PhocusWire Pulse: A New Age For Social Media - Brian Solis

Summary

In this insightful discussion, digital anthropologist and futurist Brian Solis shares his expert observations on the evolution of social media and its impact on customer engagement. He highlights the shift to a 'digital first' consumer mindset, accelerated by the pandemic, and emphasizes the need for brands to reimagine their customer journey to meet new expectations. Solis challenges travel brands to innovate, focusing on personalized experiences and aligning with customer values for a post-pandemic economy.

Takeaways

• 🎙️ The interviewee, Brian Solis, is a digital anthropologist, futurist, best-selling author, and global innovation evangelist at Salesforce, highlighting his expertise in social media and customer engagement.
• 🏆 Brian Solis was recognized for his early involvement in social media, joining Twitter in November 2006 and amassing over a quarter of a million followers, showcasing his long-standing presence and influence in the digital space.
• 🌐 The script discusses the evolution of social media from its early days, emphasizing the democratizing potential of these platforms for conversations and collaboration among businesses, organizations, and governments.
• 📚 Brian Solis references 'The Cluetrain Manifesto', indicating the early vision of social media as a 'live web' for market conversations and the championing of its power for good.
• 💬 The script highlights the double-edged nature of social media, giving everyone a voice but also emphasizing the responsibility that comes with this power, as noted in Solis's 'Social Media Manifesto' from 2007.
• 🛍️ The discussion points out that businesses initially underestimated social media, treating it as a gimmick rather than a crucial channel for customer engagement and brand loyalty.
• 🔄 The pandemic has accelerated the digital transformation of customers, creating a 'digital first' mindset with heightened expectations for convenience, personalization, and speed in service.
• 🌟 Brian Solis suggests that brands need to reimagine their customer journey to meet the new subconscious needs of digital customers, focusing on intuitive and native experiences.
• 🤝 The script stresses the importance of brands being part of the community, aligning with customer values, and establishing trust, especially in the wake of the pandemic's impact on societal roles and expectations.
• 🔍 Solis's research indicates that customers have become more conscious and demanding, with 75% trying new brands or services during the pandemic and intending to stick with them, emphasizing the need for brands to adapt.
• 📈 The interview concludes with a call to action for travel brands to understand and prioritize what's important to their customers, fix friction points in the customer journey, and innovate to deliver 'wow' moments that stand out in the competitive experiential landscape.

Q & A

What is Brian Solis's professional background according to the transcript?

Brian Solis is a digital anthropologist, futurist, best-selling author, and global innovation evangelist at Salesforce. He has been influential in the evolution of social media and has advised many early web 2.0 startups.

What was the initial vision for social media as described by Brian Solis?

The initial vision for social media was to democratize engagement and collaboration among people, businesses, organizations, and governments, aiming for a brighter and more equal future. It was championed for the power of good, inspired by the idea of markets as conversations.

How has social media evolved since its early days according to Brian Solis?

Social media has evolved from being a tool for democratized conversations to an accelerator of influence, with businesses and individuals gaining significant power to shape products, services, and societal norms. However, it has also become a 'wild west' with challenges in managing its impact responsibly.

What is the 'Social Media Manifesto' that Brian Solis mentioned?

The 'Social Media Manifesto' is a document written by Brian Solis in 2007 that spread worldwide, discussing how businesses could use social media for good, create stronger community ties with customers, and transform into 'social businesses'.

What does Brian Solis suggest about the current state of brands' understanding of social media?

Brian Solis suggests that many businesses still undervalue and underestimate the power of social media. He believes that the best companies understand its power, but many still view it as a gimmick rather than a crucial channel for customer engagement.

How does Brian Solis define 'Generation C' and 'Generation Novel'?

Generation C, as defined by Brian Solis, refers to connected customers who have different expectations and behaviors due to their digital-first lifestyles. Generation Novel emerged post-pandemic, characterized by a cross-generational shift towards digital-first behaviors and attitudes, with a heightened focus on values and trust.

What are the key changes Brian Solis identifies in customer expectations due to the pandemic?

According to Brian Solis, customers now expect businesses to be digital-first, to reimagine their processes and standards for engagement, and to create new products and services that meet their unmet and unknown needs. They also seek businesses that align with their values and can be trusted.

What does Brian Solis suggest about the future of customer service and engagement in the travel industry?

