Putting aside

I didn’t set out to be known as a sneakerhead

my culinary pursuits, I even follow Jeremy

or become a pit master, but my Saturday

Andrus, Traeger’s CEO. The daily window

swiping’s have surely enabled, fueled, even

into both his public and private lives are a

accelerated my love for both. I share of

blurred line for sure. He has inspired me

love of kicks with my boys and am equally

to be a better leader, father, and friend.

touched when they ask me to make “my”

twenty months ago, I didn’t even know what

burnt ends.

a Traeger was. Today, the funnel I’m fully

EXPERIENCE

WRIT TEN BY: DAN SALTZMAN,

GLOBAL COMMERCE LEAD, OGILV Y

Unlocking 500% Opportunity

How Brand Equity Powers Breakout Commerce Experiences What percentage of brands could disappear overnight

about brands and experience, I think full spectrum

without notice? According to Elite Business Magazine,

commerce, the entire purchase journey. If we stop

that number is an astounding 74%. Sure, there are

thinking about just the single point of conversion – the

brands that rise to the top of the loyalty spectrum, and

website, the marketplace, the app, the brick-and-

its different for everyone. But for me its Nike, Ford,

mortar store – we actually start to open up a journey

Apple, the obvious suspects. But do you know what

that allows us to unlock what I believe is 500% more

kind of dish soap you use? What kind of toilet paper

opportunity than if we’re just thinking about that

is in your bathroom right now? Are you loyal to one

single point in conversion.

specific brand of soda or coffee?

Every day, we interact with thousands of brands, but yet we don’t remember so many of those interactions.

Why is that? I believe in the power of a great brand and a great brand experience. This couldn’t be more important now as competitive pressures intensify and customer demands change daily. When I think

64

The full spectrum commerce journey spans five

discrete phases: targeting, acquisition, conversion, servicing

and

fulfillment,

and

retention

and

loyalty. Each of these stages gives us a massive opportunity to unlock value and create new loyal customers. Let’s take a look at each phase.

“

P H A S E 1 : TA R G E T I N G This phase is the hardest to master because it’s all about the data. There’s no messaging.

There’s no opportunity for great creative.

There’s no opportunity to be funny; to be sentimental. This phase is all about identifying who

your

audience

is,

and

where

the

whitespace exists. For anyone who’s played team sports (or for those that sit on the couch for most of the day on Sundays), you’ve heard the concept of “skating to where the puck is.”

This is the exact same concept we utilize in the targeting phase. The targeting phase is all about making sure that you are talking to the right customers right when your brand message will have the most authentic value to them.

It’s all about bringing people into a brand and the brand experience is key to building that connection.”

home for customers and to help brands sell

example that stands out is an SC Johnson

their products to customers in a place where

and Walmart partnership where the air puff

they actually want it. I’ve enjoyed watching the

packaging was scented with Glade when it

explosion of channels and opportunities that

was popped. Knowing scent is one of the

we have to reach customers, especially the

most critical ways a brand can interact with

rapid growth of social commerce and the ability

customers, the Glade brand turned protective

to sell on Instagram and Facebook and now

packaging into a memorable experience.

on TikTok. These non-owned channels have become the primary points of sale, in addition mobile experiences. And as we look to China,

P H A S E 5 : L O YA LT Y A N D RETENTION

it’s fascinating to watch the live shopping

This phase is so important that it is often

opportunities that are going on in that market.

the complete focus of specific teams within

It’s as if we’re starting to bleed from the

brand organizations. What began with points

acquisition stage into the conversion stage in

programs, especially for hotels and airlines,

almost one fluid movement with brands right at

has grown into so much more. While points and

the center.

cashback types of incentives are still effective

to the core channels, our own websites and

forms of loyalty, the delivery of a great branded

PHASE 2: ACQUISITION So now that we’ve targeted our audience and

PHASE 4: SERVICING AND FULFILLMENT

uncovered the whitespace, we get into the

This phase sometimes gets a little lost in our

acquisition stage of the journey. This is where

conversations

the magic of great creative happens. It is the

Supply chain and service is where all of the

romance stage, as we often call it, because this

unrealized value is going to be in e-commerce

is where the power of advertising delivers its

for the next decade. And we’ve certainly seen

value. This is where we have the opportunity

that over the last two years, given COVID, and

to make an audience laugh to make them cry.

even now we are having some massive supply

This is Don Draper from Mad Men doing the

chain issues that almost every brand and

Kodak thing. This phase is about making a

retailer are facing.

brand connection. It’s about bringing people into a brand and the brand experience is key to building that connection.

and

thinking

as

marketers.

The concept of creating memorable brand experiences and brand equity, in this phase at least, is relativly uncharted territory. Sure, we have certain expectations from a supply

PHASE 3: CONVERSION

chain perspective as customers – we expect

Conversion is the holy grail of commerce.

arrive – but packaging as an element of brand

Obviously. This is the phase where we have

experience and the delivery of the package is

directly controlled opportunity to bring it

an area with very little innovation to date. One

65

something to arrive when it was promised to

experience and exclusive content continues to grow in terms of value with customers. This allows brands to deliver new types of value that points and discounts couldn’t before.

Focusing on all five phases of the commerce journey offers brands extended opportunity to unlock value and drive meaningful connections with customers. If you want to dig deeper into where your brand can take fuller advantage of the commerce journey, please reach out to us at hello@ogilvyexperience.com. We’d love to connect.

EXPERIENCE

WRIT TEN BY: R AJAT K ANODIA,

GLOBAL HEAD OF CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE (DESIGN + TECHNOLOGY ), VERTICURL

EXP 2022

The 7 Key Pillars Of CX Maturity Customers typically make purchasing decisions based on the prior experiences they have had with a brand, product, or service. While it may take a few good customer experiences (CX) to build trust with a brand, just one bad experience can leave a big dent in the relationship.

Leadership, People & Culture

Digitally mature companies have a leg up. During this time

People are the most valuable asset of any organization,

of COVID-19 and social distancing, people are moving to

and happy employees lead to happy customers. It falls on

digital channels more than ever—and they have heightened

executive leadership to foster a culture of collaboration

expectations for a superior, connected, and consistent

among their teams, filled with digital-first employees

experience.

who are well-versed in the latest technologies, such as

What does it take to become digitally mature and succeed in CX? Granted, most organizations understand the positive impact enhanced CX will bring to their top and bottom lines, influencing customer behavior and driving repeat business.

But to provide a truly differentiating experience requires a hard, honest look at other factors, too.

Here are seven key pillars to gauge your organization’s CX maturity.

66

artificial intelligence/machine learning, chatbots, cloud, and hyperpersonalization, to name a few. Among the ways leaders can build and operationalize a customercentric culture is to share its positive impact on company performance and business growth.

EXPERIENCE

Right Content Strategy Content, we know, is king. That, of course, means having a content strategy in place to deliver a consistent, coherent CX across channels. Such a strategy should factor who the content is targeting, which channels the content will publish on, and the different formats content could take. In addition, defined content life cycle processes that ensure the right content is being used in the right channel, and can be

If they research a product on their smartphones, they want to pick up where they left off when they move to their laptops or desktops. Brands must meet these expectations by reducing friction along the customer journey. According to a recent survey, 72% of consumers are likely to choose a brand that offers the ability to purchase/return across channels, emphasizing the need to simplify experiences along the customer journey.

should collectively work to create a content strategy and

Personalization At Scale

content to ensure optimization of effort and cost.

In order to deliver the right content through the right

leveraged across different teams, will go a long way. Teams

Human-Centered Design User experience (UX) is a subset of CX: Whereas UX is about a customer’s interaction with a product/service, CX is at the deeper relationship level. Both are crucial. Organizations can help improve the human experience they offer with a well-defined UX design process, factoring in business needs and user research–consumers’ likes and dislikes and how they think and behave—that help them define user personas and user journeys. This will help drive decisions that take

channels at the right time, organizations need to apply the insights and intelligence they have gathered and have a feedback loop that continuously enriches the data to fashion 1-1 personalized communications in real time, or near real time. One other key component is the agile management of the ever-changing landscape of data and segmentation.

Especially now, organizations must be able to pivot the data sets for meaningful insights and drive personalized messaging at scale. This will take an organization to the next level of personalization.

