Creating Superfans Podcast

I believe one of the most powerful things you can do to impact others is to refer a book to them that could transform their outlook on life. In this week’s episode of the Creating Superfans podcast, I’m recommending my FAVORITE books that I read in 2023. Whether you’re looking to improve your customer experience or employee experience, or you’re looking for a practical guide to achieve your fullest potential, I’ve got you covered with some of the most impactful books to take with you into 2024. Listen to the Episode

This week’s episode of the Creating Superfans podcast is all about GIFTING! Strategic generosity is one of the most powerful ways to create a “wow” experience for a customer and elevate the emotional closeness of a relationship. It’s not just about the gift (literal or figurative) or its cost; it’s about the thought, effort, and time that went into it. At least it is when it’s done correctly. I share my best practices and common mistakes to keep in mind as you search for the special gift, as well as some specific product ideas.   Don’t forget to download my new gifting guide here for over 75 gift ideas! I hope you find it helpful as you look for the perfect present to WOW your recipient and show them how much you care about them. Listen to the Episode Show Notes 3:26 – If it has your logo on it, it’s an AD, not a gift5:10 – One of Brittany’s favorite gifts she received as a seven-year-old6:10 – Another one of Brittany’s favorite gifts she got as a teenager7:35 – A gift Brittany got a few weeks ago from a client that absolutely WOWed her11:33 – Some great ways to honor your employees, courtesy of John Ruhlin12:12 – Gifting does NOT have to be expensive. Sentimentality and thought can double the value of a gift.13:20 – Don’t ignore 90% of the calendar14:35 – Avoid these common gifting mistakes16:10 – Unique gifts17:38 – One of Brittany’s favorite gifts, a guest book18:28 – Closing gift idea for realtors19:13 – More personalized gift ideas22:05 – A cool way to make an impact with a special card22:46 – A gift card, but elevated24:45 – Love  on the ones they love25:57 – Highlight the recipient’s hobbies27:57 – Make sure the gift you’re giving aligns with the relationship you have with them28:27 – The most bizarre gift that Brittany received from a client that made her scratch her head29:46 – All of the gifting websites that offer subscriptions to save you money31:49 – Brittany’s snarky gift that she made on Zazzle to get back at a coworker32:57 – Check out Brittany’s interview with David Wachs, CEO of Handwrytten Download the Gifting Guide here. Transcription Brittany Hodak [00:00:02]: Hello, and welcome to the Creating Super Fans podcast where you learn how to turn your customers and employees into superfans. I’m your host, Brittany Hodak, and I’m a speaker, author, and entrepreneur obsessed with all things customer experience. Here’s the thing. We’re living in an experienced economy right now, and regardless of the size or age of your company or even the products or services you’re selling, one thing’s for sure. If your customers aren’t telling their friends about you, you’re in trouble. If you wanna create super fans, being great is no longer good enough. You’ve got to be super. This is the show that teaches you how. Brittany Hodak [00:00:47]: Hello, and welcome to another episode of the Creating Superfans podcast. In today’s episode, we’re going to talk about something that I get asked about a lot, and that’s gifting. Now this is always a hot topic, but it’s especially top of mind this time of year. I’m recording this episode on Cyber Monday. Obviously, so much focus and attention on gift giving and buying right now. This also happens to be just a few days before my 40th Hey. And people have been asking me, what do I want? What do I want? So gifting very much on the mind, and I’m thrilled to share this episode where Where I’m gonna tell you the top things not to do when you’re giving gifts, the things that you should be doing, and I’m going to give you more than a dozen ideas of gifts that are sure to delight your clients, your family members, your friends, your employees, anyone on your list. So if you want some major Santa Claus cred, listen to this episode. Brittany Hodak [00:01:43]: It’s gonna start right after a quick word from today’s sponsor. If you’re looking for a proven system to make more impact and income, I wanna highly recommend that you talk to my friends at Brand Builders Group. Brand builders group are the best in the world at helping people find their uniqueness and building on it to monetize their personal brands. Right now, Brand Builders Group is offering free brand strategy calls to everyone serious about taking their personal brands to the next level. Just visit freebrandcall.com/brittanyhodak to request your call. I’ve been a customer for 5 years, and I can tell you the team is absolutely incredible. You may have even heard cofounder Rory Vaden on a past episode of this podcast. They’ve created a system that really will help you get clear on the shortest path to grow your impact, your influence, and your income. So go to freebrandcall.com/brittanyhodak today to