Brian Solis suggests that travel brands need to reimagine the entire customer journey, from booking to check-in to the travel experience itself. He emphasizes the importance of personalization, proactive service, and creating 'wow' or 'ignite' moments to stand out in the customer's mind.

What is the importance of understanding the 'new standard' of customer expectations as mentioned by Brian Solis?

The new standard of customer expectations is crucial because once customers have experienced convenience and personalization, they expect these levels of service as the norm. Businesses must adapt to meet these raised expectations to remain competitive.

How does Brian Solis view the role of technology in enhancing customer service?

Brian Solis views technology as a tool to empower service agents, allowing them to provide more personalized and proactive assistance. He suggests using automation and chatbots to handle initial customer inquiries, with human agents stepping in for more complex interactions.

What advice does Brian Solis give for brands to succeed in a post-pandemic economy?

Brian Solis advises brands to understand what's important to their customers, commit to fixing issues rather than reverting to old norms, use technology to enhance service, and innovate experiences to create 'wow' moments that stand out and align with customer values.

Outlines

00:00

🎙️ Introduction and Social Media Evolution

The video begins with an introduction to the guest, Brian Solis, a digital anthropologist, futurist, and best-selling author. The host praises Solis's professional setup and microphone, and they discuss Solis's early involvement in social media, dating back to 2006. The conversation shifts to the evolution of social media, with Solis reflecting on its early days as a democratizing force for conversation and collaboration among people, businesses, and governments. He mentions the 'Social Media Manifesto' he wrote in 2007, advocating for the use of social media for good and the transformation of businesses into 'social businesses.' The host and Solis acknowledge that while social media has empowered individuals, it has also introduced challenges in managing its impact.

05:01

🛍️ Social Media's Impact on Brands and Customer Experience

This paragraph delves into the impact of social media on brands and customer experience. Initially, businesses underestimated the power of social media, viewing it as a gimmick rather than a strategic channel. However, Solis argues that social media offers an opportunity for brands to learn from trends and passions and to build relationships that traditional loyalty programs cannot. He uses the example of a frozen food brand with a compelling Twitter presence to illustrate the potential of social media in community building. The discussion highlights the importance of brands letting go of traditional rules to reimagine engagement in the digital age.

10:01

🌐 Digital Transformation and the Rise of Digital-First Customers

The conversation moves to digital transformation and its intersection with customer experience, particularly in the context of e-commerce. Solis notes the significant shift towards digital-first customers, accelerated by the pandemic. He discusses how digital platforms have empowered and transformed customers' expectations, making them more demanding and seeking personalized experiences. Solis emphasizes the need for businesses to understand these changes and adapt their touchpoints and experiences to meet the new subconscious needs of digital customers.

15:02

📈 Generation Novel: Understanding Post-Pandemic Customer Behavior

Solis introduces the concept of 'Generation Novel,' a cross-generational group defined by their digital-first lifestyle, which has been further solidified by the pandemic. He discusses how the pandemic has acted as a 'somatic marker,' creating a deep, emotional shift in customer behavior and values. Solis highlights the importance of trust, relationship, and value alignment in customer-brand interactions. He also points out that customers have become more conscious and demanding, with a significant number trying new brands or services during the pandemic and intending to stick with them.

20:02

🔄 Reimagining the Customer Journey for a Digital-First World

The focus of this paragraph is on the necessity for brands to reimagine their entire customer journey to cater to the new expectations of digital-first customers. Solis challenges travel brands to assume that they are not doing a good job and to consider how they can improve every touchpoint from booking to check-in to the travel experience itself. He stresses the importance of personalization, marketing, and a cross-functional approach to address these needs in real-time, ensuring that the brand resonates with the customer's desires and expectations.

🚀 Future-Proofing Travel Brands with Customer-Centric Innovation

In the final paragraph, Solis offers advice for travel brands on how to innovate and engage with customers in the future. He suggests three key areas of focus: understanding what's important to customers and committing to addressing it, using technology to empower service agents to provide personalized support, and identifying and fixing friction points in the customer experience. Solis encourages brands to create 'ignite moments' that stand out positively against the backdrop of ordinary or negative interactions, and to learn from the best in the business to deliver exceptional experiences.