Data & Intelligence

Continuous Experience Optimization

Data is one of the key pieces of the CX puzzle. The

As the current environment continues to evolve, companies

proliferation of channels and devices, including the Internet

that are more digitally mature can instill higher trust

of Things, has brought with it a flood of data. It’s crucial to

and ease the pain their customers are going through as

be able to identify what data is most relevant—which will

they navigate through the pandemic with relevant and

differ from one company to another—and in as close to

compassionate messaging that evolves along with what

real time as possible to keep pace with shifts brought on

customers want to hear. This is why companies need to

by the current pandemic. Tools that capture and store data,

have “experience optimization” as part of their overarching

with the ability to stitch it all together for a comprehensive

strategy. This is shaped by clear KPIs and measurement

view of customers, provide these insights. That way,

criteria against their goals, e.g. conversion rates, average

organizations can understand every aspect of customers’

order value, and engagement and campaign metrics. These

behaviors, preferences, and what triggers their actions–what

insights can be applied to understand which journeys, pages

they buy, their preferred channels to purchase, their capacity

and their components are not working. Clear test goals and

to spend, etc.

test plans need to be put in place, along with a culture of

customers’ views into account, leading to better CX.

From there, organizations can build new and better experiences that lead to higher conversion and retention rates.

Omnichannel Delivery

always-on testing, such as A/B and multivariate testing.

Taken

together,

these

seven

67

can

show

maturity—and where they might need to improve to better differentiate the experiences they provide.

More so now than ever, customers expect their experiences to be seamless, from one touch point to another.

pillars

organizations where they stand in terms of CX

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON: BUSINESS.ADOBE.COM

EXPERIENCE

68

Written By:

TERRI CASTERTON Director, Healthcare Product and Strategy, Bottle Rocket

It was a lousy day. A nasty stomach virus had me making

vitals, they had fashioned an IV “pole” out of a coat

trips back and forth from bed to bathroom all day. I

hanger and a drapery rod, inserted a bag of lactated

could barely stand due to lightheadedness. Was this

ringers (for hydration), and given me a dose of Zofran

a “normal” stomach bug? Should I stick it out or seek

(for the vomiting and nausea). While the fluids and

some medical attention? Should I call my partner to

meds ran through my body and started bringing me

come take me to urgent care? Do I really want to sit in

back to life, the tech was sitting with her laptop at my

an urgent care waiting room while

dining room table processing my

throwing up in a bucket?

insurance and registration. The

When one is sick, the brain is clouded, and it’s tough to think clearly let alone make a decision about where to go and what to do. Thankfully I had one moment of

clarity

in

my

hazy

state.

I

remembered the Denver start-up that

was

reinventing

the

house

call, Dispatch Health. I gave them a call and spoke with a calm, compassionate nurse who triaged my symptoms. She said she could

How mobile technology, caring people, and an outstanding experience came together to solve a real pain point in healthcare.

have someone to my door in less

nurse practitioner took a finger stick of blood and ran a test on her mobile point of care device to see how my iron stores were doing. All the while, I was laying comfortably on my sofa next to a warm fireplace with my cat on my lap, chatting with Jane about her favorite hiking spots.

The next day, I received a checkin call to see how I was doing, a follow-up message reminding me that I could access all of

than two hours and asked me to download their app to

the care details in my account on the app, and a very

keep track of where the care team was en-route to my

reasonable bill. Mobile technology, caring people, and

house.

an OUTSTANDING experience that come together to

Within an hour, a nurse practitioner and a tech were at my door. After a few minutes of them assessing my

solve a real pain point in healthcare? I don’t get sick often (knock on wood), but next time I do, I know who I will call.

3

EXPERIENCE

tips to becoming a more productled organization WRIT TEN BY: ALEX COHEN,

VP, PRODUCT MANAGEMENT, BOTTLE ROCKET

When you hear the term “product,” you might think shoes, cereal, a cell phone — something you can touch or hold in two hands. But today, the word has taken on a whole new meaning and carries greater value, especially for companies looking to become truly product led.

These days, there are many different definitions to product-led growth and can often be molded to fit an organization’s goal. However, for this article, I’m going to reference a blog on ProductLed. com by Wes Bush, who defines it as a “go-to-market strategy”. In this sense, the product is the primary asset used to gain and retain customers.

It’s about prioritizing the end-to-end user experience in everything you do - from product and pricing, to customer engagement and purchase. In product management, nothing should matter more that addressing customer needs. That’s why, with higher barriers to entry and heightening expectations to contend with, brands are purposefully weaving product into the fabric of the company.

This is in stark contrast to sales-led companies, where the goal is to simply take a buyer from point A to point B in a sales cycle. Although customer acquisition is the lifeblood of any profitable company, it still costs five times as much to acquire new customers than retain existing ones.

Product-led companies flip this traditional sales model on its head, and are able to minimize churn, by giving the buyer the “keys” to use the product. This is why we see the likes of streaming giant, Spotify – a classic example of a product-led company – offering one-month trial periods for their premium “no ads” subscription. Users understand how they can benefit from using the product and find value before paying. They then commit to pay when they feel it’s warranted, and Spotify achieves a 46 percent conversion rate in the process. This motivates product-led companies to maintain clarity of focus on making their product the best it can be.

The product-led growth model is typically a strategy reserved for the Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) industry – used by Spotify, Slack, Dropbox, and Salesforce. But how might other organizations take lessons from this durable go-to-market approach? Here are three tips to get you started down the right path.

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1. KEEP THE CUSTOMER AT THE CENTER OF EVERY THING YOU DO. To become product-led, you simply need to obsess over the customer at every stage of the journey. Even at Bottle Rocket, we take lessons learned from SaaS companies in that we collectively organize ourselves around solving the problems of our customers’ customers. We don’t wait to have a contract to show off our “product” (our people, processes, and approach).

During our first interaction with a client, we spend time diving into the business problems we must help them solve. Interviews, workshops, and ideation sessions naturally occur, as we give our clients a taste of our “product” to experience the value – not just

Creating value for customers along each stage of journey is what we, as product managers, strive for.

hear about the (perceived) value from us.

Through various tactics, a product-led strategy is an intrinsic part

2. LEVERAGE AN OUTCOME-BASED MINDSET VERSUS AN OUTPUT-ORIENTED MINDSET Product-led companies are relentlessly focused on outcomes.

This means rather than defining success by the features you release (output), you measure success by the value those

of focusing an organization on each part of a product journey, in order to create the most value for customers. Tactics include combining R&D, sales, and marketing to hone in on improving customer satisfaction, adoption, and usage rates. Add this to the increased agility of a product-led organization and it’s possible to deliver quick and long-lasting value to customers.

features create for your customers and your business (outcomes).

Product-led companies rely on data to anticipate when issues

Companies that leverage this mindset tend to measure success

may arise in the customers’ product journey. This is vital, as it

in impact – the impact the product has on people’s lives and

enables these types of companies to innovate faster by building

the impact it has on the growth and profitability of the business.

on customer feedback and adapting their user experience. This

They are also known for finding new and creative ways to serve

process of iteration helps teams use successes and setbacks to

customers that ultimately creates value for the business.

drive towards their end goal.

Finally, product-led organizations have flexibility. Flexibility to

3. PROMOTE A CULTURE THAT’S DESIGNED TO ENSURE CUSTOMER VALUE

change and re-write a roadmap when it needs to be adapted.

Curating product experiences that customers will love comes

you can’t base product decisions on perceptions. Instead,

from the bottom up. A pillar of becoming product-led is ensuring

you must use direct feedback, sentiment, and user behavior to

every team has an influence over the product. At Bottle Rocket,

guide your decisions. Only then will you have a guide into where

we ingrain a “lean MVP” mindset into our DNA to help us flex and

your product is delivering and where it’s not, giving you an

regularly attack collaborative product innovation. A traditional

opportunity to react accordingly.

This approach requires you to run vast numbers of experiments, instead of working with a defined set of qualities. Why? Because

Minimum Viable Product (MVP) is a version of a new product that allows teams to provide immediate value and secure feedback from customers with the least effort. We see “lean MVP” as the most efficient path to creating recognizable value, in the form of strategic plans, business cases, and integrations.

The future is product-led Product is no longer simply about the ‘product.’ Instead, it’s

“So, we’ve looked at how businesses can become a more product-led organization, but why would they, what are the benefits?”

71

about the full end-to-end experience associated with a product.

