For those who work to learn about and improve customer experiences, there are a lot of interesting pieces of data available: NPS, CSAT, CES, OSAT, churn rate, FCR, call abandonment rates, new accounts opened, share of wallet, CLV, regression analytics, predictive analytics, correlation studies, the enormous list goes on and on. 

But these data are sadly removed. They are at a distance from actually touching the experience and those enmeshed in it. Two vital, more human, more emotional, and more tactile elements are missing. 

One is actually experiencing the experience for real. Going out and making a purchase, making the call to a call center, going through the maze of the journey your customers go through daily. Data is no substitute for seeing it, tasting it, smelling it, and touching it in the wild yourself. They are, after all, called experiences. And experiences are about doing, not just reading about.

The second is literally talking to customers and getting the words right from their mouths. Asking the questions where the answers might hurt. What’s good? What’s not? What works? What doesn’t? What could be better? What ideas do you have?

But doing these things takes courage. Learning that your experience is a pain and that you’re not the cat’s meow can be a bitter pill. But feeling it live and feeling your customers’ feelings makes it real. No data can replicate that. No data can tell the story like living it. 

So, do you have the courage? Do you have what it takes to take the journey and hear potentially stinging words? 

Want to lead from the front? Be bold. Take courage. Then… make it better. 

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