Stop chasing the #CX puck: Level up for tomorrow's experience, today.

They say you cannot win an ice hockey match by chasing the puck. You need to skate where it will be. 
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I increasingly think of this expression when reviewing and discussing customer strategies. 

​As despite ice-hockey wisdom, we are too often 'chasing the CX puck'. 
Most of our attention goes to (agilely) improving the service and experience that is offered today. We listen to our customers’ voice. Obsess about metrics. Get closer to the jobs to be done. We fix problems. Seamless-ify with the latest technology. Emulate our competitors as fast as we can. Occasionally even beat them to it. 

While improvement is good, it won’t let us win the match.  
At best, it keeps us ‘in’ the race, as every other competitor is also listening, copying and continuously improving. Often using the same softwares, toolkits, consultants and customer panels. This makes any experience wins marginal and short-lived.

What’s worse, it can make us do the ‘wrong things’ right. 
Customers only tell us about what matters to them today. So when we base our actions on their current expectations, we risk being late to the party. 

Because by the time our wonderful new software, process or people programme has been implemented, customer expectations will have shifted and we need to work with a solution that’s ‘just not there’. 

Note: This is especially the case for large and complex organisations where significant implementations easily take 2-3 years.

Chasing the experience puck is a race we cannot win.
Today’s customer expectations are simply changing too fast.

• A few months ago, Uber processed and paid a claim I had in 6 minutes flat. So today, I’m impatient with anyone taking more than a few hours to respond. 
• Not so long ago, I was happy with Google. Today, I find its interface limiting compared to a (boosted) ChatGPT. I even considered installing Edge on my Mac?! 😱.

Whatever last best experience I have anywhere, becomes my expectation everywhere. And at the current rate of innovation, that's 'a lot' of experiences. 

Which is why I propose a different approach

Let's keep improving what we do today. 
But let's also to envision how we will meet the customer expectations of 2025 or even 2027+. Leverage current and future technologies, trends and insights to shape the future experience that ‘should exist’ rather than improve the legacy one we have.  

This can be the basis for an experience innovation that inspires your people to create a new future for your customers, your industry and, why not even the world? 

Put differently: Stop exhausting yourself by chasing the experience puck. Skate to where it will be next.  ​

Want to future-proof your customer experience?

Then get in touch to have a virtual coffee ☕️.
It's not that hard to step out of today's hamster wheel and look at the needs of tomorrow. All it takes is a willingness to listen and create "what is right".
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So get in touch. Even if we don’t do business, I’m sure we’ll have an interesting conversation.