Product-led organizations are leading a critical change in thinking: continuously improve the product experience and leverage valuable customer feedback to do so. As a result, product-led companies can dig deeper and produce valuable outcomes for users, encouraging great loyalty intention.

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON: BOT TLEROCKETSTUDIOS.COM.

A R E- I N T R O D U C T I O N TO E - C O M M E R C E P E R S O N A L I Z AT I O N

Know Me, Guide Me, Wow Me WRIT TEN BY: AMANDA EL AM,

Much

CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER, BLOOMREACH

of

They respond positively when brands demonstrate

personalization—how it can unlock new customer

has

been

their investment in the relationship, not just the

growth,

transaction.”

develop

respond

to

written

on

ironclad

customers’

the

brand unspoken

promise loyalty,

even

needs.

Yet

few businesses have put this type of scaled personalization into practice. Why is that?

Many

find

themselves

stuck

in

a

In showcasing that investment in the relationship, personalization helps to nurture customer loyalty, delivering an experience so impactful that customers

state

of

feel compelled to return to a brand again and

personalization paralysis, unsure of where to start

again. And as consumers have become inundated

and unable to move forward. Personalization holds

with choice in today’s digital commerce landscape,

substantial promise for organizations, though. It

finding ways to nurture that loyalty is more critical

offers an answer to the question being asked with

than ever for a brand’s long-term success.

increased frequency by businesses in this new digital era: how do we improve our customer experience?

When implemented at scale, personalization has the ability to delight consumers and respond to their calls for brands to ‘know me, guide me, wow me.’

A recent McKinsey & Company report explained, “When asked to define personalization, consumers associate it with positive experiences of being made to feel special.

72

MORE THAN GREET-BY-NAME: PERSONALIZATION DEFINED Personalization has long since surpassed the days of a simple ‘Hi, [FIRSTNAME]’ field, and if your organization’s personalization strategy begins and ends with putting a customer’s name in the subject line of your marketing emails, it’s time to think bigger.

“A business can have all of the right data and the right elements of trust, but none of it matters if it doesn’t have the technology stack to deliver results.” share their data). Consumers today are far more

and that you’re using those insights to make

aware of what’s happening to their personal

their next interaction even better. This should

data; by depending more on data their

go beyond the low-hanging fruit of calling

shoppers are willing to share, companies can

customers by their first name. Personalization

build better customer experiences and build

has the ability to deliver true joy for your

consumer trust at the same time.

customers—the joy of being understood.

A business can have all of the right data and the right elements of trust, but none of it

With

the

data

you

gather

(responsibly)

from consumers, you can know, guide, and impress them with contextual and seamless experiences. To the consumer, it will feel as though your brand has catered its commerce experience specifically to them. But you’ll be

directly to them and their journey. Brands that

After years spent with personalization paralysis,

to deliver results. Cloud solutions that offer

brands

flexibility and shorter adoption times ensure

resources available to reclaim the promise of

organizations can move quickly to implement

personalization at scale. So let’s get started...

their personalization strategies. With these

your customers are waiting.

solutions in place, ingesting critical data and using it to power your commerce experience, your business can move swiftly toward better business results and, above all, better customer experiences.

THE PATH FORWARD Importantly,

adopting

are the ones that will win lifetime loyalty.

technology,

and

the

mindset

right

tools,

to

allow

personalization to flourish will go a long way in

Personalization may have been the ‘Next Big Thing’ for years, but warnings against setting expectations too high have also existed.

Gartner was predicting many organizations would abandon personalization efforts back in 2019.

Historically, the challenge of implementing personalization at scale has lied in a few key areas: incomplete data, eroding consumer trust,

and

underperforming

technology.

Fortunately, these are solvable problems.

Data collection might be harder these days, particularly with privacy laws and the coming sunsetting of cookie technology, but companies can build an extremely comprehensive view of customers by relying less on first- and second-party data and turning instead toward zero-party data (where customers intentionally

finally

have

the

technology

building consumer trust, proving to customers that you’re listening to what they’re telling you when they interact with your digital channels,

and

Be sure to read The Definitive Guide to E-Commerce Personalization for more insights into the power of personalized commerce experiences and how organizations can begin their own personalization journeys.

use personalization to deliver that experience

OVERCOMING PERSONALIZATION PARALYSIS

deserve?

matters if it doesn’t have the technology stack

achieving that customer experience at scale, meaning shoppers will feel you’re speaking

Isn’t that the type of digital experience we all

The World’s #1 Commerce Experience Cloud Empowering Brands to Deliver Customer Journeys So Personalized, They Feel Like Magic

Bloomreach Commerce Experience Cloud offers a suite of products that drive true personalization and digital commerce growth, including: Content, Discovery, and Engagement. Together, these solutions combine the power of unified customer and product data with the speed and scale of AI-optimization, enabling revenue-driving digital commerce experiences that convert on any channel and every journey.

Our API-first, headless CMS offers the flexibility

Our product and content search, merchandising, SEO,

Welcome to real personalization —finally. Our real-

to power any front end while retaining the

and recommendations capabilities are backed by

time Customer Data Platform (CDP) combined with

personalization and authoring capabilities commerce

an AI engine built with more than a decade of data,

intelligent marketing automation provides the synergy

professionals know and love.

enabling commerce professionals to drive improved

required to guide your customers through an ultra-

conversion rates through powerful discovery tools.

tailored, always consistent, cross-channel journey.

Learn more at bloomreach.com

EXPERIENCE

BEHIND EVERY BRAND IS A GREAT EXPERIENCE, AND VICE VERSA

Why Today’s Customer Expects Synergy WRIT TEN BY: STEVE SOECHTIG GLOBAL CEO, OGILV Y EXPERIENCE AND R AJESH MIDHA PRESIDENT, OGILV Y EXPERIENCE

THE MATURIT Y OF DIGITAL ENGAGEMENT As we rapidly approach the thirty-year anniversary of the commercial Internet, there’s no longer any debate as to whether the digital revolution has upended the traditional rules of brand activation

75

In a digital first world, it’s going to take more

and customer experience management. We have

than just a great experience to stand out. Rajesh

an entire generation of active market participants

Midha, President of Ogilvy Experience North

who are true digital natives, having been born into

America, and Steve Soechtig, Global CEO of

the digital world, and we have a global society that

Ogilvy Experience, explore the evolution of

recognizes the intrinsic value of online interaction

digital engagement and the inextricable link

and research. The result of this is a permanent

between a brand and an experience, including the

change in consumer behavior, which in turn has re-

impact created when the two are in sync.

written the rules of Brand and Experience.

EXPERIENCE

“The last best experience that anyone has anywhere becomes the minimum expectation for the experience they want everywhere.”

Historically, brands would follow the traditional AIDA funnel management model, with brand teams focusing on awareness and interest – the top- to mid-funnel activity – and experience teams concentrating on desire and action – the

BRIDGET VAN KRANLINGEN, SENIOR VICE PRESIDENT OF IBM GLOBAL MARKETS

mid- to lower-funnel activity. Brand teams drove mass market appeal, broadcasting general value propositions to the market with equally broad market groups, while Experience teams

is that the brand will offer value through the

are being made based on the value that a

used human-to-human interactions to tailor the

experience itself.

brand is providing to meet the consumer’s

message and solution to the individual’s wants

brand and the brand is now the experience.

and needs. It was an effective model that drove significant brand growth for many decades.

New

business

Experiences are now the

models

have

emerged

to

capture these trends, and existing brands

on the value of the product or service itself.

Further, engagement progression is driven by continuous online value, such as the Urgent

At first, the digital revolution slowly upended

are changing their approaches in recognition

these standard brand management principles.

of this trend.

Having a web presence (and, eventually, an

convenient, consistent, and rapid access to

app or social media community) gave the

the world’s largest selection of products at the

brand a market edge. Data was captured to

lowest prices is realized through its experience,

That said, it’s important to recognize that the

form profiles and target ads to the individual,

whether that be the browser, the mobile

brand experience, in most cases, must extend

which guided the consumer to an online

application, or their ubiquitous voice assistant.

beyond utility.

experience that was contextual, personalized,

Uber’s brand promise is a direct reference

stimulate and shape an emotional response

and

frictionless.

However,

one

Amazon’s brand promise of

Care clinic offering telemedicine consultations or the financial institution offering online prequalification for a mortgage.