schedule your free strategy session. Now if there’s 1 page in my book, Creating Super Fans, that has been the most controversial this year, It is page 143. I know that because I have had several people both in person and over the Internet, Like, come at me for page 143. And 143 simply says this. If it has your logo on it, it’s an ad, not a gift. Now this is from a chapter that’s all about gifting called you get what you give, And the point that I’m making is that there is a difference between swag and gifts. Oftentimes, we confuse the 2. We conflate them. Brittany Hodak [00:03:26]: We think they’re the same thing, but they’re not. Now you can create very nice swag for someone, but if it has your logo on it, don’t the fact that it is actually swag. It’s an ad. Now, like, if someone gave me a car with their ad on it. I might well drive it around, but I would be driving around an ad because a logo makes it an ad. It makes it swag. Swag can be

My favorite CX, or customer experience, measurement tool is the simplest one: Did you just make the thing better or worse for the customer? Or, was it a forgettable, nothing-burger of an interaction? It really all boils down to those three choices. In Creating Superfans, I call these outcomes Net Positive, Net Neutral, and Net Negative. The overwhelming majority of interactions we all experience in life are Net Neutral ones. Hundreds or even thousands of times each day, you have interactions: emails, texts, phone calls, in-person conversations… the list goes on. You process most of them so quickly, and so automatically, that you don’t think about them again after they end. What if you could elevate those often-overlooked interactions into experiences? What if, all around you, there are countless opportunities to give your customers a little extra? A little extra jazz to take something from neutral to positive? From forgettable to I’ve-gotta-post-a-picture-of-that.  Guess what? You can! And this episode is all about ten of the countless ways you can do it. These simple interactions illustrate how you can intentionally elevate mundane moments into memorable ones.  Listen to the Episode Show Notes 5:37 – #1: Your wifi network name and password8:00 – #2: Your voicemail message9:57 – #3: 404 page12:19 – #4: Email unsubscribe message14:52 – #5: The hours and service details on your site or storefront17:04 – #6: Sandwich board in front of your store18:27 – #7: Notes or terms on your invoices20:05 – #8: “Hello” and “Goodbye” moments22:45 – #9: Overlooked physical space24:49 – #10: OOO or vacation auto-responder message For more examples on each interaction, check out Customer Interactions You Can Easily Elevate to Create Superfans.

On today’s episode of the Creating Superfans podcast, I’m thrilled to be joined by a fellow woman in CX, Stacy Sherman. Stacy is an award-winning keynote speaker, author, advisor, and podcaster focused on Doing Customer Experiences Right as a brand differentiator. Stacy has held multiple leadership roles at major companies over the past 25 years, such as Liveops, Verizon, Wilton Brands, AT&T, and Schindler Elevator. She brings real-life examples and customer service experience best practices from being in the trenches as a strategist and practitioner. You’ll hear us talk about the impact that a job title can have on an employee’s performance, how you can teach empathy to your team, and the importance of recognizing and celebrating your customers’ and your employee’s birthdays. Listen to the Episode Show Notes 3:03 – What does “doing CX right” look like to Stacy?4:42 – Brittany shares the CX lesson she learned while riding the elevator at LEGOLAND7:42 – Stacy shares about her experiences leading the CX department at Schindler Elevator Corporation8:09 – How Stacy improved the experience for elevator mechanics, both internally and externally11:05 – How physical and psychological safety contribute to overall CX12:38 -Elevator safety tips from Stacy Sherman15:26 – Why meaningful job titles can improve EX and CX, and Stacy’s tips for implementing a new job title17:23 – A common mistake that Stacy has observed when it comes to EX and CX18:21 – What would Stacy say to someone who’s just starting a Voice of Customer program?20:51 – The key traits Stacy would look for when hiring front-line employees23:37 – How has Stacy taught empathy to her teams in her prior roles?27:09 – Some ways that brands have acknowledged Stacy’s birthday in the past29:13 – Brittany cautions companies to remember the power of personalization when it comes to celebrating your employees’ birthdays30:16 – Stacy shares a story about a brand that completely blew her away with a surprise & delight moment Visit Stacy’s Website Transcription Brittany Hodak [00:00:02]: Hello, and welcome to the Creating Superfans podcast where you learn how to turn your customers and employees into superfans. I’m your host, Brittany Hodak, and I’m a speaker, author, and entrepreneur obsessed with all things customer experience. Here’s the thing. We’re living in an experienced economy right now, and regardless of the size or age of your company or even the products or services you’re selling, one thing’s for sure. If your customers