Since I just wrapped season one of the Creating Superfans podcast, I decided to put together a SUPER helpful rewind so you can go back and listen to some of your favorite episodes!
I categorized the episodes using my SUPER Model framework so you can easily find the topics you’re interested in.
I’m so excited to start working on season two with even more insightful guests. If you want to nominate someone (or yourself!) to be featured in an episode, fill out the form at the bottom of this page.
S: Start With Your Story
EPISODE 17: HoW TO CREATE A STANDOUT RETAIL EXPERIENCE WITH DAWN CRAIG
About Dawn Craig:
Dawn is the Owner and CEO of Finnleys, a boutique that carries trendy, but affordable clothes, accessories and gifts for women and men of all ages.
Episode Highlights:
- Dawn’s journey as a small business owner in Nashville
- How the Finnleys motto, “pretty things, cool people, good vibes” sets the standard for the business
- The Finnleys origin story that helps the brand form an emotional connection with customers
My favorite quote:
“Pretty things, great people, good vibes. It is where we go to look for when we’re doing any new projects, when we’re thinking about issues that come up, and just really thinking in those buckets. And it’s evolved over the years. I didn’t start with that in mind, but I do think it encapsulates us, and we came up with that motto together as a team.”
Listen here.
EPISODE 18: HOW TO CULTIVATE BRAND LOVE WITH DR. AARON AHUVIA
About Dr. Ahuvia:
Dr. Ahuvia is a professor of marketing at the University of Michigan Dearborn and the author of The Things We Love: How Our Passions Connect Us and Make Us Who We Are.
Episode highlights:
- The difference between brand love and interpersonal love
- The three steps to creating brand love
- The three different ways to get your customers to treat your product as a person
My favorite quote:
“In order to love anything, your unconscious mind has to treat it as if it is a person.”
Listen here.
EPISODE 19: HOW TO DEVELOP YOUR PERSONAL BRAND WITH RORY VADEN
About Rory:
Rory is a New York Times bestselling author, Half of Fame speaker, and co-founder of the Brand Builders Group. Rory helps mission-driven messengers become more well-known and make more impact.
Episode highlights:
- The six-part brand DNA formula that Rory teaches his clients at Brand Builders Group
- The five ways to monetize your personal brand
- How Rory and his team helped Brittany develop the SUPER Model
My favorite quote:
“You are most powerfully positioned to serve the person you once were.”
Listen here.
U: Understand Your Customer’s Story
EPISODE 2: HOW FIZZAH RAZA CREATES THE ULTIMATE CLIENT EXPERIENCE
About Fizzah:
Fizzah is a Nashville-based portrait and branding photographer who empowers women to own their beauty and power through her services.
Episode highlights:
- The critical mindset shift that helped Fizzah transform her customer experience
- How Fizzah maximized moments before, during, and after our photoshoot to WOW me
- A follow-up trick that you should implement in your business
My favorite quote:
“I went from thinking of it as ‘I sell portraits, or I sell branding photos,’ to ‘I sell an experience and I’m selling confidence and empowerment.’…My service might be photography, but how do I sell that experience? How do I help my clients transform?”
Listen here.
EPISODE 6: BALANCING TECH AND HUMAN TOUCH WITH JOE WELU
About Joe:
Joe Welu founded Total Expert from the basement of a real estate office in 2012. He saw a need and created the first enterprise-grade experience platform purpose-built for the modern financial services industry.
Episode highlights:
- How Joe balances the need for human touch and technology at scale
- Staying grounded in tech without going overboard with functionality and features
- Why it’s imperative, especially in financial services, to use customer data in an ethical way
My favorite quote:
“Let’s ground and agree on the fact that – as a lender, organization, financial services – you want to be the trusted lifelong partner for that customer for all of the important financial decisions that they make that align with the product set that you have. So if you believe fundamentally that you want to be that trusted lifelong partner, you have to be able to tie back all of the technology to ‘is it helping us get closer to that goal or is it a distraction?’ So we try to simplify it with that premise.”
Listen here.
EPISODE 15: WINNING DIGITAL CUSTOMERS WITH HOWARD TIERSKY
About Howard Tiersky:
Howard is the CEO and Founder of FROM, a digital transformation agency that helps companies go from where they are, to where they need to be. He’s the author of Winning Digital Customers: The Antidote to Irrelevance, one of the Top 10 Digital Transformation Influencers by IDG Magazine, and one of the Top 100 Customer Success Strategists by Success Coaching.