It’s critical that experiences

principle

to its experience: “Tap a button, get a ride”.

within the individual, whether that response be

remained somewhat constant: Brand teams

Under that is the implied value proposition

aligning core values, extending anticipation,

focused on top- to mid-funnel awareness and

that Uber will offer a simple and transparent

resolving frustration, or calming anxiety. High

interest – focusing on the click-through to the

ride

res visualizations, carefully crafted content,

experience- and once awareness was built and

where you are in the world. A more traditional

and

the consumer clicked, the experience team

brand, Sephora, offers a virtual mirror allowing

perceptions,

took over and guided the customer towards

consumers to explore products and colors on

production action that ultimately increase

specific products and services that ultimately

their face, while equally traditional Charles

customer engagement and loyalty to the

led to transaction and payment.

Schwab offers a range of calculators and

brand.

simulators to support their investing and

tailored experience continues to increase.

banking client’s financial decisioning.

IBM’s Bridget van Kranlingen was quoted in

More recently, we’ve seen the pace of change accelerate

dramatically.

The

continued

scheduling

experience

regardless

of

maturation of the digital consumer, combined

The result of this shift is that experiences

together with the equal maturation of platforms

are no longer a reinforcement of the brand

and technology, have driven new behaviors in

positioning, designed to capture interest and

the market and changed the rules of the game.

convert it into commitment. As Jay Patisall and

Suddenly, consumers are taking control of their journey in new and unexpected ways, engaging with brands at different points in the decision process and following different paths to engagement and loyalty.

Ted Schadler highlight this in their May 1, 2019 Forrester report Desperate For Differentiation: Creativity Experience,

Galvanizes “Every

The

Total

engagement

Brand moment

is now a brand experience. It’s not possible to separate brand communications from a brand’s digital or physical presence.”

76

immediate need and not exclusively based

value-added invoke

personalization reactions,

BRAND AND EXPERIENCE – TWO SIDES OF THE SAME COIN This latest change reflects more than just a

a specific experiential need, such as a financial

convergence of a process. It represents a

calculator (“How much will my mortgage

fundamental shift in the expectation between

payment be?”), virtual shopping assistant

the brand and the consumer. Whereas before

(“What are the most flattering athletic tops for

the brand’s commitment was to provide value

cycling class?”), or inquiry into options (“What

to the consumer through the product or service

urgent care clinics are open and available to

offered by the brand, the new expectation

evaluate my child’s sore throat?”). Decisions

drive

IBM’s Business Operational Blog (www.ibm. com/blogs, September 21, 2016) as saying that “The last best experience that anyone has anywhere becomes the minimum expectation for the experience they want everywhere”.

This is even more true five years later.

The

bar is continuously rising, and capturing the

individual’s

attention

and

emotional

connection becomes more difficult with every interaction.

with brands through the experience, and often are discovering brands through the search for

shape

Further, the expectation of a perfect,

More

and more, potential customers are engaging

and

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON: OGILV YEXPERIENCE.COM.

EXPERIENCE

THE POWER OF USER FEEDBACK INCITING CHANGE FOR THE BETTER

Users started petitions on change.org to try and influence Ravelry to revert back to their previous design, in the hopes that they would be able to access their patterns and projects again without negative physical repercussions.

Again,

Ravelry

didn’t

respond. Finally, in July of 2020, almost 2 months after the redesign, Jessica, one of Ravelry’s founders, responded with a

WRIT TEN BY: DEB GELMAN,

EVP, EXPERIENCE DESIGN, BOTTLE ROCKET

blog post, acknowledging the deficiency in their response, stating “I first would like to apologize for any stress and uncertainty that the Ravelry site redesign has caused in

For those of us who knit, crochet, spin,

However, it was Ravelry’s disregard for

what is already a difficult year. I am so sorry

and weave, Ravelry is the definitive global

accessibility that ultimately lost a chunk of

that our actions, or inactions, have made

community of like-minded crafters sharing

its avid followers. In June of 2020, Ravelry set

anyone in the community feel unheard. We

ideas, patterns, techniques, and stories.

about redesigning its web site, creating what

acknowledge that our responses up to this

The largest repository of crochet and

amounted to an inaccessible experience

point have been insufficient.”

knitting patterns in the world, Ravelry’s

for its neurodiverse users. People with

message boards, projects, and yarn lists are

migraines, vertigo, and seizure disorders

unparalleled, bringing together fiber artists

suddenly found themselves unable to use

across the globe.

the site. Called “New Ravelry,” or “NuRav,”

Now, you may be asking yourself, how broad a reach could a website for knitters and crocheters have? Well, as of March 2020, Ravelry had 9 million registered users. NINE. MILLION. That’s HUGE for a niche crafting

the sharp color contrast, motion, and font changes caused neurological responses in some users, leading to an outcry among

March on Washington in 2017 and promoting “craftivism”

in

causes

promoting

the

progressive agenda. In 2019, Ravelry posted in its blog that it would ban all expressions of

support

for

then-president

Donald

Trump and his administration, stating “We cannot provide a space that is inclusive of all and also allow support for open white supremacy. Support of the Trump administration is undeniably support for white supremacy.”

77

usable and accessible. It took the voices of millions of crafters to invoke change.

see in 2022 and beyond, a change we are

by the new design and fixing them or rolling

and crochet patterns ahead of the Women’s

different “modes” to make their experience

This is representative of a change we will

13,674 in global internet engagement .

stance, avidly promoting the Pussyhat knit

design, allowing users to choose between

original design.

Instead of acknowledging the issues caused

Ravelry has been quite vocal in its political

Ravelry made significant changes in the

loyalists for Ravelry to change back to its

site. In fact, as of this writing, Ravelry ranks

Not one to shy away from controversy,

But it wasn’t until February of 2021 that

back to the original design, Ravelry founders turned off comments on both Instagram and on Ravelry itself, creating additional concern and confusion.

already hearing requested from clients and partners – allowing customers to either select from a curated set of experience frameworks, or allowing them to create their own from a set of offerings, to cultivate the most meaningful, usable, intuitive, and delightful experience that works for them, as consumers and as humans.

Making API Experience a Project Priority WRIT TEN BY: DANNY BAGGETT,

LEAD ENGINEER, BOTTLE ROCKET

In a past article, we gave a best practices breakdown

on

flipping

API

development

upside down for top-down development with quality API design that delivers functionality consumers

truly

need.

We

believe

API-

fueled mobile and web applications are a representation of the underlying APIs, so it’s critical to get the design right from the onset.

API Gateways in general act as a proxy between consumers

(mobile

or

web

applications)

However, not all projects can justify completely

and upstream APIs. Users of API Gateway

overhauling APIs just to go top-down for a

products oftentimes have pre-built or custom

change. In fact, many projects start off in pretty

policies at their disposal which can augment

good shape where the underlying enablement

the underlying APIs to create something that

APIs are performing just fine and providing all

may appear much different and hopefully

the key functionality that the mobile or web

richer. One such API Gateway is Azure’s

experience needs. You don’t have to reinvent

API Management product which we used

the wheel or implement some unnecessary

recently for a client’s native Android and iOS

abstraction API to start thinking about the

applications.

experience given to your consumers.

78

An API Gateway is a great way to start adopting the experience mindset in APIs without doing a full rebuild.

EXPERIENCE

An API Gateway is a good way to handle minor orchestration challenges such as those on the aforementioned project. In fact, a gateway should

probably

be

considered

standard

practice for any large-scale API rollout due to the governance and security features alone.

It’s important to note that there are multiple ways to solve challenges like these. An API Gateway is one option, but there are others.

The product or tool is not the ultimate takeaway from this experience. The most important thing is that an awkward and undesirable authentication process was not allowed to remain as an annoyance for consumers in the future. A stand was taken on this project to think about a consumer’s experience using the API. There was no wait for more meat on the bone or some new feature before acting. API experience should be an immediate priority no matter how small the effort.

Upon project start, the client was already integrated with two established and wellequipped vendors in the online ordering and loyalty spaces respectively. Most of the features and functionality that were reimagined in the new native experiences were already supported from an API perspective in underlying vendor APIs. Still, we needed a way to maintain parity from an API perspective while also having the means to easily expand capabilities in the future.

With Azure’s API Management solution, it was painless to get an API Gateway created which proxied the underlying ordering and loyalty APIs. From here, we went on to tackle an awkward login process in the existing experience

which

required

the

client

to

authenticate with both the ordering and loyalty services. Using Azure’s policies, we created new registration and login API resources which handled the orchestration logic. This allowed the developers to interface with a single API while still having access to all the same data.