aren’t telling their friends about you, you’re in trouble. If you wanna create super fans, being great is no longer good enough. You’ve got to be super. This is the show that teaches you how. Brittany Hodak [00:00:47]: I’m thrilled to be joined today by Stacy Sherman. She’s an award winning author, advisor, speaker, and podcaster focused on doing customer experiences right. She’s held leadership roles at companies including Verizon, Wilton brands, and AT and T. Today, we’ll talk about the impact a job title can have on an employee’s performance, how you can teach empathy to your team and the importance of recognizing and celebrating your customers and employees’ birthdays. And as a special bonus, she’s going to give us some elevator safety tips you don’t want to miss. Before we dive in, I want to thank the sponsor of today’s episode. If you’re looking for a proven system to make more impact and income, I wanna highly recommend that you talk to my friends at Brand Builders Group. Brand builders group are the best in the world at helping people find their uniqueness and building on it to monetize their personal brands. Right now, Brand Builders Group is offering free brand strategy calls to everyone serious about taking their personal brands to the next level. Just visit free brand call.com/brittneyhodak to request your call. I’ve been a customer for 5 years, and I can tell you the team is absolutely incredible. You may have even heard cofounder Rory Vaden on a past episode of this podcast. They’ve created a system that really will help you get clear on the shortest path to grow your impact, your influence, and your income. So go to free brand call.com/brittanyhodak today to schedule your free strategy session. Stacy, thank you so much for joining me today. Stacy Sherman [00:02:25]: Thank you. I’m so happy to be here, and I got to really spend time with you in person, which makes this extra just special. Brittany Hodak [00:02:33]: Yes. This is gonna be such a great episode. I always love talking to people who think customers experience is as fun and as exciting as an And as important as I do, so I know this is gonna be a great episode. So let’s jump in right off the bat on the CX. Your brand is all about, as you say, doing CX right. Brittany Hodak [00:02:54]: So I would love for you to tell me In a couple of sentences, what does it mean to you for a brand to do CX right? Stacy Sherman [00:03:03]: Yes. So So many brands are not doing it right, and and it’s really about getting the basics right. What we’re talking about is intentionally Designing a customer experience from how they learn and buy and get and use and pay and get service, customer care, And intentionally designing that internally, breaking the silos, bringing everyone together to design it. But here’s the magic. Can’t skip this step is actually validate it with real customers and make sure that what you designed is really what they want and that you’re meeting their needs and you you adjust that. So it’s That’s the fastest answer I can say about really looking at it in totality. Brittany Hodak [00:03:49]: I love it. I think so many companies forget about that customer focus, like, having that customer centricity to say, we’ve gotta test this. We’ve gotta talk to people. We’ve gotta make sure we’re doing what people want. Stacy Sherman [00:04:02]: Yeah. And I think the issue again, I’ve

Like me, Lauren Teague is obsessed with fandom and how it can act as a business lever for customer and employee experience. Lauren was the original social media lead for the PGA Tour where she pioneered brand-to-fan engagement on Twitter and set the standard for all social media platforms today. Since then, she has spent 15+ years optimizing fan engagement in sports, B2B, B2C, healthcare, higher ed, and several more industries. She’s also the founder of FANWAGN, an online marketplace for sports and college fans to buy and resell beloved apparel. I had the pleasure of joining her on her Brand to Fan Show, and now I’m excited to share my interview with her. Lauren and I chat about the evolution of fan engagement on social media, how to harness your customer’s voice through your content, and the many ways AI can multiply your social assets and help you run your business more efficiently. listen to the EPISODE show notes 3:48 – Lauren shares her origin story5:21 – How Lauren got started doing social media for the PGA Tour6:07 – How Lauren developed her brand-to-fan philosophy8:14 – Brands have many audiences that they reach simultaneously11:00 – What Lauren learned when she did affinity mapping for a school district14:57 – Why it’s so important to remember that everyone on your team is in the experience department18:32 – Lauren shares further details about her first few weeks on the job with the PGA Tour20:12 – What Twitter was like back in 2008 when Lauren first started (without a smart phone!)21:55 – Other ways that Lauren enhanced the fan experience for PGA Tours on social media23:30 – What projects is Lauren most proud of from the PGA?25:00 – The social media command center that Lauren advocated for to bring fresh content for fans27:49 – What is Lauren’s content multiplication