Episode Highlights:
- The use of observational research as a way to understand your customers better
- Why some C-Suite executives don’t have an accurate gage on their customers
- Howard’s five-step roadmap to thrive in a digital world’
My favorite quote:
“The way you aim transformation has to be through the lens of the customer to really be effective. Why? Because why are we transforming again?”
Listen here.
EPISODE 20: HOW TO CREATE A CUSTOMER-CENTRIC LOYALTY PROGRAM WITH ALIX STEINBERG
This episode was one of three Brittany & Alix specials this season. Alix is my right-hand who helps me with tons of things behind the scenes, including brainstorming topics for my newsletters. We decided to do a deeper dive into one of my newsletter topics: creating customer-centric loyalty programs and tiered pricing structures.
Episode highlights:
- The importance of defining the objectives for your loyalty program
- Why customer service should NEVER be considered a perk
- How Sephora strikes the perfect balance of personalization in their rewards program
My favorite quote:
“It can skew in both directions, right? Like you absolutely can turn something that would’ve been a neutral or positive experience into a negative by giving the same piece of swag to everyone. But you can also go too far in the other direction and make someone feel bad when you don’t curate it at all.”
Listen here.
P: Personalize
EPISODE 5: CONNECTING WITH YOUR AUDIENCE ON TIKTOK WITH HILARY BILLINGS
About Hilary:
Hilary is the co-founder and CEO of Attentioneers Agency. A self-proclaimed “engineer of attention,” Hilary is a viral video expert that helps brands drive exponential growth on TikTok.
Episode highlights:
- Hilary’s thoughts on which social media platforms you need to be on
- Why ‘going viral’ is intentional, not accidental, and how you can replicate that success
- Why disengaging on social media will affect you long-term
My favorite quote:
“DuoLingo… it is now the go-to translation, linguistic app for Gen-Zers. And that’s because it found a way to entertain and relate to them on a platform in a way that they want to be connected with. And it’s bringing that brand’s value, brand affinity, up exponentially because they have agreed to play the game in a way that makes sense for them and their customer base.”
Listen here.
EPISODE 13: DISRUPTING THE MOVING INDUSTRY WITH RON HOLT
About Ron Holt:
Ron is the founder and CEO of Pink Zebra Moving, a company that is on a mission to disrupt the moving industry. Taking inspiration from brands like the Savannah Bananas, he’s designed a magical experience for his customers that he’s working to replicate across the country.
Episode Highlights:
- The unique Pay Enhancement Plan for Pink Zebra movers
- The worst idea that Ron implemented for the Pink Zebra movers upon entering their clients’ homes
- The fun surprise boxes that clients receive after a move is complete
My favorite quote:
“We’re walking in someone’s home for half a day before we go to the next place to drop everything off. So we see what team allegiances they have. We see what they care about, what they love about their life, what their hobbies are. If they’re a hunter, if they’re a cook..so it gives us opportunities to just have conversations.”
Listen here.
EPISODE 16: The POWER OF GIFTING WITH LASH FARY
About Lash:
Lash Fary, otherwise known as the “Gift Guru” or the “Sultan of Swag,” is the president and Founder of Distinctive Assets, a niche marketing agency. He’s worked with top award shows including the GRAMMY Awards, Latin GRAMMYs, Tony Awards, American Music Awards, BET Awards, Kids’ Choice Awards and Academy of Country Music Awards to create celebrity branding opportunities.
Episode Highlights:
- Why celebrities like Samuel L. Jackson LOVE the gift bags that Lash curates
- Lash’s opinion on Brittany’s philosophy, “If it has your logo on it, it’s an ad, not a gift.”
- Two overlooked components of gifting that can elevate your present.
My favorite quote:
“If you’re short on budget, or you can’t spend as much as you’d like to on someone, sentimentality can save you so much money.”
Listen here.
E: Exceed Expectations
EPISODE 1: TIMELESS CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE TRENDS WITH SHEP HYKEN
About Shep:
Shep is an award-winning and world-renowned Keynote Speaker in Customer Service & Customer Experience. He’s a New York Times bestselling author and has worked with the world’s best brands to help them build a culture centered around the customer.
