CHAPTER 10

THE PERFECT
LAST TOUCHPOINT MOMENT

Although I am a management consultant, I also speak at dozens of major events around the world each year. In an effort to deliver better talks, I hired a top speaking coach. I know the value of hiring an expert, because that’s why people hire me.

The coach was wonderful. To my surprise, what she taught me about delivering a great speech turned out to be one of the most important things organizations can do to deliver a great human experience. What’s more, it has everything to do with delivering an exceptional last touchpoint. As she put it, always leave your audience wanting more!

TO GET A STANDING OVATION,
ENGAGE YOUR CUSTOMER

You’ve probably watched amazing TED talks online. These talks are conversational and engaging, and the speakers convey authenticity. In the past, giving speeches meant delivering information to an audience. But today, as my speaking coach explained to me, it’s really about connecting to your audience by way of an authentic dialogue. Exceptional communicators aren’t talking at their audience; they engage their audience in an emotional journey even when they are giving a speech. They might ask questions and walk among the audience, or they may do it simply by the way they address them—through the absorbing and relevant content they provide as well as with their mannerisms. Most important, exceptional communicators connect with the audience emotionally; they don’t just dump ideas. Poor speakers give talks. Good speakers take their audience on a journey. Good speakers may appear vulnerable and may even look stupid; in other words, good speakers are authentic.

TED talks are also fairly short, often only about eighteen minutes. On the other hand, professional speakers like me are often asked to speak for an hour to an hour and a half, which can feel like an eternity to the both speaker and the listener. Listening to a speaker is much like eating chocolate cake: One piece is delicious, but if you eat the entire cake, you may feel sick.

So the problem my coach and I had to solve was how I could drive the same level of TED engagement over a much longer amount of time and still leave the audience wanting more. The answer: Tell them a great story that begins and ends powerfully.

And that’s exactly what you need to do to engage your customers. Give them a powerful start and leave them with a memorable ending.

Keep Your Message Running:
Start Strong, End Strong

Often, even professional speakers run out of passion or message before they run out of time. This usually results in a weak and squishy ending. Unfortunately, that ending—that last touchpoint—is what the audience remembers forever.

The same is true of your business. It’s extremely important that you don’t run out of energy or muddy your message toward the end of the customer experience. Most organizations focus on the front end, especially the core experience, but ignore the last-touch—at their peril. Not only is it incredibly important that your customer experience be continuous, consistent, and enticing at all touchpoints, but at the end there’s also a huge opportunity to maintain and strengthen your relationship.

Some of my speeches are on the future of the healthcare business. Not long ago, I gave a talk to one of the world’s top pharmaceutical companies. The people who hired me asked me to motivate a large group of executives who were deeply depressed and pessimistic about changes in the industry. Based on what I’d learned from my coach, I knew that to engage this cynical audience, I needed to do something powerful right out of the starting gate, and I had to finish strong.

I began my talk by asking them, “What’s your emoji?” As you know, emoji is the Japanese word for “picture character.” We use this word to represent images such as smiley faces, often in text messages to convey an emotion.

I had purchased two-dozen smiley face balls, which I threw into the audience at the beginning of my talk. Whoever caught a ball had to tell me their opinion of the future of healthcare. While this made them uncomfortable, it definitely engaged the audience.

As various executives described their often-negative view of the future of healthcare, they were actually setting me up for a talk they would love and remember. After they responded, I provided statistics showing that they weren’t alone in their analysis, since most executives in the healthcare industry also believed the future was grim.

Next, I introduced case examples and statistics demonstrating that the industry’s future was actually surprisingly good; it was full of potential and offered attractive economic opportunities. I used amusing examples from other industries that had gone through similar changes only to reemerge stronger and more prosperous.

By the end of the presentation and at their final touchpoint, the audience members were excited and saw opportunities they had never before envisioned. I left them laughing and feeling better. I was certain they would remember those smiley face balls and that they had taken away a new way of looking at the future of healthcare. In fact, I heard that weeks later, some attendees were still talking about the talk. They hadn’t just reframed their outlook on the healthcare industry; they had reexamined their worldview, and it affected what they did every day. I made a big impact because I presented the talk in a way that was memorable. And that’s what you want to do with the customer experiences you create. You want to touch and engage the customer.

Standing ovation—!