system?30:45 – Lauren’s course all about repurposing content at scale31:53 – How AI lets Lauren interact more with her customers33:05 – What is FANWAGN and what inspired Lauren to create it?37:03 – How FANWAGN creates a community through storytelling38:40 – What is Lauren a SUPERFAN of?LaurenTeague.comFANWAGN transcription Brittany Hodak [00:00:02]: Hello, and welcome to the Creating Superfans podcast where you learn how to turn your customers and employees into superfans. I’m your host, Brittany Hodak, and I’m a speaker, author, and entrepreneur obsessed with all things customer experience. Here’s the thing. We’re living in an experienced economy right now, and regardless of the size or age of your company or even the products or services you’re selling, one thing’s for sure. If your customers aren’t telling their friends about you, you’re in trouble. If you wanna create super fans, being great is no longer good enough. You’ve got to be super. This is the show that teaches you how. Brittany Hodak [00:00:48]: Today’s guest is something of a super fan’s doppelganger. Like me, Lauren Teague is obsessed with fandom And how it can act as a business lever for customer and employee experience. She was the original social media lead for the PGA Tour Where she pioneered brand new fan engagement on Twitter and set the standard for all social media platforms today. Since then, she has spent more than 15 years optimizing fan engagement in sports, b to b, b to c, health care, higher ed, and several other industries. She’s also the founder of Fan Wagon, an online marketplace for sports and college fans to buy and resell beloved apparel. I had the pleasure of joining her on her brand of fan show, and now I’m excited to welcome her here. In today’s episode, we chat about the evolution of fan engagement on social media, how to harness your customers’ voice through your content, and the many ways AI can multiply your social assets and help you run your business more efficiently. Before we welcome Lauren, let’s hear a quick word from today’s sponsor. Brittany Hodak [00:01:52]: If you’re looking for a proven system to make more impact and income, I wanna highly recommend that you talk to my friends at Brand Builders Group. Brand Builders Group are the best in the world at helping people find their uniqueness and building on it to monetize their personal brands. Right now, Brand Builders Group is offering free brand strategy calls to everyone serious about taking their personal brands, to the next level. Just visit free brand call.com/brittneyhodak to request your call. I’ve been a customer for 5 years, and I can tell you the team is absolutely incredible. You may have even heard cofounder Rory Vaden On a past episode of this podcast. They’ve created a system that really will help you get clear on the shortest path to grow your impact, your influence, and your income. So go to freebrandcall.com/brittanyhodak today to schedule your free strategy session. Brittany Hodak [00:02:51]: Lauren, thank you for coming on the show. I’m so excited to have you here today. Lauren Teague [00:02:55]: I am so happy to return the favor, Britney. It’s An honor to be on Creating Superfans. Brittany Hodak [00:03:01]: Yes. And, you know, I love when you meet somebody that you’re like, Wait. How do you have the exact same philosophies as me, yet our backgrounds are completely different, And we look at the world in some ways in a very different way. So I as I mentioned in the introduction, you’ve got a podcast, Brand A Fan Show, Which I was excited to be on, but I love the philosophies that you have about why brands need to harness the power a fandom. So why don’t you tell me a little bit about your background, your take on why fandom matters, and what you, you know, consider to be your large contribution right now happening in this sort of space of of brands and fandom. Lauren Teague [00:03:48]: Yeah. So my, career background, I’ve always been drawn to sports. So from, like, a young girl, you know, what is the

Scott Harris is a Founder, CEO, and author. He’s the CEO of Experience.com, a company he founded in 2015 to redefine the way the world thinks about Customer Experience, Employee Experience, and the all-important interplay between the two. Scott and I had the pleasure of working at Experience.com together, and he might just be the only person that’s more passionate about experience than me. In today’s episode, we discuss the ever-changing rules for success in the digital landscape and the importance of understanding the new algorithms that shape consumer behavior. After listening to our conversation, you’ll be better prepared to win online and transform your organization into an experience-led enterprise. listen to the Episode show notes 3:28 – Scott tells us about Experience.com 5:50 – Hows silos are ruining businesses today 9:40 – Covid impacted the way people buy and refer businesses 11:35 – Brittany shares her theory for why our buying processes have changed, and it’s not what you think it is! 15:03 – Scott cites the blue dot on Maps as an example of how algorithms are shaping our behaviors 17:18 – How technology drives our behavior  18:06 – How Google has turned our habits into math and how companies can use the strategy to win online 19:16 – Scott breaks down the three components that Google looks for when serving you with search options 20:28 – Too many businesses are misallocating their time because they don’t realize the rules have changed 22:11 – You are what the Internet says you are 23:01 – How a loan officer might try to optimize their online presence 26:55 – The conclusion a prospect might jump to if your online presence isn’t updated or accurate 27:07 – If you have your location and product information on your profiles, what’s the last step that you need to beat out your competitors? 