Clarabridge C3 – A Magical Journey to Customer Experience Management

Our C3 (Clarabridge Customer Connections) conference at Walt Disney World has come to an end, and it was indeed a magical journey for the over 150 people who attended.

As I was flying back to the Washington DC area with visions of Disney, Clarabridge, our customers, partners and prospects dancing like sugarplums in my head – it all came together how much we share in common with timeless Disney classics…

• An auspicious beginning – whether Nemo born out of adversity, or Pinocchio crafted from a trunk of wood. Clarabridge was born from our founders’ vision, nurtured with the trust and faith of our customers, and given the opportunity to thrive, grow, and develop over these past few years.
• An educational journey with true friends–whether a journey through the East Australian Current (Nemo’s father Marlin, with Dory, in Finding Nemo) or a journey of self discovery in Radiator Springs (Lightning McQueen, with Mater, Doc, and others, in Cars), Clarabridge has learned, and grown, and gotten bigger, stronger, and better with each year of growth and evolution and the suggestions, guidance, and friendship of our customers.
• A challenge that produces true insight– Every Disney character faces a challenge to overcome before he or she can achieve full self-actualization. In the Lion King, Simba must find his true calling when his father dies. Up Character, Carl Frederickson, must make difficult decisions when kidnapped by the evil Charles F. Muntz. Just as these challenges shape the character and destiny of the characters in a Disney movie, in 2009, a deep recession forced Clarabridge and our customers to really focus on the true value, meaning, and impact of customer experience in their organizations. We and our customers learned that our true calling of customer experience is not just to offer a “nice to have” customer insight or two, but rather to play a key role in shaping customer loyalty, profitability, and satisfaction, and that shaping positive customer outcomes and experiences translates into solid returns for a company.
• And, if we’re successful – an even more successful sequel. In spite of a tough 2009, I think the consensus from Clarabridge and from our customers is that we together made a real difference – we helped customers save money, create ROI producing results for our customers, and played a role in keeping customers loyal and happy. Just as Lion King produced an even more successful Lion King 2, and Toy Story lead to an even better Toy Story 2, let’s all hope for 2010 to be a year of even more education, discovery, and success!

Walt Disney World was a fantastic venue and provided us with a glimpse of what makes a truly great customer experience –thank you for being such a great host. To all our customers, partners, and prospects, thank you for making the event so educational and fun. Let’s go out and make the sequel in 2010, to infinity, and beyond!!!!!