Annette Franz
Annette Franz
Annette Franz is founder and Chief Experience Officer of CX Journey Inc. She is an internationally recognized customer experience thought leader, coach, consultant, and speaker. She has 25+ years of experience in helping companies understand their employees and customers in order to identify what makes for a great experience and what drives retention, satisfaction, and engagement. She's sharing this knowledge and experience in her first book, Customer Understanding: Three Ways to Put the "Customer" in Customer Experience (and at the Heart of Your Business).
What Employees Do When No One is Looking
Do you know what your employees are doing when no one is looking? I love Herb Kelleher's definition of culture: "Culture is what people do...
Small Businesses Lose Big – Or Do They?
Why do you frequent small businesses? Why do you shop local? Last month, the team at Software Advice published the findings of a six-month long...
Help! My Execs Don’t Get It!
Executives are still saying, "Show me the money!" when it comes to justifying listening to the voice of the customer and putting the customer...
If a Tree Falls in the Forest…
If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound? We've all heard that saying,...
Are You Providing Value-Added Service or Value-Unique Service?
Do you know the difference between value-add and value-unique? Chip Bell recently sent me a copy of his latest book, The 9 1/2 Principles of...
The Leaky Bucket Syndrome
What happens when companies spend huge sums of (marketing) dollars on customer acquisition when they can't even keep the customers they have because...
The Butterfly Effect
Is the Butterfly Effect the antidote to the Broken Windows Theory? Last week, I wrote about the Broken Windows Theory; in effect, it means that...
Have You Fixed Your Broken Windows?
Have you heard of the Broken Windows Theory? If so, do you have any broken windows in your company? Don't know what the Broken Windows...
Journey to a Customer-Focused Culture
Are you in the process of shifting the thinking within your organization to create a customer-focused culture but don't know where to start? Help...
Companies Take Note: Don’t Remove Human Touch, Please!
Human touch trumps technology! On the heels of my post a couple weeks ago about humans vs. technology in delivering a great customer experience, ...
Three Words to Help You Create Customers for Life
How engaged are your employees? Do you have a way to accurately measure their engagement levels? How do you create a culture of "living...
Have You Thanked Your Customers Today?
Do you thank your customers for their business? In a meaningful way? At every interaction? Showing gratitude is one of the simplest - yet most...
Customer Experience: Humans vs. Technology
Can technology replace humans to provide a better customer experience? This has been an ongoing discussion for the last year or two, especially as technology...
What Makes It the Greatest Customer Experience on Earth?
Do you know what comprises the greatest customer experience on earth? I do. I've seen it twice! "What? What are you talking about, Annette? Have...
31 Henry Ford Quotes about Leadership and Customer Experience
In honor of Henry Ford's birthday this week, I thought I'd share some of his quotes that inspire me as a leader - and...
The Power of Words
Have you ever wondered if communication is really that important to your business? Let me just say: I hope that question never crossed/crosses your mind....
14 Ways to Protect Your Brand
This is the final installment of my thoughts on the Starbucks experience and the issues that are leading to inconsistencies from store to store. As...
Is Your Customer Experience a Trade Secret?
Last Tuesday, I wrote about my love for Starbucks while yearning for a consistent experience from store to store. Today, I drill down a...
Starbucks, I Love You But…
I love Starbucks, but Starbucks annoys me, too. Do you have that kind of love/hate relationship with the brand? I enjoy going to Starbucks...
Nostalgia: Creating Memories or Making Noise?
Nothing is more synonymous with summer than ice cream! And that means ice cream trucks and that wonderful jingle that lets us know that...