Keywords

💡Social Media

Social media refers to digital platforms that enable the creation and sharing of content, as well as interaction among users. In the video's context, it is highlighted as a transformative force that has evolved significantly since its inception, impacting how people communicate and engage with brands. The script mentions the evolution from the 'wild west days' of early platforms to the current state where it plays a crucial role in customer engagement and brand strategy.

💡Digital Anthropologist

A digital anthropologist studies the cultural implications and effects of digital technology on human behavior. Brian Solis, the guest in the video, is identified as a digital anthropologist, indicating his expertise in understanding the shifts in societal norms and interactions driven by digital advancements, which is central to the discussion on customer engagement and innovation.

💡Futurist

A futurist is someone who studies and predicts future trends and developments. The term is used to describe Brian Solis, emphasizing his role in envisioning and guiding businesses towards understanding and preparing for the future landscape of customer experience and digital transformation.

💡Customer Experience

Customer experience encompasses all interactions a customer has with a company, influencing their overall perception and satisfaction. The video discusses the importance of brands considering customer experience in their social strategy and innovation, with the pandemic accelerating the need for businesses to deliver digital-first and personalized experiences.

💡Digital Transformation

Digital transformation refers to the integration of digital technology into all areas of a business, fundamentally changing how an organization operates and delivers value to customers. The script discusses how e-commerce and customer engagement have been impacted by digital transformation, with a focus on the necessity for businesses to adapt to meet new customer expectations.

💡Innovation Evangelist

An innovation evangelist is someone who actively promotes and encourages the adoption of innovative practices or ideas. Brian Solis is described as a global innovation evangelist, highlighting his role in spreading awareness and understanding of the importance of innovation in business strategies, particularly in the context of customer engagement and social media.

💡Social Businesses

Social businesses are organizations that integrate social media and community engagement into their operations, fostering stronger relationships with customers. The term is used in the script to illustrate the shift from traditional top-down communication to a more interactive and community-oriented approach in business practices.

💡Generation C

Generation C refers to a group of consumers characterized by their connectedness and digital-first lifestyle. The script discusses how this generation, which cuts across traditional age demographics, has been significantly impacted by the pandemic, leading to an acceleration in digital adoption and a reevaluation of customer expectations.

💡Accidental Narcissists

The term 'accidental narcissists' is used in the script to describe how digital conveniences have conditioned customers to expect personalized and immediate service. This shift in customer behavior has implications for how businesses must design their customer engagement strategies to meet heightened expectations.

💡Pandemic

The pandemic, specifically COVID-19, has been a catalyst for change in consumer behavior and business operations. The script discusses the pandemic's impact on accelerating digital adoption, reshaping customer expectations, and necessitating a reimagining of the customer journey in various industries, including travel.

💡Values Alignment

Values alignment refers to the match between a customer's personal values and those of the brands they choose to engage with. The script highlights the increased importance of values alignment post-pandemic, with customers seeking businesses that reflect their own priorities and contribute positively to society.

Highlights

Brian Solis, a digital anthropologist, futurist, and best-selling author, discusses the evolution of social media and its impact on customer engagement and innovation.

Solis was an early influencer on social media platforms, joining Twitter in November 2006 and witnessing its transformation over the past 15 years.

The early days of social media were envisioned as a democratized space for conversations, including businesses and organizations.

Social media's power to give everyone a voice came with great responsibility, as highlighted by Solis' reference to Spider-Man's uncle.

Solis authored the 'Social Media Manifesto' in 2007, advocating for businesses to use social media for good and to build stronger community ties.

Brands initially underestimated the power of social media, treating it as a gimmick rather than a crucial channel for customer engagement.

Innovative companies like Salesforce understand the importance of social media in building relationships and loyalty beyond traditional methods.

Social media has accelerated the shift towards a digital-first customer mindset, even more so with the onset of the pandemic.

Customers now expect businesses to be digital-first, with new ways to engage and meet their unmet and unknown needs.

The pandemic has made trust the number one issue for customers, who seek businesses that align with their values and societal roles.

Solis' research indicates that customers have become more demanding, expecting faster, more convenient, and personalized services.

Values have become paramount, with customers seeking businesses that reflect their own and contribute positively to society.

The concept of 'Generation Novel' represents a cross-generational shift towards digital-first customers with new expectations for brands.

Travel brands, in particular, must reimagine the entire customer journey, from booking to loyalty, to meet the new standards set by digital-first customers.