30:05 – A recent AI interaction that blew Scott away 35:09 – Why an experience management platform is so crucial for your organization 37:08 – “You put data in motion to power your business. If you’re not doing that, you’re behind.” transcription Brittany Hodak [00:00:02]: Hello, and welcome to the Creating Superfans podcast where you learn how to turn your customers and employees into superfans. I’m your host, Brittany Hodak, and I’m a speaker, author, and entrepreneur obsessed with all things customer experience. Here’s the thing. We’re living in an experienced economy right now, and regardless of the size or age of your company or even the products or services you’re selling, one thing’s for sure. If your customers aren’t telling their friends about you, you’re in trouble. If you wanna create super fans, being great is no longer good enough. You’ve got to be super. This is the show that teaches you how. Brittany Hodak [00:00:48]: Today’s guest is my friend and maybe the 1 person on the planet I would not want to go toe to toe with in a game of who cares the most about experience because this guy just might win. He is the founder and CEO of experience.com. He’s on a mission to redefine the way the world thinks about customer experience, employee experience, and the all important interplay between the 2. And it’s not just talk. He has helped design and build the platform that’s making it all possible. In today’s episode, he’s going to talk about what every company large and small can do to transform into an experience led enterprise and inspire every employee to become an experienced architect. My conversation with Scott Harris right after a word from today’s sponsor. If you’re looking for a proven system To make more impact and income, I wanna highly recommend that you talk to my friends at Brand Builders Group. Brittany Hodak [00:01:47]: Brand Builders Group are the best in the world at helping people find their uniqueness and building on it to monetize their personal brands. Right now, Brand Builders Group is offering free brand strategy calls to everyone serious about taking their personal brands to the next level. Just visit free brand call.com/brittneyhodak to request your call. I’ve been a customer for 5 years, and I can tell you the team is absolutely incredible. You may have even heard cofounder Rory Vaden on a past episode of this podcast. They’ve created a system that really will help you get clear on the shortest path to grow your impact, your influence, and your income. So go to free brand call.com/brittanyhodak today to schedule your free strategy session. Scott Harris, thank you for coming on the show today. Brittany Hodak [00:02:39]: It is so great to have you here. Scott Harris [00:02:41]: Hey, Britney. How are you? I miss I gotta tell you. I miss Nashville. Used to come all the time. Haven’t been a minute. And every time I talk to you, I think about 5 daughters and Hattie B’s. Brittany Hodak [00:02:51]: Well, thank you for coming on the show. I always love when we get a chance to talk because I feel like There aren’t that many people who love experience in the way that I do and can give you a little bit of Scott Harris [00:03:06]: a filter. Brittany Hodak [00:03:07]: You did. You you own you literally own experience at experience.com. So, yeah, let’s let’s Kick things off by talking about, like, what is Experience .com? As the man who could have done anything in the world with the domain Experience .com. Tell me about what you did and why. Scott Harris [00:03:28]: What is Experience .com? Experience .com is an experience management platform. It’s really what it is. If you’re building an EX platform where you wanna connect to every moment in your employee journey and then map it into, into, you know, 3 a life three sixty, view of every employee. If you wanna connect that to Glassdoor or Indeed, empower your Recruiting reputation. Right? We’re an EX platform. We’re a CX platform in the