79

“You don’t have to fully reimagine your existing API ecosystem to make experience at the API layer a priority.

Start making your consumers’ lives easier immediately no matter how small or large your initial deliverable needs to be.”

EXPERIENCE

How Gather Helped Our Teams Work “Better Together”

Greer

EXP 2022

Written By:

GREER CROW

Associate Visual Designer, Bottle Rocket

With all of the benefits of ‘Work from Wherever’

After

the biggest downside is the inability to easily

immediately dove into organizing and building

get together. This became even more painfully

out a custom map, creating an onboarding flow,

evident as the planning team for our annual

and integrating portals throughout the space to

hackathon, Rocket Science, realized that the

make it as user friendly as possible.

organic nature of the event would have to change to allow everyone, attending both inperson and remote, to truly experience it. Zoom burnout and forgotten team members seemed inevitable, but after much discussion, a new piece of software was suggested: enter Gather.

test,

our

team

was

sold.

The day of Rocket Science 2021 came; it was amazing. Team members could easily walk down a hallway and pop in and out of different rooms,

teams, they were able to meet inside of their to provide the same interaction we were used to,

gather.” This game-like environment is centered

in a fun and engaging fashion.

amazing platform made spending time together online as easy as it is in real life.

John

activities were happening. For fully remote rooms and collaborate easily. Gather allowed us

and the privacy of spatial limitations, this

Sally

say “hello” or participate in whatever random

way to work, host events, learn, hang out, and

proximity chat. Keeping the ease of collaboration

Brian

We

According to their site, Gather is simply “a better

around fully customizable spaces combined with

80

one

Beth

EXPERIENCE

One of the coolest things we were able to do

Our judges even used this set-up to explore the

through Gather was to design a replica of our

digital projects just as easily as they had walked

kitchen at work (which we lovingly refer to as

through the office for the in-person presentations.

Ten-Forward). We took one of our rolling video conference set-ups, and put it in the kitchen with an open stream during the duration of the event.

This served as a general bridge between in-person and remote Rocketeers, where remote participants could walk up to the stream in our digital space and be able to engage with those in our physical

Overall, Rocket Science 2021 will forever be marked by our experiences thanks to Gather. We are excited to watch it grow in the coming years, and we can’t wait to see what amazing uses we can find for it in the future of our ‘Work from Wherever’ world.

space, and vice versa.

Annie

Allison Ben

81

Jordan

Carl

EXPERIENCE

Written By:

MATHIEU GILLAIN

Chief Growth Officer, Social Lab

EXPERIENCE In 2020, physical store visits and retail were

We

the

To drum up exposure the lens was promoted

put on hold because of the pandemic and

category’s need to try on and experience

through paid media across Snapchat. To

consequential

sparked

the product and people spending more time

maximise sales, we focused on engagement-

the relevance of social commerce: allowing

online as they were locked in. As a consumer

led retargeting and re-routed the users who

users — like me — to discover and purchase

myself, trying shoes has always been key in

tried the lens to a product page featuring

products in a seamless, entertaining and

deciding what product to purchase.

the new MTE All Weathers.

lockdowns.

This

immersive experience.

identified

a

tension

between

The challenge was clear: how can Vans make

The campaign was a hit. The return on ad

For Vans connecting with youth through

its MTE shoes accessible to customers,

spend from people who tried the AR lens

culture, innovation and creative expression

without

leaving

reached 14.5. And on average, people who

has always been at the cornerstone of its

friction,

and

communication.

experience.

And regardless of a global pandemic, the

In collaboration with Snapchat, we designed

brand aims to keep pushing the needle.

an AR lens that offered an entry point for

So, right in the middle of the second wave

consumers to virtually try on the Sk8-Hi MTE

As a consumer myself, I am not surprised

of COVID-19, Vans needed to roll out its

2.0 collection.

by

promotion plan for the all-new MTE All Weather Vans winter model.

the

house,

offering

an

minimising overall

fun

As a consumer exposed to the AR lens, I would first be prompted to point the camera to my feet. An AR effect would then be triggered; allowing me to try two different shoe styles. As the campaign was built from Snapchat’s Shoppable tech, Snapchatters like me could purchase directly from the Lens via a “Shop Now” button.

83

engaged with the lens were 32% more likely to make a purchase. To top things off, it was shared 141,000 times, bringing 631,000 earned impressions to the table.

the

performance

obtained

by

this

campaign, which provides the audience with an amazing AR and buying experience, and as a Chief Growth Officer, I am very proud to have been involved in the making of this amazing innovative initiative.

PUTTING CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE BACK ON THE MAP

how to engage with brands, and they may even begin preferring new avenues to traditional ones. Businesses should meet customers where they are and offer options at every step of their journey, all of which can be brought together under the umbrella of a native app.

Loyalty: Consumers are constantly evaluating and re-evaluating their brand decisions, prioritizing those that are most relevant to them, and were conditioned to expect rewards based on spend. By offering loyalty programs that account for customer preferences, businesses can enable more seamless payment options and personalized offers. These can be the difference between keeping customers and losing them to competitors.

Value: As consumers start re-engaging with brands in the physical world, businesses have an opportunity to enhance on-premise experiences with mobile applications. From contextual messaging to special offers, brands can leverage the inputs of the real world to give their customers a

WRIT TEN BY: AL HARNISCH,

reason to open their apps in the store and continue build-

ing up digital engagement.

VP OF BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT, RADAR

Some of our most used and most loved apps are underpinned by location data. The pandemic amplified its role tenfold as the divide between the physical and digital worlds became more pronounced. Now, consumers and businesses are beginning to rely on and expect location technology in everything from curbside pickup to logistics management.

This is not a fleeting trend. As we look towards 2022—and the post-pandemic future more broadly—these hybrid experiences that emerged over the last eighteen months are here to stay. Consumer expectations are at an all-time high, and businesses can stay ahead of the curve by implementing features like self-serve options, drive-thru, loyalty programs, click-and-collect and more.

The applications for location data are numerous, and each one can have a powerful impact on consumer experience. This can help brands stand out and rise to the top, especially for those with strong competition. The key is thinking differently about location data in this new era of service. Here are three pillars to

Here at Radar, we’ve been laser-focused on helping brands

emphasize in the new year:

implement these location-enabled applications to meet

Optionality: The pandemic sparked the need for new channels of customer engagement, such as curbside pickup for fast-casual restaurants. Even as the pandemic subsides, customers have grown accustomed to this increase in choice. They want to decide

84

the needs of the modern consumer. We’re also collaborating with leading partners like Bottle Rocket to offer multiple tools to help businesses create the next generation of customer experience. By investing in a stack of best-in-breed technologies that combine that work together in a cohesive framework, brands have the best chance of excelling in 2022 and beyond.

Leading geofencing platform Radar empowers engineering, product, and market teams to build location-based experiences faster, enabling timely and relevant experiences that drive engagement, loyalty, and revenue.

Deliver timely, relevant experiences

On-premise experiences

Smarter messaging

Arrival and visit detection

Unlock features on-premise like in-store app mode to increase loyalty and conversion.

Send relevant offers, updates, and news at the right time to increade engagement.

Optimize pickup, delivery, and check-in with live ETAs, arrivals, and place verification.

Why Radar “We needed a geofencing partner that could power both best-inpclass in-store and curbside functionality, and Radar was the obvious choice given their privacy and developer-first approach” — Susan Eshleman, VP of Product

Privacy-first Extensible location solutions with privacy controls, GDPR abd CCPA compliance, and custom data retention.

Developer-friendly Open-source SDKs with industry-leading accuracy, simple documentation, flexible APIs, and turnkey integrations.

Enterprise-ready Built for scale, processing 100B+ locations per year from 100M+ devices with enterprise-grade security and support.

Learn more at radar.io

Email us at team@radar.io

EXPERIENCE

Written By:

BECKY MASON

Director of Project Management, Bottle Rocket

Becky

better together. wherever.

Across the 25,000 square feet of whiteboards in the Bottle Rocket office, project managers made lists, visual designers sketched designs and architects drew wireframes. Even our desks were on wheels allowing us to move freely around the office. But then COVID happened.

Gone were the days of walking ten feet to ask a coworker a question, or have a quick brainstorming session with a teammate. As we sat in our various workspaces, now across the country with our new Work From Wherever policy, we knew we needed a solution that allowed our transparent, creative and collaborative working style. Welcome Miro.