Solis challenges travel brands to not assume they are doing a good job and to continuously innovate to meet customer expectations.

For future success, Solis suggests that brands should focus on understanding customer importance, fixing service touchpoints, and innovating experiences to create 'wow' moments.

Transcripts

[Music]

hello

hello you you win the prize for having

the best setup and a very professional

microphone so thank you so much

excellent excellent i was hoping i would

win that one today

well it's not a prize we give out freely

so congratulations so

and extra parts to your title because

you are

an esteemed fellow that's joining us

today so not only are you

a digital anthropologist and futurist

but you're also a best-selling author

and global innovation

evangelist now at salesforce that's so

thank you very much brian solis for

joining us

now interestingly i know we're going to

talk about some broader kind of customer

engagement and innovation

topics but you were one of the very

first i'm not trying to blow smoke up

your ass here but you were one of the

very first people

you're one of the very first people that

i followed on twitter you joined in

november 2006

you got over a quarter of a million

followers so you have seen

whether you like it or not the evolution

of social media and twitter over the

what the intervening 15 years i mean

just give us if you can brian your kind

of general observations

on how social media has evolved

to where it is now from from where it

was back in those

uh wild west days which is a phrase that

i've been using a lot on the previous

session but uh

i think it's a fair one it's certainly

fair and it continues to be the wild

west uh

and look uh just for everybody who's

watching uh

the background is that in the early days

of social media

i was part of a real smart small group

of thinkers who were imagining a new

world before it was even called social

media

that we were advising a lot of the web

2.0 startups which was sort of the

precursor to what would become social

and we we were entertaining all of the

possibilities and advising all of the

early

early founders for many of whom have

become the people you now know

uh as the founders of a lot of these big

networks a lot of them didn't make it

uh and the thing that we all realized

was that we wanted to champion social

media for the power of good

there was a book back in the day called

the clue train manifesto

uh written by uh a lot of a lot of

really good friends

uh doc searles being the one that i'm

gonna cite here uh i think there were

five authors but doc

originally wanted to call social media

the live web

and it was basically this idea that

markets were conversations that it was

a democratized opportunity for people to

get together

and including businesses and

organizations and governments

to sort of democratize engagement and

collaborate around a brighter

uh around a brighter more equal future

and what ended up happening though

was that it was exciting that that

that power was incredible you know i i

was said back then that the uh

the great thing about social media was

that it gave everyone a voice the bad

thing was that it gave everyone a voice

uh that uh to quote spider-man uh well

his his his uncle which was you know

with social media comes great

responsibility

so i wrote in 2007 and i promise there's

a point to this uh

the social media manifesto uh which was

this document spread worldwide around

how we could use it for good and how

businesses could create

stronger community ties with their

customers how customers could create

stronger ties with businesses and help

shape

products and services that listening was

powerful that it could read it could

transform businesses into what i called

social businesses to be

much more part of the community rather

than you know at the time which was a

traditional uh

top-down broadcast those with the most

money

i could control the conversation uh and

so

with that said it was

a dramatic it was an accelerated it was

a powerful shift in the landscape of

influence

and we're still after all these years

trying to figure it out

indeed right okay so thank you for that

i mean

how do you think brands are considering

not only their social strategy but

you know just if we put it into the

wider context of customer experience in

in innovation i mean where are

where are where are the heads of brands

these days when it comes to that

i think honestly social media itself was

under appreciated and also

underestimated by businesses

early on and still is the best companies

totally understand its power this is why

we've seen

this incredible rise of influence d2c

brands really understand it

what i think the mistake that most

businesses made in

every single industry early on was that

social was

just this toy or this gimmick or this

thing that the kids did

uh and most businesses you know really

wanted to focus on the mo

you know the executives wanted to focus

on the more important crucial channels

like customer service and and uh ivrs

and

engaging customers in ways that

absolutely didn't make their days

so it was always understaffed under

budget budgeted

and still to the most part for the most

part it is

under-appreciated today look i think the

reality is um

as my former colleague charlene lee and

i wrote uh

in in our book on building a social

business was that it was actually

and still is an opportunity to learn

from

trends learn from passions learn from

what people don't love and also an

opportunity to be part of those

conversations

to build relationships in ways that a

loyalty program for example can't

and to be a brand that's seen as being

part of the community

uh there's no there's no mistake that

stakehomes

uh you know a frozen a frozen food item

has one of the most compelling twitter