Did you know that awkwardness is  your greatest asset for professional and personal growth? My guest today is here to tell us all about it. She’s my dear friend, Henna Pryor. Henna is an author, sought-after workplace performance expert, executive coach, and award-winning, two-time TEDx speaker. Following two decades in the corporate world, a few career pivots, and a wildly successful leap to entrepreneurship, she shares her work from the stage and screen to expand on her belief that the key to most people’s success is embracing their bumpy edges. Henna and I discuss the importance of owning your uniqueness and how leaning into awkwardness can actually strengthen your relationships. listen to the EPISODE show notes 6:37 – Henna’s origin story that led to her book, “Good Awkward.”7:51 – Henna’s awkward story from 5th grade that still lives with her today8:50 – Leaning into the awkward and embracing it changes everything9:17 – How does Henna define ‘awkward’11:36 – The important difference between awkwardness and ineptitude12:29 – The pratfall effect12:57 – How the pratfall effect is similar to the service recovery paradox14:13 – The key skill is to learn how to ‘repair’16:08 – People are almost untrained to deal with awkward situations now because we hide behind technology18:18 – How technology has hindered certain interactions20:08 – How Henna slowly embraced her uniqueness at her corporate job and boosted her performance21:48 – The avoidance of awkwardness increases awkwardness23:13 – Awkward versus vulnerable27:58 – The one thing that Henna fought for when writing her book29:40 – Henna shares some of her awkward experiences that ended up getting cut from the book31:21 – The biggest takeaway Henna has from her research32:15 – Henna’s embarrassing moment from a recent TV interview promoting her new book Get your copy of Good Awkward transcription Brittany Hodak [00:00:03]: Hello, and welcome to the Creating Super Fans podcast where you learn how to turn your customers and employees into super fans. I’m your host, Britney Hodak, and I’m a speaker, author, and entrepreneur obsessed with all things customer experience. Here’s the thing. We’re living in an experienced economy right now, and regardless of the size or age of your company or even the products or services you’re selling, one thing’s for sure. If your customers aren’t telling their friends about you, you’re in trouble. If you wanna create super fans, being great is no longer good enough. You’ve got to be super. This is the show that teaches you how. Brittany Hodak [00:00:47]: Did you know that there are at least 2 kinds of awkward? There’s bad awkward, which are the cringey moments that we’ve all experienced, and it turns out there’s this second kind of awkward, good awkward. My guest today is here to tell us all about it. She’s my dear friend, Hannah Pryor. She’s a sought after workplace performance expert, executive coach, and award winning 2 time TEDx speaker. Following 2 decades in the corporate world, a few career pivots, and a wildly successful leap to entrepreneurship, she shares her work from the stage and screen to expand on her belief that the key to most people’s success is embracing their bumpy edges. This helps them be even braver in the work that they do. She’s known for her science backed approach to improving the performance of hungry high achievers in a fun, no nonsense way. And today, she is here to share all of her secrets. Brittany Hodak [00:01:43]: We’ll jump right into my interview with Hannah after a word from today’s sponsor. If you’re looking for a proven system to make more impact and income, I wanna highly recommend that you talk to my friends at Brand Builders Group. Brand Builders Group are the best in the world at helping people find their uniqueness and building on it to monetize their personal brands. Right now, Brand Builders Group is offering free brand strategy calls to everyone serious about taking their personal brands to the next level. Just visit free brand call .com/brittneyhodak to request your call. I’ve been a customer for 5 years, and I can tell you the team is absolutely incredible. You may have even heard cofounder Rory Vaden on a past episode of this podcast. They’ve created a system that really will help you get clear on the shortest path to grow your impact, your influence, and your income. Brittany Hodak [00:02:40]: So go to free brand call .com/brittneyhodak today to schedule your free strategy session. Hannah, thank you so much for joining me on the Henna Pryor [00:02:51]: show. I’m so excited to be here. Big big Britney fan super fan, I might even say. Brittany Hodak [00:02:56]: Well, it is mutual and even more so now that your book is out. We have been talking about this book for, gosh, what, over a year. Into something Henna Pryor [00:03:04]: that yeah. Brittany Hodak [00:03:05]: First met, we were both aspiring authors. We were working on our books. We were trying to figure it out. We were talking about what we were gonna do. And, I said to my husband the other day when I got an advance of your book thank you very much for sending that advance. Oh, good. I was like, this, I think, is the first book that has come out since my book came out that, like, made me a little jealous. Like, I have some of those tensions of, like, oh, Henna Pryor [00:03:27]: you did this, and it was Brittany Hodak [00:03:29]: so smart. They’re like, oh, why didn’t I think of that? So I adore you, and I adore this book, and everybody should read it. But I just wanted to start by saying well done, my friend. I know how hard it is. I know how hard you’ve worked, and I am just So, so proud of you for creating this amazing piece of art that you have now released into the world. Henna Pryor [00:03:50]: Oh, she’s gonna start Crying. No.

