In my last post, I mentioned that Adam, who writes a great blog called Work*Play*Experience asked, "Where can we find your full 8 steps, Stephanie?"
I'd been waiting to discuss them in detail until my new Web site was up. Here's the link to my 8 steps, with a slide show to illustrate them.
The first four steps are:
1. Invitation
2. Welcome
3. Orientation
4. Comfort
These four steps prime your customer (visitor, patient, or guest) to be receptive to your message, buy your products, or engage in your offerings. Let's look at steps 5-8.
5. Communication: All the ways you share information with people, both spoken and written. I recommend that you set a tone and voice for your communication that matches your organization/company's brand personality. Setting guidelines for signs, flyers, and handouts, as well as telephone scripts for training, are key ways to help clarify and coordinate the information you are giving out. See Gettin' fishey wid it on voice, and this post on printed communication.
6. Sensation: Sensation includes designing experiences that provide stimulus for all five senses, utilizing surprise and randomness, and generally having fun at the workplace. When planning new elements, ask "Is it fun?", Is it unexpected?", and "How can we add more senses to this experience?" See this post on Cheez-Wiz and the power of persuasion, and this one on the Cerritos Library.
7. Common sense: After years of working at a variety of businesses, both for- and nonprofit, I have many times said (or heard), "Why did They do that?" So, I devoted an entire step to better, smarter business practices. This step includes using evaluation/customer research to get constant feedback to improve your offerings, tapping into trend research, partnering with other businesses, using front-line staff members' ideas, and making sure you are working smart with operational, cultural, and alignment common sense. My favorite trend watcher is Reinier Evers of Trendwatching. Sign up for his amazing monthly newsletter. See the Stall of Shame for some operational errors.
8. Finale: The name for this step was inspired by Joe Pine and Jim Gilmore's book, The Experience Economy, where they liken experience-based businesses to theater productions. Reading their book made me realize that we rarely think about our last impression or design the exit experience to be as good as the first. Do we invite them back, give them reason to return, or design mementos and memorabilia that will increase their attachment to our places?
Tip of the day: Whatever your business, your goal is to create an authentic experience that makes people want to return. If it's good enough, they'll tell their friends, giving you the most valuable form of advertising, word of mouth. Improving your communication, building in sensation, using common sense, and designing your finale will help you create seamless experiences that people want to repeat.
This process is the basis for my first book, Creating Great Visitor Experiences: A Guide for Museums, Parks, Zoos, Gardens, and Libraries. Chapter 1 is now available for free download. Let me know what you think!
Technorati Tags: customer experience, customer service, 8 step process, visitor experience, Cerritos Library, Pine and Gilmore, Experience Economy, Reinier Evers, trendwatching.com, word-of-mouth advertising
Showing posts with label Cerritos Library. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Cerritos Library. Show all posts
8 steps to better experiences, part 1
Blogger Adam, who writes a great new blog called Work*Play*Experience asked,
"Where can we find your full 8 steps, Stephanie?"
Thanks for asking. I'd been waiting to discuss them in detail until my new Web site was up. Here's the link to my 8 steps, with a fun little slide show to illustrate them.
I took many forms of input (museum evaluation, learning research, consumer behavior studies, hospitality) and synthesized them into my 8-step process. It's certainly not the only way to look at experiences, but I'm finding with my clients that it's a helpful framework for breaking down an experience, whether at a doctor's office, a museum, a restaurant, a theater, or any bricks-and-mortar business. (I think the process can also work, with modification, on Web sites, but that's not my area of expertise. If you are a Web usability guru, feel free to chime in!)
1. Invitation: All the ways that you invite people to your place of business, including marketing, PR, advertising, print pieces, and your Web site. This gets a customer from their home to your parking lot. Your identity/logo and market segmentation fit into the process here. Have you clearly defined who you are trying to reach? See this post on Route 66.
2. Welcome: Once they've parked (or are walking or bicycling within a block), your front door or entrance needs to get their attention, set the stage, and welcome them in. This includes the first greeting, whether that's from someone sweeping out front, a security guard, or an official greeter or ticket-taker. Customer service training fits in here. If they don't receive a warm welcome, their first impression of your place of business is forever tarnished. See this post on Costco and this one on throwing an event.