accounts today because it's just

using social in a way that it's meant to

be not that every brand has to go out

and be

absolutely witty uh and clever uh out

there but it does

show that when you let go of rules and

you suspend this belief

that you can actually reimagine what

community building and engagement looks

like i think that's

really the power of social media uh it's

gone

far off the rails though since then but

i think uh what we do is true leadership

so brian if we can um shift gears a

little bit now then so you

your specialist areas these days are in

digital transformation

customer experience and

you know innovation generally in

companies

how does customer experience and digital

transformation kind of combine

now i mean where are we in 2021 with

the digital transformation of e-commerce

and how it relates to customer

engagement if they're if we if it is

a moment in time that is noteworthy

well certainly this is a moment in time

that is noteworthy

uh and what we've seen look if we want

to if we want to even focus

it here on you know hospitality and

travel

you know what we've seen is is a

customer who's become

by default digital first we always knew

digital was becoming more and more

prevalent

going back to i mean amazon launched i

think it was what 1994

and many retailers are still trying to

figure out how to compete against

amazon uh the reality is is that

because digital transforms us as human

beings right social media gave us a

voice it

empowered us but so do so so did the app

economy

so did uh doordash and uber

you know it turned us all into

accidental narcissists and with the

with with the pandemic it accelerated

that transformation

in ways that i can't even begin to

define it's my whole year of research

has been dedicated to how people have

changed and

also then as a result how do businesses

need to change in order to deliver

touch points and ultimately experiences

that meet these

subconscious needs that the digital

customer

now has we're on the cusp light at the

end of the tunnel

where all of this travel is going to

start blowing up

and if executives don't take the time to

answer the questions how did my

customers change

and how can i deliver better experiences

in this new world

then they're going to miss the

opportunity of all of this disruption

your research is ongoing but what have

you what's up what are some of the

conclusions that you have come to so far

about the way customers have changed in

the way they might

interact with their favorite brands or

brands that want to target them

well a lot of things one is that they

expect

that businesses are digital first and i

think the thing about

digital first is that we confuse it with

digital transformation so

let's digitize a touch point let's have

an app

let's have a let's have an ai powered

email system so that we can communicate

with people at times that they want to

be communicated with

what people are saying is that they want

new ways to engage with you

they want you to reimagine your

processes and even your standards for

engagement

in these new channels they want you

to create new products and services that

meet their

unmet needs and also their unknown needs

and by that i mean their unmet needs are

you

you don't engage me in the way that i'd

like to one way that

is typical is when i check into a hotel

that is not

an experience that a digital first

customer is used to

i'll give you an example one of the

interesting things that happened with

buy online pickup and store or curbside

was that one

it every store had to have that

otherwise you weren't going to do

business like every every other business

and two an example of how we become

accidental narcissists is that

once you have this experience it's not

good enough it's never good enough you

want it to be better faster more

convenient more personalized you want it

to be dedicated to you

you want a parking space for you you

want a process when you walk into the

store to pick up whatever it is that

you're getting

you want signage it's basically says hey

brian over here

you want someone who caters to a digital

first mindset

uh to say brian thank you for shopping

on through our app here's your here's

your product or good

uh thank you please come again and you

want that whole process to be done and

i'm not kidding this is the standard in

two minutes

uh that that shift in mindset the

subconscious mindset

is how every single touch point that any

business uses to engage a customer

before travel during travel after travel

has to be reimagined for this accidental

narcissist and

all of that has changed in the last year

is there any going back to old behaviors

or do you think this is a

point of no return that we've become so

digitalized as a

as a society it's funny you say that

because i just traded in my iphone for a

rotary telephone

uh no absolutely not there's once you

taste

something new uh it is the new standard

i'll give i'll give you a quick example

i used to study before the pandemic how

long was too

long for you to wait for an uber in the

united states before you open the lyft

app

and the reason i used to study that

every single year was to document how a

digital first

customer or a digital lifestyle

changes you subconsciously to the point

where you become

insatiable uh impatient demanding

and that number dropped from 15 minutes

to five minutes in new york

uh over the course of several years that

if a car was further out than five

minutes you open the other app because

why would you wait

more than five minutes for a car to come

to you uh

so the point is is that that is true in

every aspect the other thing that i'll

answer your other question on is that

values have become

first and foremost first uh first and

foremost

tremendous we've had our meaning of life