According to the Miro website, Miro is a “platform for modern work, enabling collocated, distributed, and remote teams to communicate and collaborate across formats, tools, channels, and time zones — without the constraints of physical location, meeting space, and whiteboard.” To put it simply, Miro is an incredible digital whiteboarding tool that can be used to share work and collaborate remotely, across any discipline. Needless to say, Bottle Rocket has embraced Miro in all of its glory.

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Stephanie

EXPERIENCE

Traditionally, Miro was used widely by the design and the

“Different roles and teams at a company speak different ‘languages’ — and we aim to dissolve that challenge by creating a space for shared understanding.” – Miro

user experience community. However, as of recently, this has shifted. As a career Project Manager, I have found Miro to be extremely useful for building out timelines, facilitating working team norms discussions, and running retrospectives after sprint increments or project completion. During my day-to-day work, I find myself in a Miro document more often than not. Over this past year, it has allowed me, a very linear thinker, to step outside my box and create and inspire new ways of working that I never thought possible.

Miro has helped break down team silo’s and has provided Bottle Rocket a platform to work together collaboratively in a remote world. Have a problem to solve? Pick from one of Miro’s hundreds of templates to choose from or you can create your own for future use. Users can even integrate with tools like Slack, Jira and Google. The opportunities are endless when using this tool.

Miro’s mission is to “empower teams to create the next big thing” and they are helping the Bottle Rocket teams do just that by bringing us together. Wherever.

Kirby

Matt

87

EXP 2022

EXPERIENCE

T he “Full-funnel of E-Commerce WRIT TEN BY: JEREMY WEBB,

VICE PRESIDENT, CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT & COMMERCE, OGILV Y ASIA

Capturing the value of the “other 90%” – i.e,

Indirect revenue (sales on other channels) should

shoppers that don’t buy then or there

be calculated, as consumers encounter brands

Consumer businesses are missing an opportunity by investing in and measuring direct e-commerce channels with only the immediate conversion in mind.

When considering investment and strategies on direct channels, such as owned websites and apps, or semi-direct channels, such as brand-operated stores on marketplaces, consumer businesses of all types should think beyond the checkout. The value to the brand of d2c commerce represents only the tip of the iceberg. Setting up and optimizing e-commerce experiences should be done in a way that adds value

for the first time and build consideration through D2C e-commerce content and experiences, but eventually buy on other channels. This could be for a sale made shortly after; it could be for a sale made weeks or months later.

Store conversion rates for many consumer categories is 1-10% -- i.e. up to one in ten people who visit a store actually buy something during their visit. If that’s the case, then, what about the remaining nine visitors? Has their experience been positive enough to make that sale elsewhere, or at a later stage, more likely?

throughout the full funnel; similarly, the full-funnel

Furthermore, has the brand collected data in a way

value of e-commerce should be considered when

that allows them to reach out to them in a more

considering an investment in a direct-to-consumer

relevant, more direct, or more efficient way? With

presence.

D2C – an owned website or app – this could be the collection of first party data or a placement of a pixel; on a marketplace such as Shopee or Tmall it could be as simple as a store follow.

88

EXPERIENCE

funnel awareness or mid-funnel consideration

Asian marketplaces consumers are encouraged

for a purchase made on another channel –

to “hang out” with all kinds of content, games

perhaps offline or on an online supermarket.

and social media functionality.

SHOWROOMING – see it, touch it in-store, buy it online.

Value” in Asia

And this is not exclusively the realm of marketplaces. Increasingly brands are creating content and experiences that will be valuable to

Showrooming,

their consumers right alongside the checkout

local stores become showrooms

on their D2C platforms. The intention is to

for online shoppers. Here, a

create an experience that builds upper funnel

shopper walks into a store and

perceptions of the brand, even for those that

checks out a product. They hold

don’t make the immediate sale.

Essentially,

in

it, feel it, try it. Then they walk out, go home and promptly purchase the product online.

The more “direct” the e-commerce experience, the more able the seller is to craft the experience that builds brand value.

WEBROOMING – see it, know it online, buy it in-store Webrooming

is

a

reverse

showrooming.

D2C e-commerce and the data it generates

Here, consumers trawl online for

allows businesses to learn about their consumer

product information and price

and

behaviour

to

comparisons. Then they walk into the store

#1 DIRECT REVENUE – THE IMMEDIATE SALE Growth in e-commerce during COVID, coupled with evolving consumer habits, is transforming the D2C market. According to PwC data, D2C currently represents roughly 15% of

for a final evaluation and make the purchase.

A perfect case in point is the mobile phones market. In 2015, 54% of buyers in Singapore completed their phone purchase offline after researching,

exploring

and

making

their

choices online.

While online purchasing in the region has been slower to catch on, new technologies, and

changing

consumer

expectations are accelerating the process.

Internet penetration, digital payment and consumer

trust

in

significantly in 2020.

e-commerce

all

rose

The region’s online

#3 BR AND BUILDING As new opportunities emerge, both on D2C platforms

and

marketplaces,

to

engage

consumers with content and experiences, there’s

a

corresponding

Collection of first-party personal data, for example, allows the brand to follow up with relevant communications in direct channels

#2 INDIRECT REVENUE – A SALES ELSEWHERE OR AT A L ATER DATE The above-mentioned direct revenue, currently small for many brands, represents only the tip of the iceberg in terms of potential value consumers,

especially those in southeast Asia, take different routes to arrive at the point of purchase.

Webrooming often plays a role, for example: Oftentimes an experience on an e-commerce platform might simply be building upper-

tags on different parts of the e-commerce experience

to

enable

efficient,

targeted

communications in paid media channels.

the more ability the brand has to collect data

over time.

and use it to create valuable experiences. as

livestream

and

Lazada are setting new expectations among

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interaction can add value in multiple ways:

As above, the more “direct” the experience,

gamification on the likes of Shopee and

because

The data collected around an e-commerce

for

such

opportunity

Shoppertainment

is

personalized

businesses to drive sales overnight, but brand

gross merchandise value by 2025.

This

direct,

Another simple example is to place pixels and

industry is poised to triple to $309 billion in

generated.

ongoing

funnel loyalty behaviors.

In southeast Asia this is set to grow rapidly.

platforms,

enable

communications.

such as email or messenger. This enables lower-

e-commerce penetration globally.

new

#4 DATA COLLECTION & INSIGHT

consumers. Unlike on Amazon in the west, where the experience is designed to get shoppers to check out as quickly as possible, on

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON: OGILV YASIA.COM.

EXPERIENCE

IN A WORLD FULL OF COMPLICATIONS , LET ’ S GET BACK TO THE BASICS WRIT TEN BY: STEVE SOECHTIG,

GLOBAL CEO, OGILV Y EXPERIENCE

Customer expectations have reached an alltime high, especially when it comes to digital interactions. What once may have been touted as a differentiator or emerging trend has quickly become the expectation. Regardless of whether I’m in the jungles of South America or traversing the polar icecaps, on a mountaintop in Colorado or on an airplane flying over the Atlantic, the expectation is that I, as a customer, am going to have digital access to complete whatever action I desire at that very moment.

Further, I expect that the digital experience knows who I am and anticipates what I’m

This may seem obvious, but you’d be surprised at how many brands we work with that dive right into a solution, before clearly articulating what the objectives are and should be. It’s like going straight to the HOW without really thinking through the WHY. It’s human nature to want to go fast and get things done, but in a world where experiences define and drive the customer’s perception and relationship, this can be make or break for your brand.

hoping to do. I also expect that the digital

Given that, the questions you should ask are

experience will capture everything that I’ve

simple:

done to date, so that in the future when I’m

accomplish? What challenge are you trying

interacting with an employee of the brand in

to overcome? Is the goal to acquire new

a physical experience, that individual has full

customers or increase the number of customers

visibility into all of my previous interactions…

that are currently engaging with your brand?

all without me realizing or recognizing that this

Are you looking to enter a new market? Are

data is being captured and retained.

you looking to capture the attention of a new

If that sounds like a ridiculously high bar, it is.

