MARCH 2024 | VOL. 20

"Data is like garbage. You better know what you're going to do with it

before you collect it."

-Mark Twain

Verde Group Whitepaper

Driving Improved Business Outcomes via Customer Experience Excellence

Excerpt Below:

There is a great debate going on across global boardrooms. Will investing in improving the customer experience truly yield improved business outcomes? Intuitively, one would think the answer is clear: A better experience should drive an increase in revenues and profits. However, what part of the experience should companies focus on? What specific interactions should be triaged and improved? If investments have been made using existing insights, has the company realized improved financial outcomes? If no, why not?

While there is a wealth of data collected, is it being thrown into the proverbial company garbage can?

The hard truth is that the customer experience is complex. Sifting through all the noise to find a signal is a challenge and let’s face it, focusing on improving one attitudinal metric is likely not going to get it done.

In a 2023 Verde Edition reader survey, we found that 66% of businesses are not consistently using CX insights to guide their decisions.

Why? Our belief is that organizations are not widely using CX insights to drive business decisions due to the lack of connection to their financial performance data. This was substantiated in a separate Verde Group survey where we found that only 20% of companies link CX insights to financial results.

At the Verde Group, understanding the specific problems that create market damage is what we do. To learn more, visit our approach page or contact us to learn more about how we can help you take action and drive revenues and profits.

February Poll Results

In February, we asked readers to help us understand how important it would be to consistently connect their CX performance data to the financial goals of their business. What we found was surprising with nearly three-fourths of our readers indicating that it is simply not that important. The question we have is why? Could it be that it is too difficult? Or is it that leadership simply does not expect such insights?



Our comment to these questions is: (1) It is not as difficult as some experts make it out to be; and (2) Leadership should expect financially grounded CX insights. If they don’t, then why spend the resources to understand what’s going on in your customer’s journey?

We are here to help. To learn more about how we can help take your CX insight program to the next level, CLICK HERE.

READY TO TALK? Book an intro session with Dennis Armbruster, Verde Group Executive VP, to discover how you can enhance the impact of your CX program. We want to help you find methods to anchor your customer insights firmly within your business framework, driving stronger ROI and increasing executive buy-in. We want to learn more about your current challenges.

March 2024 Poll

Our new poll for March seeks to understand how highly your organization values customer experience data.

On a scale from 1-4, how would you rate the value your organization places on the CX data you generate?

Wendy's and the Surge vs. Dynamic Pricing Controversy

During an earnings call, when Wendy's CEO Kirk Tanner announced plans to test dynamic pricing and AI-enabled technology in 2025, the media ran with it. But with a twist. "Dynamic pricing" was misconstrued by many as "surge pricing", which means the price increases when demand is greater (i.e. - higher prices at lunch and dinner hours). The suggestion that Wendy's would raise prices on their food during busy hours set off a storm of online backlash and criticism.

But there's a subtle difference between the two terms. Dynamic pricing refers to any pricing model that allows prices to fluctuate (think airline tickets), while surge pricing refers to prices that are adjusted upward. The backlash led to a statement released by Wendy's to clarify that there would be no price increases, but consumers could benefit from dynamic pricing, such as offering discounted pricing on items when the demand is low (think of the price of a Frosty in January in Minnesota).

Lesson learned by Wendy's executives? Use more precise language and be transparent to avoid consumer misunderstandings. Read more about dynamic vs. surge pricing and lessons for businesses from Salon.com.

"The purpose of a business is to create a customer

who creates customers."



- Shiv Singh

March 2024's Question:

How can I increase the value of our CX data to my executives?

Answer: We’ve been saving this question for just the right moment and that moment is now. Thank you for your passion and interest in elevating the importance of CX data to your enterprise. This is not a new challenge as 80% of companies that implement voice-of-customer programs have limited to no ability to connect data collected to the financial performance of their company.

The reason for this is two-fold: (1) The research method used is focused on measuring attitudes thus creating a fundamental challenge in connecting insights to business performance as changes in attitudes simply do not consistently correlate to changes in buying and/or engagement behaviors. Satisfied customers defect on a regular basis. (2) Many insight methods focus on understanding the frequency of customer experience issues (the squeaky wheel syndrome) and do not focus on connecting specific and discrete issues to predictable changes in customer behavior.

This is what makes the Verde Group methodology and analytical approach so unique. For 20+ years, we’ve focused on linking specific CX friction points to customer behaviors and ultimately their shifts in buying/engagement behaviors. This is how we help our clients elevate the importance of CX insights to drive strategic operating and investment decisions.