3. Orientation: Once they've gotten inside and been greeted, do they know what to do? Can they find what they're looking for? Do they understand how long things will take and how much waiting there will be? All of these factors help people relax and feel psychologically comfortable and respected. This includes wayfinding sign systems, maps, and check-in procedures. For very small shops, orientation isn't as critical, but it always helps to offer an explanation to someone who looks confused. See more on orientation at the Cerritos Library.
4. Comfort: This step covers everything you can do to meet both physical and psychological comfort needs--seating, food, restrooms, cleanliness, good lighting, and safety features. This step primes your customers/visitors/patients to receive whatever information, services, or goods you want them to learn or buy. If people's basic needs aren't met, they can't attend to what you are trying to teach, sell, or provide. More on comfort here.
Tip of the day: Note that there are four steps before you pitch them on what you do. These four steps prime them to be receptive to your message.
To keep this post a reasonable length, I'll pick up the other four steps next time. They are:
5. Communication
6. Sensation
7. Common sense
8. Finale
This process is the basis for my first book, Creating Great Visitor Experiences: A Guide for Museums, Parks, Zoos, Gardens, and Libraries. Chapter 1 is now available for free download. Let me know what you think!
Technorati Tags: customer experience, customer service, 8 step process, visitor experience, Cerritos Library
"Where can we find your full 8 steps, Stephanie?"
Thanks for asking. I'd been waiting to discuss them in detail until my new Web site was up. Here's the link to my 8 steps, with a fun little slide show to illustrate them.
I took many forms of input (museum evaluation, learning research, consumer behavior studies, hospitality) and synthesized them into my 8-step process. It's certainly not the only way to look at experiences, but I'm finding with my clients that it's a helpful framework for breaking down an experience, whether at a doctor's office, a museum, a restaurant, a theater, or any bricks-and-mortar business. (I think the process can also work, with modification, on Web sites, but that's not my area of expertise. If you are a Web usability guru, feel free to chime in!)
1. Invitation: All the ways that you invite people to your place of business, including marketing, PR, advertising, print pieces, and your Web site. This gets a customer from their home to your parking lot. Your identity/logo and market segmentation fit into the process here. Have you clearly defined who you are trying to reach? See this post on Route 66.
2. Welcome: Once they've parked (or are walking or bicycling within a block), your front door or entrance needs to get their attention, set the stage, and welcome them in. This includes the first greeting, whether that's from someone sweeping out front, a security guard, or an official greeter or ticket-taker. Customer service training fits in here. If they don't receive a warm welcome, their first impression of your place of business is forever tarnished. See this post on Costco and this one on throwing an event.
3. Orientation: Once they've gotten inside and been greeted, do they know what to do? Can they find what they're looking for? Do they understand how long things will take and how much waiting there will be? All of these factors help people relax and feel psychologically comfortable and respected. This includes wayfinding sign systems, maps, and check-in procedures. For very small shops, orientation isn't as critical, but it always helps to offer an explanation to someone who looks confused. See more on orientation at the Cerritos Library.
4. Comfort: This step covers everything you can do to meet both physical and psychological comfort needs--seating, food, restrooms, cleanliness, good lighting, and safety features. This step primes your customers/visitors/patients to receive whatever information, services, or goods you want them to learn or buy. If people's basic needs aren't met, they can't attend to what you are trying to teach, sell, or provide. More on comfort here.
Tip of the day: Note that there are four steps before you pitch them on what you do. These four steps prime them to be receptive to your message.
To keep this post a reasonable length, I'll pick up the other four steps next time. They are:
5. Communication
6. Sensation
7. Common sense
8. Finale
This process is the basis for my first book, Creating Great Visitor Experiences: A Guide for Museums, Parks, Zoos, Gardens, and Libraries. Chapter 1 is now available for free download. Let me know what you think!
Technorati Tags: customer experience, customer service, 8 step process, visitor experience, Cerritos Library
An experience library, part 4
In previous posts, here and here, I introduced the Cerritos Library, the world's first experience library. Today I'm going to talk about Sensation, which is step 6 in my 8-step process of creating great experiences. (The steps are 1) Invitation, 2) Welcome, 3) Orientation, 4) Comfort, 5) Communication, 6) Sensation, 7) Common Sense, and 8) Finale.)