However, it’s the realty of today. The stakes are high, and the expectations are even higher. So, what do brands today need to do to succeed in

What are you ultimately trying to

demographic or socio-economic group or even geographic group in that regard? What is it that you’re trying to accomplish and what does success look like?

a world full of unreasonable customers, each

Once you’ve defined your desired outcome,

of which have continuously evolving demands

you can then start to work backwards from

and expectations? This article outlines several

that end state to create a roadmap and plan to

steps that you and your organization can take

realize that objective.

to stay current with the expectations of your market.

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FIRST, ALWAYS START WITH OBJECTIVES.

NEXT, IT’S IMPORTANT THAT YOU DON’T BUILD TO A SOLUTION. Once you build an understanding of where the gaps are and what the whitespace is, providing clarity on the unique need and differentiation, you will ultimately be able to bring solutions to market quicker. But one key issue I see time and time again are organizations that try and build TO a solution and lose sight of the objectives and goals that were originally set forth. We must remember that a product or solution is likely never going to solve a business problem.

It is nothing more than an enabler for whatever IS the solve.

The rigor here is to keep the original intent, or the challenge at hand, the most important thing and build to that. It’s not about just having an app or a website or the most amazing in-store experience you’ve ever seen. If it doesn’t help your customers do WHAT they want, WHEN they want it, in a WAY that is most convenient to their exact moment, then what was the point?

FINALLY, EVOLVE TO THE MARKET YOU ARE IN.

The second, and somewhat obvious dimension, is that you must build a strategy that’s aligned to the realities of the technology and the infrastructure of any given geography. And that has, in and of itself, a couple of different dimensions. Let’s take for example a CPG brand that is looking to expand into Central and South American countries. The challenge is, depending on where you are, there are different levels of infrastructure. Some places have a cellular infrastructure that is ubiquitous and fast, but in certain geographies, it may be limited to 2G and 3G generations of cellular connectivity. With varying levels of broadband availability,

customers

will

have

different

expectations and brands must accommodate.

Lastly, there are logistical considerations within specific geographies that must be considered.

For example, some countries and some cultures are very restrictive in terms of privacy, and in terms of how much they want to share and how much they want you to share in return. This goes way beyond GDPR. Some cultures are more open and some cultures are more closed.

Some cultures connect more with humor while if the same thing is said in another culture, it

There are three traditional dimensions that

will be seen as offensive. I’m referring to this as

brands need to consider when they look

logistics, but it also includes all the other things

at markets outside of their core: culture,

that go into building effective communications.

technology, logistics.

You could even call it personalization at the

The first thing that you need to understand is

cultural or even subculture level.

the culture of the environment or market that

While these three principals certainly aren’t

you are going to target. Oftentimes, we view

everything to keep in mind when building an

the world as a single global culture or as a set

effective digital strategy, I truly believe that

of stereotypes. We say there’s the American

success lies in the ruthless execution of the

culture or there’s the Asian culture, almost at

basics.

a continent level. But, the reality is, within the specific countries, sometimes as far as within the specific cities, you will discover that there are very unique and different worldviews and individual views. This will ultimately tie back to emotional needs that you need to activate in order to capture the attention of that market.

At no time will you come anywhere near a “one size fits all” idea. Communication must begin with an understanding of what’s important to a specific worldview and a recognition of individual needs. This will create the emotional triggers for customers that brands so dearly desire.

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ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON: LIFTOFF PODCAST.

“ WE’VE REACHED A POINT WHERE DIGITAL HAS BECOME INVISIBLE. NO LONGER IS IT A NICE TO HAVE TO DIFFERENTIATE. IT’S MERELY AN EXPECTATION OF CUSTOMERS EVERYWHERE.”

EXPERIENCE

GUCCI LEADS LUXURY IN THE VIRTUAL TRY-ON SPACE

Written By:

ALEX HUMMEL Strategist, Ogilvy

Many of my friends and colleagues have long enjoyed Warby Parker’s Virtual Try-On feature which, by overlaying the product onto the live image of their face, allows mobile app users to see what a particular pair of glasses looks like on them. The feature, which debuted in 2019, drove increased at-home orders and gave Warby a competitive edge amongst similar eyewear companies. Recently, other brands have also entered the virtual try-on mobile app space. Among them is famed luxury brand Gucci, which goes beyond Warby Parker and others in its variety of categories, including try-on features for make-up, beauty looks, sneakers,

lipsticks,

nail

polish,

décor,

eyewear, hats and watches.

I discovered this feature when a friend recommended Gucci nail polish. To my surprise, the app does an excellent job of displaying a variety of nail colors, employing technology that keeps the polish on as you move your hand.

92

EXPERIENCE

As

virtual

more

The Gucci app seamlessly connects mobile

and

app users to their tried-on product on the

brands, it’s becoming clearer to marketers

website, which includes additional product

that benefits extend beyond a boost in

information such as cost, nearby stores and a

mobile app downloads.

size guide. I was satisfied with the customer

common

try-on among

features luxury

grow

products

Other advantages to quality virtual try-on technology include increased loyalty, rates of engagement, word of mouth among friends, and cross sales.It also reduces the number of product returns, minimizing costs associated with such returns, which include logistics, warehousing and restocking, labor, environmental impact and more.

93

journey, and, though most items remain out of my current budget, I feel more likely to browse and consider Gucci products following this delightful experience.

EXPERIENCE

Deep listening drives innovation. It is one

“Listen now. When people talk, listen

But what about the customers’ needs,

of the most important skills any Strategist

completely.

spoken

and Experience Designer can possess in

you’re going to say. Most people never

unspoken? How do we inspire the customer?

the design thinking process. To create a

listen. Nor do they observe.” – Ernest

What do we learn when we observe

design solution, you must listen, observe,

Hemingway

customer behavior? And how can we use

and process a large volume of data points in a short period of time to have enough foundational knowledge to ideate upon.

This sounds basic and straightforward, but I am referring to those golden comments that come either from the client, or even more likely from the end user, that unlock some key understanding and/or insight in every project.

Don’t

be

thinking

what

Bottle Rocket is working to transform customer experience in industries spanning healthcare, grocery/retail, and QSR, just to name a few. We are constantly listening to find the key moments of interaction, transition, and reward that we can improve and ideally transform. Quickly learning a new client’s business, addressing their objectives, and creating the MVP within a project team are all mission critical.

and,

equally

as

important,

that to make something that matters?

Who knew, listening was such hard work?

Hearing what isn’t said can be used to create what is affectionately called “surprise and delight.” During any project, we will identify the customer touch points, journeys, and required transactions. Oftentimes, the key is identifying the micro-moments between interactions, finding the “one thing” than can elevate an experience from good to great, from expected to memorable, from generic to ownable for a brand.

“The

most

important

thing

in

communication is hearing what isn’t said.”

– Peter Drucker How well can we create a meaningful set of personas? How far can we “rewind” the

I’M ALL EARS

THE IMPORTANCE OF DEEP LISTENING IN THE DESIGN PROCESS

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customer journey with ethnographic and field research? How many “right” questions can we ask (in our limited timeframe) to get the answers that unlock some key friction points or that provide a eureka moment (which, by the way, is very hard to do).

EXPERIENCE It all starts with listening – discovery

“Never

sessions, SME interviews, prototype testing

my boy, but concentrate yourself upon

improvisation and intuitive collaboration

with the target audience. Bottle Rocket

details.” – Sherlock Holmes

starts with deep listening. In our pandemic

has built a significant part of its 13-year these

capabilities

and

to

general

impressions,

Our department is optimized around three

reputation on the successful results created by

trust

core groups: Strategy, Visual Design, and

techniques.

User Research. Each has its own unique and complementary skill set and traits. By

I’m not a detective, but I play one on TV.

design, we are not dogmatic in how we

I

lie

superpowers, and use the XD techniques

somewhere between that of a detective

and tools that work for that situation. Our

and psychologist. We have all watched

deep listening culture starts with our hiring

movies where the eccentric detective has

process. When hiring new XD Rocketeers,

some crazy collage style wall with yarn

two key professional traits we look for are

and

humility and courage.

often

feel

like

thumbtacks

my

job

identifying

skills

suspects,

jazz

very well. We must have courage to embrace the impossible and ask the tough questions

never been more challenging. How well we deeply listen, to both our clients and the end customer, can be the game-changer.

have the humility to listen and accept new

refers to himself as a ‘consulting detective’

information, requirements, and ideas from

in the stories, he is known for his proficiency

wherever they originate.

forensic

science, and logical reasoning that borders on the fantastic.” (Source: Wikipedia).