moment

people really did think back to what's

important

uh to them in terms of friends families

definitions of

success happiness what they're going to

do when they get outside what kind of

trips they're going to take

and that they're looking for businesses

hotels

travel companies airlines to carry the

same values

also they want them to play a societal

role in this chaos that was the last few

years

of politics climate change is a real big

deal to a lot of customers

they've become quote unquote conscious

but i don't mean conscious like in a

metaphysical way

or conscious in the liberal way i just

mean they're they're much more mindful

of the decisions that they're making

because they have the tools

to to see their choices that are

personalized for them and then lastly

trust hit the number one issue uh this

this year as a result of the pandemic

that people want to know that they can

trust your organization

so look that combined with being

essentially being a more human company

right going back to the first question

you asked essentially they want

businesses to be part of their society

of a social business a human business uh

but they also want you to understand

that they have

changed if you look at it if you look at

a teenager in high school when you give

them a textbook like you and i had in

school

there's no way their brain is going to

comprehend that because their brain has

been rewired to be much more dynamic in

how their favorite apps work

so we have to design for that brain

every touch point every policy every

process

that's what we're designing for is a new

type of customer who has been rewired

unwittingly uh if you've watched the

social dilemma

and it's an opportunity to design

experiences that are

intuitive uh that are are native

and that are wonderful and who doesn't

want that

it's there is there um

brian a a sense that different

generations are advancing

quicker than others when we talk about

um

you know behavior patterns around their

consumption of digital content

or is really just there's there's no

difference really now there's been so

many people of

of an older age group i always reference

my mother here who'd never

even heard of zoom she thought it was

something that rockets did and now she

can't get off soon because she's talking

to her friends all the time

the generations have kind of come closer

together is that an accurate assessment

uh i'm trying to keep these big

questions as brief as possible in my

response

this is good we'll keep going it's okay

in

before the pandemic or before covet as

bc as i call it

i studied what i call generation c the c

stood for connected and this was

research that i had done

uh many books ago when i was writing the

end of business as usual i had found

that my the hypothesis was that a

digital

first customer and at the time if

somebody used facebook or uber or

twitter uh amazon that they would go

through the customer journey

whether that was travel whether that was

retail whether that was buying a car

that they would go through the journey

much differently than a traditional

customer who might go through this

linear funnel like we had been taught in

school or

or in business all of these years and

indeed

the connected customer was much more

dynamic they came in and out there was

so many uh decision points that they

would go through and what's fascinating

is that the lines blurred between

demographics it was always

just sort of assumed oh well that's just

going to be millennials because you know

they had ipads

and indeed it was but if you were 35 or

45 and you

were active on social media or digital

and amazon or zappos

you you became the same you had the same

expectations because essentially you

were being conditioned to

see a new world with the pandemic

generation c my my research is

salesforce i published this at fast

company and forbes you could read

you could read about this latest

research i called it now generation

novel and it is the same premise

cross-generational

uh in that you had to become digital

first so everybody who was

living a digital lifestyle pretty much

knew how to operate

within a a shelter-in-place world

because they shopped online already they

communicated online

they they knew what zoom was but now

thrust forward everybody who had to

learn all this stuff

right it's not like they were saying

gosh all of these conveniences are

horrible i want to go back to the way

things were

they started to accelerate their

behavior but then you add the pandemic

the somatic marker

that it's a deep emotional book mark is

visceral

we're never going to forget these times

we're never going to forget what an

empty roll of toilet paper was like or

or

s sanitizer now or masks

so we're going to have these beholden

times that changed our values like we

talked about earlier

trust becoming more important

relationships becoming more important

values aligning becoming more important

to for example

31 percent of customers in since the

pandemic

have said they trust a business less as

a result

of how they treat employees and

customers and 61

have stopped doing business with the

company because their values are no

longer in alignment that's a big

percentage

and last with generation novel why this

is so important

is that within the last year 75 in the

united states and these are

equivalent numbers all around the world

75 of customers according to mckinsey

have tried a new brand or service during

this time

and they're going to stick with it so

this generation novel

is the is the cross-generational

psychographic to study

in order to be successful in a

post-pandemic economy

i think what's so important about many

of the things that you're talking about

is that it makes

the touch point that so many brands have