The Sensation step helps you remember to inspire and engage all five senses of your customers, offer whole body experiences, and create fun interactions. For more great ideas about sensory experiences, check out Martin Lindstrom's great book, Brand Sense. Here are some examples from the Cerritos Library.
In the Old World Reading Room, a holographic fireplace is fun to cozy up to with a book.
Kids enter the children's area through giant copies of classic titles.
Even the donor recognition wall is fun, made up of book titles.
If a library can be this fun, imagine how fun your business can be!
Tip of the day: Sensation is important in learning and memory, so if your site is educationally oriented, engaging all five senses is important. Customers who have fun on many levels will be more likely to want to return.
Technorati Tags: customer experience, user experience design, Cerritos Library
The Sensation step helps you remember to inspire and engage all five senses of your customers, offer whole body experiences, and create fun interactions. For more great ideas about sensory experiences, check out Martin Lindstrom's great book, Brand Sense. Here are some examples from the Cerritos Library.
In the Old World Reading Room, a holographic fireplace is fun to cozy up to with a book.
Kids enter the children's area through giant copies of classic titles.
Even the donor recognition wall is fun, made up of book titles.
If a library can be this fun, imagine how fun your business can be!
Tip of the day: Sensation is important in learning and memory, so if your site is educationally oriented, engaging all five senses is important. Customers who have fun on many levels will be more likely to want to return.
Technorati Tags: customer experience, user experience design, Cerritos Library
The experience library, part 3: Comfort
In previous posts, here and here, I wrote about the Cerritos Library. The library provides some great examples of my 8-step process for analyzing the customer experience. So far we've covered the invitation/welcome, and orientation.
Today I'll talk about Step 4: Comfort. If you don't make your customers/visitors/ patients/guests comfortable, they won't want to stay. They won't want to shop, or read, or learn, or tell their friends about you. Comfort is critically important for learning, so if yours is an educational site, it's especially important for you. In one early landmark study at a museum, learning increased by over 80% simply by adding chairs to an exhibit area. Studies at malls show that "stay time" increases by at least an hour with the addition of food service, while spending doubles.
Let's take a look at how Cerritos Library meets the comfort needs of its guests. (Cerritos has adopted the terminology from the hospitality industry, preferring "guests" to the old-fashioned "patrons.")
Computer workstations are mounted at different heights so everyone can be comfortable while searching the catalog. Note how this universal design also works for people using wheelchairs without setting them apart. Nice. And, how the cords have been treated in an artistic way.
Bathrooms are super clean and nicely furnished.
Themed seating offers comfortable spots to read and study.
To quote Paco Underhill, retail anthropologist and President of Envirosell:
“I love seating. I could talk about it all day. Air, food, water, shelter, seating. In that order. Before money. Before love. Seating."
"I would remove a display to make space for a chair. I’d rip out a fixture. I’d kill a mannequin. A chair says, ‘We care.’ Given the chance, people will buy from people who care.”
from Why We Buy: The Science of Shopping
Tip of the day: Take a look at your business. If it's not as comfortable as it can be, make a list of ways you can improve it. At the very least, add a chair or bench today.
Technorati Tags: customer experience, customer service, Paco Underhill, comfort, visitor experience, Cerritos Library
Today I'll talk about Step 4: Comfort. If you don't make your customers/visitors/ patients/guests comfortable, they won't want to stay. They won't want to shop, or read, or learn, or tell their friends about you. Comfort is critically important for learning, so if yours is an educational site, it's especially important for you. In one early landmark study at a museum, learning increased by over 80% simply by adding chairs to an exhibit area. Studies at malls show that "stay time" increases by at least an hour with the addition of food service, while spending doubles.
Let's take a look at how Cerritos Library meets the comfort needs of its guests. (Cerritos has adopted the terminology from the hospitality industry, preferring "guests" to the old-fashioned "patrons.")
Computer workstations are mounted at different heights so everyone can be comfortable while searching the catalog. Note how this universal design also works for people using wheelchairs without setting them apart. Nice. And, how the cords have been treated in an artistic way.