In our case, I would just define “fantastic” as applying our creative thinking to surprise and delight clients. We go deep to create things that matter.

WRIT TEN BY: STEVE CLEMENTS,

95

creative

of isolation abound, working together has

(two of Bottle Rocket’s core values) and

Like the Sherlock Holmes character who “…

song,

world, where remote working and feelings

Both support the deep listening mindset

discipline so intriguing.

deduction,

great

client’s needs, leverage our collective team’s

That’s what makes Experience Design as a

observation,

any

solve design problems. We just listen to the

relationships, behaviors, and gaps. That’s us.

with

Like

DIRECTOR, EXPERIENCE DESIGN, BOTTLE ROCKET

EXPERIENCE

WRIT TEN BY: BYRON BUSBY,

DIRECTOR, DEVSECOPS, BOTTLE ROCKET

Protect Yourself and Others

Have you ever paused and questioned, “Is this a secure Wi-Fi access point”? That person within you who raised the question is called your Instinct – Trust it!

Even when we know the rules of internet engagement and best practices to keep our information safe, it’s always that one instance that sits in the back of your mind where

you

questioned

yourself

saying,

“Maybe I shouldn’t have used that open Wi-Fi” or “Maybe I should have connected to a Virtual Private Network (VPN) before making that online transaction.”

For me, it was early this year while on a business trip where I knew something was wrong in the Matrix — but didn’t act. Call it unearned trust, hastiness, or even laziness — either way, deep down I knew better. While on the hotel Wi-Fi, I decided to make a quick online purchase on my phone at my favorite store. Because I felt it was a right here, right

Have you ever wondered, is this secure?

Consider how often we all cruise, surf, browse, or peruse the information highway without a seatbelt, or are unconsciously led down a dark internet alley. It’s an

yet horrible decision to input my credit card number which: 1.

afterthought because it’s never a real consideration — until it must be. There is

The pandemic shift led to a dramatic

an inherit trust that we as digital consumers

increase in U.S. E-commerce revenue in

appeal to in the sender/receiver relationship.

2020, approximately $431.6 billion. 2021 is

We give that trust away too easily and all

on pace to surpass $4.2 trillion globally. We

too frequently with no due diligence. And

can all guesstimate how many dollars we’ve

sometimes, even that trust ends up being

attributed to those figures – BUT, let’s talk

a facade. Unfortunately, we don’t actively

about a number that’s also in the proverbial

consider that possible threat acting prowlers

“illions”…How many data privacy breaches

in the middle between the sender and

have you attributed to that affected you

receiver who is actively targeting you as

or others?

the entry point towards bigger and better targets.

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now item, this is where I made the conscious

Gave unwarranted trust to the hotels network admins (horribly bad practice)

2.

Voluntarily on-ramped my personal information onto an unsecure highway

3.

Did not trust my own trained instinct to use my VPN app

4.

Had all the workings to create a massive cyberbreach blast crater if malware or ransomware was added to my device

5.

Was about to give me a prolonged headache

EXPERIENCE

So, if you are a frequently flying executive,

down to your birthday suit and walking

in-person meeting attendee, business or

down Main Street in your city — ALL of your

personal globetrotter or everyday shopper,

precious goods are exposed to the public.

the next time you choose to connect to

Fast forward four months later when I checked my credit card statement only to notice over $1,000 worth of random small purchases, delivered to an unknown address in far East Texas. That same Spidey sense I had four months ago came back with a punishing “I Told You So!” That headache of disputing transactions, filing police reports in multiple jurisdictions, not knowing what malware might have been installed (if any),

your local business, hotel, or airport Wi-Fi, I challenge you to trust your gut even if things don’t seem off in the Matrix. Act accordingly and use a VPN on your mobile device. You are taking the best step to protect yourself and others who reside on your home network. Yes, others. Because you don’t want to be the culprit who brought the ransomware to the office and it spread like wildfire.

and ultimately wanting vengeance on those

A small VPN investment is well worth the

who compromised my personal information

money. It will save you some of the most

was an overt test of sanity – yet a valuable

precious commodities in life – time and

lesson learned.

sanity. Plus, you will hopefully lower the

The more we shop online, unfortunately the more avenues for targeted breaches are introduced. If you don’t believe me, ask the Target shoppers whose data was targeted (pun intended) around Black Friday of 2013.

97

number of security breaches for yourself and others.

“ Wanting vengeance on those who compromised my personal information was an overt test of sanity, yet a valuable lesson learned.

“

Equate this one costly decision to stripping

EXPERIENCE

Airship – Airship is a platform for customer engagement, lifecycle marketing, and analytics and data solutions. Airship helps brands master mobile app experiences to accelerate onboarding, user understanding and monetization. www.airship.com Amplitude – Amplitude is the best-in-class product analytics solution, ranked #1 by G2. The Amplitude Digital Optimization System makes critical data accessible and actionable to every team — unifying product, marketing, developers, and executive teams around a new depth of customer understanding and common visibility into what drives business outcomes. www.amplitude.com Bloomreach – Bloomreach is the world’s #1 Commerce Experience Cloud, empowering brands to deliver customer journeys so personalized, they feel like magic. It offers a suite of products that drive true personalization and digital

EXP 2022

commerce growth. www.bloomreach.com

We’re in good company.

A special thank you to all of our amazing contributors and friends.

Bottle Rocket* – Bottle Rocket is a Dallas-based experience consultancy that provides business strategy, digital product, experience design, and technology services that drive business results and exceed customer expectations. www.bottlerocketstudios.com Eicoff* – Based in Chicago, Eicoff is a full-service advertising agency that specializes in fusing the power of television and the precision of digital to drive conversion and grow sales. www.eicoff.com IBM – IBM is a leading cloud platform and cognitive solutions company.

Restlessly reinventing since 1911, IBM is the largest technology and consulting employer in the world, with more than 350,000 employees serving clients in 170 countries. www.ibm.com

98

Iterable – Iterable is a cross-channel platform that powers unified customer experiences and empowers marketers to create, optimize and measure every interaction throughout the customer journey. www.iterable.com Jüssi* – Headquartered in São Paulo, Jüssi is a performance-based marketing and advertising company that offers world-class customer activation, digital product intelligence, and marketing technology and data services. www.jussi.com.br Ogilvy* – Ogilvy has been producing iconic, culture-changing marketing campaigns since the day its founder David Ogilvy opened up shop in 1948. Today, Ogilvy is an award-winning integrated creative network with 132 offices in 83 countries and five core businesses that span Growth & Innovation; Advertising, Brand, & Content; Public Relations & Influence; Experience; and Health. Ogilvy is part of the WPP global network. www.ogilvy.com Ogilvy Experience* – The experience division of the global Ogilvy network,

EXPERIENCE

Ogilvy Experience fuses creativity, brand, and experience to help companies drive sustainable growth and customer value. Bottle Rocket, Eicoff, Jüssi, The Lacek Group, and Verticurl are all part of the Ogilvy Experience network. www.ogilvyexperience.com Radar – Radar is developer-friendly, privacy-first location data infrastructure powering location-based experiences for enterprises and high-growth startups.

With powerful SDKs, APIs, dashboards and integrations, its full-stack toolkit is trusted in a space historically filled with ad tech and data monetization companies. www.radar.com Simon Data – Simon seamlessly blends the science of understanding your customers with the act of connecting to them. A 2020 Gartner Cool Vendor in Multichannel Marketing, Simon works with leading brands to improve customer experiences and all of the growth metrics that follow. www.simondata.com Social Lab* – Social Lab helps build, engage and amplify the Social Media presence of brands. Our experts cover the entire range of Social Media Marketing services, including content management, real time amplification, performance campaigns and Social CRM. www.social-lab.eu The Lacek Group* – Headquartered in Minneapolis, The Lacek Group has leveraged the power of customer data to design, build, and maintain loyalty, experience, and CRM programs for industry-leading clients around the globe for over 25 years. www.lacek.com Verticurl* – With over 1,200 global employees in 15 countries, Verticurl specializes in deployment, integration, and support of leading MarTech platforms, activation of customer experience technologies, and implementation of lead management processes. www.verticurl.com

*PART OF WPP AND THE OGILV Y GLOBAL NET WORK.

A MAGAZINE ABOUT ALL THINGS EXPERIENCE

“87% of people believe brands can change the world. And without creativity that change can never be realized.”

Devika Bulchandani, CEO, Ogilvy North America