with their customer is

primarily social media because that's

where the engagement comes

comes from which is why i think it's so

interesting that you're referencing

these on this particular event today i'm

you've done some work with travel brands

in the past sabre was

was one that i remember you did some

work with them would you say that

travel brands generally do a good job or

not of just customer experience and

engagement and

and those kind of elements i'd like to

challenge

travel brands to assume that they're not

doing a good job

and it's not to say that they're not

it's just that

after spending this time studying

generation c and then also the

the rapid acceleration of generation

novel uh

that they have to reimagine the entire

customer journey

everything from booking to check-in to

to the actual travel itself to loyalty

has to be completely reimagined

now uh to personalization to marketing

every touch point and i want any travel

brand listening

the word touch is in touch point and

that is a very human thing

and now that the customer is much more

conscious

they are hyper aware of how you're

touching them imagine if you have an

incredible rash and someone keeps

touching you

in a way that is not comfortable they

are keen to it now

they've tasted other great experiences

you now compete with the best of the

best in the experiential world you

compete against

apple even though they're not in the

travel industry you compete against

amazon

and so that is what you have to reverse

engineer your marketing

your customer service your uh

your infrastructure for commerce you

need a cross-functional team that now

has to start addressing these things in

real time what's broken what needs to be

fixed like right now

what do customers expect how can we

deliver that

in the short term and what are our

longer term cross-functional strategies

so that we could reimagine a brand for

this new world because what's

clear is that just because people are

pent up in their homes and they want to

get back out and it's going to look like

yes travel is back they are going to

choose the companies

that are most like them and i can tell

you right now that the c-suite

is not their customer yeah interesting

so

um we've gone a couple of minutes over

time here but this is terrific so

i wanted to get uh one final thought

from you if we can brian

you know let's imagine that we're both

lucky enough obviously to be sitting

here together in 12 months time

what would you like travel brands to

have achieved

in the area of kind of customer service

innovation and

engagement if there are some almost like

a top three things that they should be

considering right now

well the top three things number one is

know what's important to your customer

uh and be committed to

fixing it not trying to get back to

normal not trying to

remove costs i need you is your first

step to embrace a mindset

of preventing future disruption

don't assume that the pandemic going

away in 12 months

it's not by the way that's another

conversation

but in 12 months

expect a customer-led disruption

that's based on that mckinsey data that

we talked about so we have to know

what's important to them

we have to compare that to the touch

points that we offer today so that we're

not pushing them away

we have to examine uh our our service

not just as a reactionary weakest link

in the

customer journey uh touch point but now

as a proactive discovery touch point so

this is where automation and chat bots

come in

in fact service agents now can be

retrained as customers are doing their

research and they

hit that chat bot it's an agent on the

other side of that when the chatbot

can't continue that conversation

so agents now have to have the mindset

and be empowered to

it's not how fast i can get them off

this conversation it's how can i help

them feel like this is the right

decision for them

so technology that gives agents that

freedom

uh and metrics that give agents that

encouragement to do this type of work is

going to be helpful on on the bookends

of service

and then experience innovation is where

i would also look

where are people experiencing friction

today

let's fix that and let's compare

ourselves to the best in the business so

that we can deliver a wow

in what i call an ignite moment that

ignite moment is where

you know people feel like most of the

time those touch points with whatever

business

is they suck so when you deliver

something good it's going to stand out

and then the last thing is where can you

deliver a wow moment that you don't

exhibit today so just because the

check-in process

is what it is and you have an app that

allows you to choose a pillow

that it's that's cool but

what is it that that that person really

wants you know that there was probably

stress at the airport you know there was

probably stress in getting to the hotel

for example

uh read an article in or read my book ex

or read an article in fast company from

several years ago

that talks about the airbnb renaissance

of how they use data to tell the story

of the

of the guest before they even ever

arrived at the airbnb

property and how they use the disney

storyboard artist to bring that story to

life in ways that executives would say

wow we never thought of that

and they changed their whole business as

a result that was when

airbnb went through that whole

rebranding and became an experienced

company

a lot to learn there okay um

we're right up against time so thank you

so much you've added some really

interesting kind of big picture color

to the conversations that we've been

having in the sessions prior to this so

that was that was really great so brian

sonny's thank you so much for joining us

on this episode of focus white pulse we

really appreciate it and

stay well i'll be back in a moment thank

you