Bathrooms are super clean and nicely furnished.
Themed seating offers comfortable spots to read and study.
To quote Paco Underhill, retail anthropologist and President of Envirosell:
“I love seating. I could talk about it all day. Air, food, water, shelter, seating. In that order. Before money. Before love. Seating."
"I would remove a display to make space for a chair. I’d rip out a fixture. I’d kill a mannequin. A chair says, ‘We care.’ Given the chance, people will buy from people who care.”
from Why We Buy: The Science of Shopping
Tip of the day: Take a look at your business. If it's not as comfortable as it can be, make a list of ways you can improve it. At the very least, add a chair or bench today.
Technorati Tags: customer experience, customer service, Paco Underhill, comfort, visitor experience, Cerritos Library
An experience library, part 2
In part 1, I introduced the Cerritos Library, billed as the world's first experience library. The building, designed by Charles Walton and Associates, does a great job of welcoming people in. In this post I'll talk about orientation, which is Step 3 of my 8 steps to better customer experiences.
The wayfinding at the entrance is clear, clean, and easy to read.
Areas inside also have eye-catching signs that clearly tell customers what they are.
The checkout area was designed to mimic a hotel's registration desk.
In the children's library, "reference desk" is replaced by this neon sign.
Tip of the day: Wayfinding and orientation are critical components of a great customer experience. If people feel lost or confused, they won't want to return. Use an environmental graphic designer with experience in wayfinding if you need to do this kind of signage, and ask if they are a "user experience" designer. If they say yes, they'll want to test signs with your visitors (or customers, or patrons) to make sure they work. If they say no, or haven't heard of user experience design, keep looking.
Technorati Tags: customer experience, user experience design, Cerritos Library, wayfinding, environmental graphic design
The wayfinding at the entrance is clear, clean, and easy to read.
Areas inside also have eye-catching signs that clearly tell customers what they are.
The checkout area was designed to mimic a hotel's registration desk.
In the children's library, "reference desk" is replaced by this neon sign.
Tip of the day: Wayfinding and orientation are critical components of a great customer experience. If people feel lost or confused, they won't want to return. Use an environmental graphic designer with experience in wayfinding if you need to do this kind of signage, and ask if they are a "user experience" designer. If they say yes, they'll want to test signs with your visitors (or customers, or patrons) to make sure they work. If they say no, or haven't heard of user experience design, keep looking.
Technorati Tags: customer experience, user experience design, Cerritos Library, wayfinding, environmental graphic design
Meet an "experience" library, part 1
In 2002 Cerritos, California opened the first "experience" library. Pine and Gilmore, authors of The Experience Economy, gave this library an Expy Award for its amazing design. Let's take a look at some of its unique features.
The new portion of the building is clad in titanium, the first building in the U.S. to use this material. It shimmers in the light and changes color with the weather.
The building draws you in with welcoming features.
Several water features outside in the plaza invite touch and sensory play.
On hot days this programmed fountain is probably filled with kids.
A creative sculpture shaped like a book celebrates the history of Cerritos.
Tip of the day: The staff and designers wanted to create the library of the future. When planning, they didn't look at libraries, they looked at other businesses that successfully did what they wanted to do, like theme parks, hotels, and cruise ships. Thinking outside their industry allowed them to create a successful new experience. For more on this trend towards experience-based business, download a free chapter of my new book.
Technorati Tags: customer experience, Pine and Gilmore, Cerritos Library, Experience Economy
The new portion of the building is clad in titanium, the first building in the U.S. to use this material. It shimmers in the light and changes color with the weather.
The building draws you in with welcoming features.
Several water features outside in the plaza invite touch and sensory play.
On hot days this programmed fountain is probably filled with kids.
A creative sculpture shaped like a book celebrates the history of Cerritos.
Tip of the day: The staff and designers wanted to create the library of the future. When planning, they didn't look at libraries, they looked at other businesses that successfully did what they wanted to do, like theme parks, hotels, and cruise ships. Thinking outside their industry allowed them to create a successful new experience. For more on this trend towards experience-based business, download a free chapter of my new book.
Technorati Tags: customer experience, Pine and Gilmore, Cerritos Library, Experience Economy
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