WORK IT! KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE

My success as a speaker comes from my willingness to invest an insane amount of time in understanding the unique and special needs—the loves and hates—of my audience. As the smiley face example demonstrates, I also innovate and take risks by presenting ideas in ways my audience hasn’t seen or thought of before. No doubt they’d never been bombarded by smiley face balls at any other talks they attended!

That talk was a success because I had gone the extra mile to understand their issues and was able to show them a positive way forward. My vernacular and tone of voice were consistent with my audience’s expectations, and at the same time, I delivered on the event organizer’s strategy.

Most important, I left my audience wanting more. I didn’t run out of energy or powerful content before I ran out of time, and that is the secret of the last touchpoint. Even though your customer has bought into your product, service, or idea, you are not finished. You must continue to provide exceptional service until the very end or your customers will leave with a bad taste and memory. In fact, as you’ll see in Chapter 11, their exceptional experience must continue past the point of disengagement.

EMOTIONAL, INTELLIGENT, AND—
MOST IMPORTANT—MEMORABLE

Last fall, the worst thing I could imagine happening actually happened. My oldest daughter—whom I love deeply and enjoy living with—left to go to college in San Diego. If you’re a parent, then you know how devastating that event can be.

My daughter has always been a joy to be around, and leaving my first baby at school was so much harder than I ever thought it could be. Of course, my wife and I knew that this was what was right for her, but it was still hard. We took her to San Diego and spent some days settling her into her dorm room. I realized this was an important moment for her (as well as for us—in our lives as parents), and I wanted to create a very special last touchpoint. We decided to drive to the beach at sunset to commemorate the occasion. We asked a passerby to take pictures of us looking out into the sunset with our hands raised in celebration (Figure 10-1).

Figure 10-1 My daughter and me in a perfect last-touch moment.

That moment of holding my daughter and raising our arms to the sky as we punctuated an important part of our lives together is unforgettable. I believe we will remember that moment forever. And as business leaders, just as for parents, we need to architect journeys for our customers that are special at each and every touchpoint. Do the last touchpoint well and they will remember it forever.

HOW TO GET THE LAST-TOUCH RIGHT

The next time you buy something, watch for that last touchpoint. Is it being done beautifully? You’ll know because you want to come back for more. You feel great about yourself and your purchase. Or did the last touchpoint leave you feeling uncomfortable and with the desire to run away and never come back? If so, there’s a lesson there: Never do what they did. It’s that simple, that personal, and if you do it right, that much fun.

LAST TOUCHPOINTS:
LESSONS FROM THE BEST IN THE BUSINESS

The design of your last touchpoint depends on your business, culture, and goals. So, while I can’t tell you specifically what to do, I can show you what some extremely successful companies do to manufacture exquisite and relevant last touchpoints.

Burrito Bandito Gets It Right

In practical terms, last touchpoints are digital, non-digital, or in some cases both. Burrito Bandito is a regional California restaurant that delivers great customer experiences across all touchpoints, and the last touchpoint is no different.

When you pay for your burrito and request an email receipt, the people at Burrito Bandito also send an email thanking you for giving them the opportunity to serve you. Included is a simple questionnaire asking for recommendations on how they can serve you better. They have blended the physical last touchpoint (paying for and receiving your burrito) with a digital last touchpoint that allows them to continually get better while propagating their desire to authentically serve you.

So while last touchpoints don’t need to be complex or costly, they do need to be relevant, friendly, and authentic.

Nordstrom’s Finesse:
High Touch, High Quality

Nordstrom, one of the world’s best department stores, provides a great example of delivering meaningful and potent last-touches. The methods used are subtle but powerful. For example, Nordstrom was one of the first companies to have its check-out attendants walk around the counter to personally hand you your shopping bag. Seems like a simple thing, but this gesture has a strong emotional impact.

From a core experience perspective, Nordstrom also provides personal shoppers to take the pain out of finding the perfect suit or dress. The personal shoppers are true professionals; actually, they are more like stylists. For example, they not only know the latest in men’s suits, but they also know the right shoes, ties, and pocket squares to go with the suits. They’re not pitching to make a sale; they are providing a free consultation service worth hundreds of dollars within the core customer experience.

