Shopping with my iPod...

...now makes my grocery runs easier. Yep, Kraft Foods just threw its hat into the iPod arena. Not sure how its going to work, but I just couldn't resist. 1,000 recipes in something called Recipe Hits for your iPod.

This is definitely designed for a more technical, on-the-go, and yes geeky crowd. But if it quacks like a duck, its a duck - right? Beware, installation is a little goofy - RSS Feeds could really improve the experience.

I will test this and let you know how it changes my experience at the grocery store. If you are like me (and I hope there are not many) you find yourself thinking about what you want to eat while you are at the store, not back home planning. Inspiration strikes me when I see something and say, what could I possibly make with this...

If anyone else has had an experience with this solution, please drop me a note, or leave a comment.

I never thought I would be looking at BBQ Chicken Kabobs on my iPod...!

Evangelists or healers?

An excellent post by Leigh at LivePath. I agree with the point that evangelizing about customer experience design is one thing - doing it is entirely another. Often times I find that my clients discover the concept, loose it, find it again, only to loose it again... So, implementing an experience is often a traumatic experience in of itself.

I like the healer role Leigh describes. Experience is very holistic. It requires thinking about things in a fundamentally different way. Using a healer metaphor Leigh describes it this way:

"Healers remain dedicated to addressing disorders, rather than treating symptoms -- and prescribe treatment that addresses core issues."

What I find companies lacking are individuals who pursue operational excellence through the customer's eyes, ears, noses, mouths, and hands. Most simply forget about the before and after effect of the service they deliver to their customers. They assume that it just is, and that there is nothing they can do to impact. And often times even worse - they shouldn't do anything, or care enough to bother.

Many of us have been evangelizing about this new thought movement. And some of us brave souls are out there in the front lines designing + building experiences.

One thing is clear. The genie is out of the bottle... We have moved beyond fad and into a fundamental shift.

What's next for the experience economy?

Well, Joe Pine thinks its "transformation". In today's WebEx presentation, Joe walked the audience through 4 imperatives of being successful in the experience economy:

1. Stage marketing experiences
2. Embrace dramatic structure
3. Mass customize your offerings
4. Go beyond experience

It's the latter that I wanted to dwell on in this post. I am often asked "what happens when an experience becomes commoditized"? Initially, I wondered if an experience could be commoditized, but the cold hard reality is that once you have experienced something it looses some of its luster. Unless it retains some element of mystery. Joe provided a great example of that today with the Library Hotel in Manhattan. They created an experience around one of the most boring topics - the Dewey decimal system. However, within their experience they created a sense of mystery around what's next? What will the next room be like? A compelling reason to continue the experience.

I also have seen the Starbucks experience become commoditized. Once Panera Bread started offering free wi-fi, the restaurant itself become another "third place" - except you can get great soup and sandwiches with your coffee. You see, other caught on to what Starbucks created, and the relief from the commodity trap they created.

Back to the call. Another fascinating fact. 70% of the attendees were from a service business and 52% said they had some experience initiatives underway. If you are in the other 48% you better wake up and smell the coffee - things are about to tip!

Joe Pine webinar

Quick update. Joe will be sharing his thoughts about our favorite topic - the experience economy this Thursday (8/18/05) at 10:00 am, Pacific Daylight Time.

Register here for your own good...

Experiences and employees

Over the last couple of days I was traveling and meeting with several clients. I was reminded about the difficulty of getting the experience out of an individual, and make it part of the company's experience.

Too often I think we get dependent on good people who do heroic deeds. Problem is that heroic efforts are temporary.

Instead, I think we need to look at creating an consistently deliverable experience that is enhanced by an employee - not created by them. The problem with the later is the proverbial "getting hit by a bus"concept.

Here's the deal. You either design and manage experiences, or you leave them to chance. In today's business culture, you really have few chances to wow your customers and create a unique memory.

Epicenter alert!

What is an epicenter alert? Well it starts with a theory that companies think of themselves at the epicenter of experiences. The reality is that it is a false other world that companies create to make themselves feel important.

So, as readers share their epicenter stories, I will pass them along. Like this one from Mark, in Minneapolis who experienced Heinz's claim on their bottle that it "Has Restaurant Experience". Hmm, I wonder what that means? Mark's conclusion - "they must be proud to that they are used in restaurants...". I am more skeptical, and think they are implying they acquire the experience when you use their products.

Ok, in a related note about lying marketers - Plochman's Mustard claims 50% more on their 24oz. bottle. Another observation by Mark during his dinner found that the bottle did contain 50% more "than our competitors 16oz. bottle" - duh! Of course the implication is that it is provided at no extra cost - what do you think is the possibility of that?

Thanks Mark! But seriously, fish sticks and cupcakes are not exactly on the government's new food triangle. By the way, can anyone figure that thing out? Sorry, I digress...

If anyone else has a observation or story to share, please email me...

Joe Pine gets his hands dirty...

No really.

I had the opportunity to meet with Joe Pine, co-author of The Experience Economy, yesterday over a cup of coffee at Starbucks - where else would a couple of experience geeks hang out...?

If you have not read Joe's book - you absolutely must do it today! I promise you that after you read it, you see the world through a different lens. Here is the question you will start to ask - can I charge admission for this?

And as you can imagine, we talked about the experience movement and let's just say that Joe and I share a very similar worldview. Joe reminded me about his thinkAbout event this year in Keystone, CO - September 14 + 15. I am planning on attending - so you should too...

So here is how Joe gets his hands dirty. I asked Joe to sign my copy of The Experience Economy. Well, Joe did not have his "official pen", so he settled for a basic ballpoint. Well, it leaked all over his hands - ink everywhere. The good news - my book was spared! Now Joe, how would you describe your experience with that product?

FastCompany 2005 Blogjam

I will be participating in this years blogjam hosted by FastCompany along with 65 other readers/bloggers including John Moore.

Should be interesting... The event is held over the two days of August 8 - 9. I am looking forward to expanding the conversation about branding vs. customer experience design, or wherever the conversation goes...

Thanks for the feedback!

We have received a lot of great feedback from many people, and we are grateful that you took the time to listen to our first show. Based upon the feedback below and others, looks like #2 will begin production very soon!

Hi guys! GREAT first podcast! We had a great podcast on the topic of Experience Design a couple of weeks ago. Check it out: Keep up the good work! . Chris - The Prepared Mind

By the way, The Prepared Mind has a nice show also on experience design - listen here.