In honor of Customer Experience Day (10/3), I’m thrilled to be joined by my good friend, and fellow CX expert, Jay Baer. Jay is a Hall of Fame speaker, New York Times best-selling author of 7 business books, founder of 5 multi-million dollar companies,  and a trusted business growth advisor to 40 of the FORTUNE 500 brands. In today’s episode, Jay and I chat about his new book, “The Time to Win,” and why speed and responsiveness are crucial for succeeding in today’s experience economy. Jay explains why EVERY business needs a ‘fast pass,’ how to close the uncertainty gap with your customers, and the complex correlation between speed and trust. listen to the Episode show notes 4:30 – Jay talks about his love for Tequila and how he has become a Tequila influencer on Instagram6:05 – The intentional design of Jay’s new book, “The Time to Win”8:51– When you lose out on speed, it’s often invisible9:52 – Why customers perceive responsiveness as a sign of respect10:55 – How businesses end up ruining their profit margins when they’re too slow12:54 – How speed contributes to the emotional connection your customers have with your brand16:07 – Jay explains the Goldilocks Zone of speed17:25 – Why being too fast can decay trust21:35 – Why every business should offer a ‘fast pass’ option25:54 – Expectations about time are more important than speed itself28:04 – Jay shares his experience of ordering leather sneakers online and how the company exceeded his expectations30:16 – The big mistake a sofa company made that completely eroded Jay’s trust35:13 – Do NOT overpromise on speed36:07 – Brittany shares her experience at BNA airport and the problem with inaccurate signage39:02 – A brand that Jay is a superfan of transcription Brittany Hodak [00:00:03]: Hello, and welcome to the Creating Super Fans podcast where you learn how to turn your customers and employees into superfans. I’m your host, Brittany Hodak, and I’m a speaker, author, and entrepreneur obsessed with all things customer experience. Here’s the thing. We’re living in an experienced economy right now, and regardless of the size or age of your company or even the products or services you’re selling, one thing’s for sure. If your customers aren’t telling their friends about you, you’re in trouble. If you wanna create super fans, being great is no longer good enough. You’ve got to be super. This is the show that teaches you how. Brittany Hodak [00:00:48]: My guest today is Jay Baer. He’s a 7th generation entrepreneur, the New York Times best selling author of 6 books, and the founder of 5 multimillion dollar businesses. He’s a business growth and customer experience expert and researcher and is advised more than 700 companies, including 40 of the Fortune 500 brands. Not to brag, But he’s also an inductee into the professional speaking hall of fame and has twice been named a global guru in marketing and customer experience. He’s also the 2nd most popular tequila influencer in the world and one of my very favorite people. Today, we’re talking about his brand new mini book, The Time to Win and What You Need to Know TO Win Customer Experience in the world today. This is a fun episode that’s gonna cover a lot, so buckle up. We’ll get started right after a word from today’s sponsor. Brittany Hodak [00:01:46]: If you’re looking for a proven system to make more impact and income, I wanna highly recommend that you talk to my friends at Brand Builders Group. Brand Builders Group are the best in the world at helping people find their uniqueness and building on it to monetize their personal brands. Right now, Brand Builders Group is offering free brand strategy calls to everyone serious about taking their personal brands to the next level. Just visit free brand call .com/brittneyhodak to request your call. I’ve been a customer for 5 years, and I can tell you the team is absolutely incredible. You may have even heard cofounder Rory Vaden on a past episode of this podcast. They’ve created a system that really will help you get clear on the shortest path to grow your impact, your influence, and your income. So go to free brand call.com/brittneyhodak today to schedule your free strategy session. Brittany Hodak [00:02:45]: Jay, thank you so much for coming on the Jay Baer [00:02:48]: show. So great to be here. It is always a joy to spend time with you. You’re always so happy, and that makes me Brittany Hodak [00:02:55]: Well, thank you, my friend. How can I not be happy when I get to hang out with the legend that is Jay Baer? You have so much Going on, you’ve got your entrepreneurship business, you’re a brilliant speaker and author, and now you’re a tequila influencer? What is that? Where did that come from and where do you find the Jay Baer [00:03:16]: time? Well, I, I found the time when I sold my, my, strategy firm a couple years ago. I used to record a podcast every week and I did for 10 years called The Social Pros Podcast. And as you know, podcasts do have some time associated with creating them. And so when I stopped running the show, the show still exists. I’m just not on the microphone. I thought, oh, well, I should take the time that I used to spend on the podcast and I could Use that time to maybe, just maybe, educate people about some of what I have learned about tequila over the 25 years or so that I’ve been a tequila fan and Suddenly learning more about tequila and going to Mexico and all that kind of thing. And I’m like, well, let’s just try that. And at the same time, I thought, you know, I’ve made content in a lot of formats. Jay Baer [00:03:58]: I’ve written books and LinkedIn and YouTube and etcetera, etcetera, podcasts, obviously. But I’ve never really done any short form