Episode highlights:
- What Shep learned on one of his first jobs as a twelve-year-old that powered his philosophy in customer experience
- The world’s oldest customer complaint letter
- Shep’s non-negotiables when it comes to customer service
My favorite quote:
“You want to create confidence with me? Do what you say you’re going to do. Be proactive about things. In other words, if you can reach out to me before I reach out to you if there’s an issue, you’ve already gained my confidence.”
Listen here.
EPISODE 9: USING SOCIAL MEDIA TO POWER YOUR CX WITH HILLARY APPLEGATE
About Hillary:
Hillary is the founder of Social HQ, a creative agency that empowers brands to have an impactful digital presence. Hillary challenges brands to say goodbye to boring social media and instead drive community and credibility, all while increasing sales.
Episode Highlights:
- How one of Hillary’s clients used social media to connect with a superfan and exceed expectations
- How social listening can impact every aspect of your company, and Hillary’s recommended tools at all price points
- The best return from any campaign that Hillary has ever run
My favorite quote:
“Even something as simple as responding to your customers when they are commenting on a post or tagging someone in a post and engaging with them in a way that makes them feel seen, makes them feel heard, that is still shockingly not the norm… If somebody is taking the time to comment or say something and you are responding to them, they feel that sense of connection.”
Listen here.
EPISODE 10: BRINGING THE 5-STAR HOSPITALITY MINDSET TO THE MEDICAL INDUSTRY WITH JIM WHITE
About Jim:
Jim is the Chief Experience Officer of Ignite Medical Resorts. Jim and his team at Ignite are “extinguishing the stereotype” of traditional rapid rehabilitation facilities- otherwise known as nursing homes- by providing the five-star hospitality of a luxury resort.
Episode Highlights:
- Why Ignite uses hospitality metrics as its benchmark for success
- The “warm welcome” and “fond farewell” that employees are trained to provide
- The CX strategy from the Ritz Carlton that Jim has implemented at Ignite
My favorite quote:
“It starts out always with the ‘warm welcome,’ and the reason that’s so important is… anybody that goes into any business, what they want more than anything else is to be acknowledged in some way, right?”
Listen here.
EPISODE 22: HOW TO CREATE THE BEST ATTENDEE EXPERIENCE FOR YOUR EVENT WITH ANGELA HIGGINS & TRACI SALITERMAN
About Angela and Traci:
Angela is the Senior Director of Marketing at Total Expert, and Traci is the Experiential Events Producer at Total Expert. Among the many amazing things they do, they’re two of the masterminds behind TE’s annual customer conference, Accelerate.
Episode highlights:
- How Total Expert uses unique photo opportunities to create buzz at their events
- Tips for choosing a theme for your conference and how it helps develop content
- How to maximize the value of your event for every department in your organization
My favorite quote:
“You’re not only doing your event team a favor by having a solid theme, you’re doing all of the employees a favor because it gives them something to start from.”
Listen here.
R: Repeat
EPISODE 4: THE UNSUNG HEROES OF CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE WITH KIM GOEI
About Kim:
Kim is currently the President at Fexa, a SaaS company with a vision to drive a new era of success, productivity and evolution of facilities management with Human First, Integrity, Innovation and Customer Success as its core values.
Episode highlights:
- How facility managers are usually the unsung heroes of customer experience
- Comparing the repeatability of the Five Guys experience vs. the geographically-customized experiences of stores like Prada and Michael Kors
- Kim’s favorite examples of things we’re able to predict and take care of using smart-connected devices
My favorite quote:
“When it comes to customer experience in the facilities management world, our goal is that customers never know that we’re there. Facilities managers are really the unsung heroes of operations teams.”
Listen here.
EPISODE 8: DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION WITH JOE HAROUNI
About Joe:
Joe is the Connected Commerce practice lead at Avionos, where he works with clients to deliver commerce solutions that enable a better customer, sales, and service experience. Avionos’ team of experts drives measurable business outcomes for Fortune 500 and 1000 companies by partnering with executives to turn their digital vision into reality.
