What Stand-Up Comedy Can Teach Us About Customer Experience
Customer experience is one of the most crucial aspects to any product, service, or brand launch. It’s a foundation for repeatable business across so many industries that it would be absurd to overlook it’s value and how to build on it. As I’ve worked in a variety of sectors over the years, technology being my niche, I’ve learned that customer experience does not change.
Here are some of my thoughts on how stand-up comedians embody exceptional customer experience strategy.
Always be Listening to your Audience…and Take ACTION
Comedians are notorious for trial and error on their material. It’s a tactical way to essentially A/B test your delivery. Does the audience relate? How do they react? Did you receive the intended outcome? These are all questions that are taken back to the drawing board for the next major gig. Comedians adjust to the demands of their customers the same way any other product or service may collect data to optimize customer monetization, in this case, customer engagement. Listen, learn, innovate. It’s very simple.
Make Data-Minded Decisions
This is relating back to active listening. Not all your executions will be successful and it’s important to gather feedback and optimize your customer experience strategy based on the needs of your audience. In stand-up comedy, this can pertain to skits and jokes that the audience relates to. In the case of customer service, understanding customer personas and optimizing your communication strategies is important in establishing trust and transparency. Make sure your decisions are data-minded but more importantly, customer-focused.
Establish Repeatable Best Practices in your Workflow
If you have found something that works, stick with it. Ad-hoc changes to your workflow, while at times advantageous, can disrupt the overall customer experience and it’s important in sustaining a model in which customers can expect the same outcomes. Do you think comedians constantly change their skits? No! They build off of successful campaigns in which they’ve A/B tested across many audiences. Just think back to the Seinfeld days and how Jerry would write and test his jokes from a tiny notepad. While customer service and delivering a world-class customer experience is somewhat different, it still holds many of the same foundational aspects for success.
Comedians and the customer service industry hold many similarities, the overall customer experience being the most important. I hope some of these ideas can help drive your personal motivation for top-notch customer experience delivery or at least inspire someone else to write about it. Just remember, helping PEOPLE is fun and a good thing.
Twitter: @AllThingsCX and @DiegoAlamir