On this episode of the Creating Superfans podcast, I’m joined by Andy Cockburn, the co-founder and CEO of Mention Me. Mention Me is an award-winning referral marketing platform that helps brands harness the exponential power of their fans through referrals.  Since 2013, Mention Me has delivered more than 6m referrals totaling $1.8b in revenue for 500 brands, including Puma, Charlotte Tilbury, and Michael Kors. Andy shares fascinating insights on the psychology behind advocacy and why your highly satisfied customers may not be telling their friends about you. We also chat about the importance of measuring the extended lifetime value of your customers and the steps any brand can take to make advocacy the center of their business growth. listen to the episode show notes [00:03:41] How does Andy define an advocate and why are they important for every business [00:05:18] The three challenges to customer advocacy [00:07:04] The difference between intention and action when it comes to referrals [00:08:34] How social capital and social risk influence a customer’s willingness to refer [00:012:32] What might hold a customer back from promoting a brand on social media? [00:13:08] How younger and older generations differ when it comes to the psychology of advocacy [00:14:38] The origin story of Mention Me [00:16:32] The crucial difference between a  customer’s lifetime value and extended lifetime value [00:18:46] Andy shares an example of an online florist who was blown away at the referral data they discovered through Mention Me [00:20:08] How can a business owner get started on tracking extended lifetime value and building a referral network? [00:21:25] What is earned growth rate and why should your business be tracking it? [00:23:42] What is a “good” earned growth rate? [00:25:44] Brittany shares an anecdote about a charity she worked with and the most effective method for asking for donations [00:26:55] How to tell your story to boost your referrals [00:28:39] The best time to ask for a review or referral [00:29:02] How to stay connected to your customers even if your industry has very unpredictable purchasing cycles [00:30:10] The genius way that Mention Me enables customers to refer each other [00:35:06] What is a brand that Andy is a superfan of and why? Visit Mention Me’s websiteBrittany’s blog post on Earned Growth RateThe Ruckraft that Andy is a superfan of transcription Brittany Hodak [00:00:02]: Hello, and welcome to the Creating Super Fans podcast where you learn how to turn your customers and employees into superfans. I’m your host, Brittany Hodak, and I’m a speaker, author, and entrepreneur obsessed with all things customer experience. Here’s the thing. We’re living in an experienced economy right now, and regardless of the size or age of your company or even the products or services you’re selling, one thing’s for sure. If your customers aren’t telling their friends about you, you’re in trouble. If you wanna create super fans, being great is no longer good enough. You’ve got to be super. This is the show that teaches you how. On this episode of the Creating Super Fans podcast, I’m joined by Andy Cockburn, the cofounder and CEO of Mention Me. Mention Me is an award winning referral marketing platform that helps brands harness the exponential power of their fans through referral. Since 2013, mention me has delivered more than 6,000,000 referrals, totaling nearly $2,000,000,000 in revenue for more than 500 brands, including Puma, Charlotte Tilbury, and Michael Kors. In today’s episode, Andy shares fascinating insights on the psychology behind advocacy and why your highly satisfied customers may not be telling their friends about you. We also chat about the importance of measuring the extended lifetime value of your customers and the steps any brand can take today to make advocacy the center of their business growth. Before we dive in, here’s a word from today’s sponsor. If you’re looking for a proven system to make more impact and income, I wanna highly recommend that you talk to my friends at Brand Builders Group. Brand Builders Group are the best in the world at helping people find their uniqueness and building on it to monetize their personal brands. Right now, Brand Builders Group is offering free brand strategy calls to everyone serious about taking Their personal brands to the next level. Just visit free brand call.com/brittneyhodak to request your call. I’ve been a customer for 5 years, and I can tell you the team is absolutely incredible. You may have even heard cofounder Rory Vaden on a past episode of this podcast. They’ve created a system that really will help you get clear on the shortest path to grow your impact, your influence, and your income. So go to free brand call .com/brittanyhodak today to schedule your free strategy session. Andy, thank you so much for joining me on the show today. Andy Cockburn [00:02:45]: Oh, I’m delighted to be here. Thank you for inviting me. Brittany Hodak [00:02:48]: I always love when I find people in companies that are very like minded, and it seems that you and I and everyone who mentioned me have a lot in common in the way that we think about customers and brand love and super fans. Andy Cockburn [00:03:02]: Absolutely. I think, every time I’ve heard you speak Britney, my head has been nodding along. And, Our vision as a company is to make all brands think advocacy first to try and change the mindset in business to how you can truly delight customers so that you grow on the pack of customer love. So I think there there couldn’t be much more in common with creating Super Fans. Brittany Hodak [00:03:21]: Yes. Well, I am so excited to have the conversation today. So let’s let’s start at the beginning. What is an advocate? How do you define an advocate? And let’s talk about that, and then why that’s such an important strategy for companies of any size or any age to be thinking about when they think about their overall business model. Andy Cockburn [00:03:41]: Yeah.