Episode highlights:
- A trend that businesses need to be aware of in the digital transformation space
- How the Avionos team overcomes the “inside out” approach to digital transformation
- Joe’s advice for companies that are trying to make their digital experience more seamless and more relevant for their customers
My favorite quote:
“When a company embarks on a digital transformation or attempts to make significant improvements in customer experience or employee experience, one of things that’s often an afterthought that really should be brought to the forefront is business enablement. Do you have a communications plan around the initiative that you’re undertaking? Have you set up key performance indicators and a strategy around why you’re doing it and the outcomes you expect to happen?
Listen here.
EPISODE 14: REHUMANIZING THE DIGITAL CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE WITH ETHAN BEUTE
About Ethan:
Ethan is the Chief Evangelist at BombBomb, the host of my favorite podcast, The Customer Experience podcast, and the author of several amazing business books, including Human-Centered Communication.
Episode highlights:
- How technology can make us feel more human, not less human
- The power of 1:1 video communication for your business, and how to use it at scale
- Time blocking versus triggered video communication processes
My favorite quote:
“I think it does make a big difference in the world and I think it makes a big world much smaller when we feel like we know more of the people we’re interacting with.”
Listen here.
Leadership & Employee Experience
EPISODE 3: THE MAGIC BEHIND THE DISNEY EXPERIENCE WITH DENNIS SNOW
About Dennis:
During his twenty years with Disney, Dennis worked his way up from a front-line attractions operator to founder of the Disney Institute, the internal firm that consulted for organizations like ExxonMobil, AT&T, and Coca-Cola. Now, he’s a full-time speaker and author who trains businesses large and small on how to run world-class, service-driven organizations.
Episode Highlights:
- Dennis shares what the training is like for Disney employees
- A simple way to reframe your interview questions to get a better understanding of a candidate’s skillset
- The parallels between customer feedback and employee feedback and how to overcome internal resistance
My favorite quote:
“What are three things that you want your customers to say about their experience? When you get them to focus on three or four things, that gets them really thinking about what they want their differentiator to be…Now, what has to happen in order for people to say those things about you? Now we’re getting into the behavioral side of things.”
Listen here.
EPISODE 12: CREATING THE BUSINESS AND LIFESTYLE OF YOUR DREAMS WITH AMY PORTERFIELD
About Amy:
Amy is an ex-corporate employee turned online marketing expert and CEO of her own multimillion-dollar business. She’s the creator of several best-selling marketing courses, the host of the top-rated Online Marketing Made Easy podcast, and the author of the brand new book, Two Weeks Notice: Find the Courage to Quit Your Job, Make More Money, Work Where You Want, and Change the World.
Episode highlights:
- Amy’s genius concept of “tiger time”
- What it was like for Amy when she made the leap and left her job with Tony Robbins
- The “sweet spot test” and how it helps you identify your starter business.
My favorite quote:
“You do not need confidence to get started. In fact, there’s no confidence to be found. So confidence is, ‘I’ve done this thing and I’ve done it fairly well. So I see a little track record here, so I’m gonna do more of it. I’ve got confidence because I know that this is working out.’ Courage is, ‘I’ve never done this before. I don’t know if it’s gonna work out, but I’m willing to take a leap of faith because I want it bad enough.’”
Listen here.
EPISODE 21: WORKPLACE CULTURE AND AFFILIATE MARKETING TIPS WITH LAURA CASSELMAN
About Laura:
From broadway to boardroom, Laura is a former professional dancer turned CEO of JVZoo and co-founder of Vidastreet. She’s also the author of the new book, Trust Your Increments: How Small, Consistent Steps Can Lead to Massive Success.
Episode highlights:
- Laura’s background in entertainment and how she ended up in a C-Suite executive role
- The many sexist interactions that Laura faced as a successful female in business
- The standards that Laura has set at JVZoo that she’d like to see across the board
My favorite quote:
“We believe we have fun where we can have fun. But fun means it’s fun for everyone. So if one person’s version of fun hurts someone else, then it’s actually not fun and it doesn’t belong here.”
Listen here.
Bonus
Check out Episode 7 for a behind-the-scenes look at the process of writing my first book, Creating Superfans. Listen here.
Episode 11 is a deep dive into the best and worst commercials during the Super Bowl. Listen here.
Stay tuned for news and updates on season 2!
