This will be a shorter post than normal, but I wanted to put this out there.
Sometimes with clients or companies, I’ll hear a concern about launching a full-scale customer experience program because “we’re far behind on it” or, more vaguely, “we already have something like that.” The status quo wins out and sameness persists, even though it’s not engaging customers and rivals are chipping away at market share because of their experiences.
Now take a place like Walgreen’s. It’s been around 116 years. Its slogan is even “at the corner of happy and healthy,” which underscores how a lot of people Gen X and above feel about them. Walgreen’s branding has long been “your neighborhood pharmacy,” or kind of a Cheers without the alcohol. Everyone knows your name, and your family. This is not some Silicon Valley company. It’s not a place you associate with rapid digital transformation.
Or is it?
I got this from a Shep Hyken article about Walgreen’s over at Forbes, which also contains this data:
Surprisingly, 70 percent of Walgreens customers engage through mobile. Half of digital sales come from mobile and more than 50 percent of app users are using the app while in the store. The payoff is huge. Customers who engage the app in-store and online are 3½ times more valuable. And, when you add mobile to the mix (in-store + online + mobile), they become six times more valuable.
I’d take away a few concepts from this:
- Mobile is everywhere. You can’t ignore it, or do so at your own peril.
- Even if your branding is very homey and almost anti-tech, you need a digital component to the customer experience.
- Anyone can do this. You just have to study, iterate, keep trying, and grow from it.
It’s time. Even if you’ve been lagging or following the status quo, it’s time. Are you ready to create better customer experience?
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