The exclamation point on the exceptional core experience is the personal last-touch of being handed your shopping bag. If you’ve experienced this, it’s as if your friend handed you your bag before you go. All of Nordstrom’s touchpoints lead to shopping in a high-touch, high-quality way.

Starbucks Knows Your Name

When you order your customized drink du jour at Starbucks, you are not given a number. Instead, you are quite intentionally asked for your name. Seems like a pretty small thing, but as we have learned, it’s the subtleties in human connection that drive amazing human experiences.

The last touchpoint at Starbucks is hearing someone say the most beautiful words in the universe: your name. Studies show that the engagement power of even strangers using your name is incredible, and Starbucks leaves you with this personal connection as an unbelievably powerful last touchpoint.

The Amazing Amazon

Amazon is one of my favorite companies because it knows how to deliver the perfect digital experience. Often when I make a purchase, Amazon suggests other relevant products, some of which are even cheaper.

You could argue that this last touchpoint is an upsell (although if it is, why are they offering lower priced items?). But in fact, Amazon wants the customer to have a memorable digital experience, one that delivers proven value. This is one of the thousands of things that Amazon does extremely well.

Southwest Airlines Leaves Them Laughing

The most appropriate way to describe air travel today is that even at its best, it is extremely painful. I travel hundreds of thousands of miles by air each year, and often I fly Southwest Airlines. The company’s CEO is famous for saying that Southwest is a customer experience company that happens to fly planes. Quite true.

One of the last touchpoints at Southwest is after the airplane lands and begins to taxi to the Jetway. At this point, the captain often comes on the PA system and says something like, “Ladies and gentlemen, we have just landed ten minutes ahead of schedule, and I will have you at the gate shortly. We know you have many options when traveling, and from the captain’s chair I would like to offer up my sincerest thanks for choosing Southwest Airlines.” More often than not, the announcement is followed by a witty or funny comment from the flight crew that leaves you in a really good mood. They might crack a joke or even sing; one flight attendant actually got the passengers involved when he rapped the entire pre-takeoff message and got them to clap along to the beat.

Tile Man Creates a Customer for Life

I recently hired a contractor to lay tile in my home. He was pleasant and professional and delivered on his promise throughout, but what he did at the end surprised me. When everything was cleaned up and the floor looked fabulous, he asked me if I could sit down for a moment. When I did, this is what he said:

Mr. Webb, I’m a small contractor, and the opportunity to do this kind of work is an honor for me, and I just want to let you know that I appreciate the opportunity to do this work for you. If I can ever be of service to you in any way in the future, it would be a genuine honor.

He said this with 100 percent sincerity. It wasn’t robotic, and he most certainly wasn’t faking it. In fact, during his presentation he pulled out his wallet and showed me a picture of his family. We have low expectations for the customer service in this type of work. He wasn’t selling a luxury car—he was laying tile. So it really stood out when he showed this exceptional service and touchpoint moment. He made me not just his customer but his advocate. At every opportunity, I recommend him to friends, family, and acquaintances.

What does your last touchpoint look like?

A TOUCHPOINT FROM HELL

I’ve broken down the touchpoints into manageable bite-size moments so that you can use them as guides to create exceptional experiences. As you have seen, customer experiences are not just a single isolated event but rather a series of events that all have to be perfect. Unfortunately, the last-touch moment is often the most neglected; as a consequence, the result can be terrible.

Five Words That Forever Lost a Customer:
“Your Clothes Are Too Heavy”

A few years back, we purchased a new home. Because I do a lot of speaking and meeting with clients, I have more than the usual number of suits, so we asked the builder to add a rotating rack to the bedroom closet to accommodate them. The first night in our home, we were sound asleep when we heard a terrifying crash that came from our bedroom closet. We were shocked to see that the entire rack had collapsed. I contacted the builder the next morning, and the closet subcontractor met me to review the damage. He was extremely talented and friendly and quickly repaired the closet.

When he was done, he called me over to show me the repair so I could sign off on it. So far, so good. But then his last-touch was the kiss of death. “Just so you know,” he said, “this wasn’t my fault. Your clothes are too heavy.” If only he had kept his mouth shut, he might still be in business today. He’s not; apparently, I wasn’t the only one he mouthed off to.

Thank You for Shopping with Us:
How Can I Make You Hate Me?

One of the largest retailers in the country has a well-defined program that encourages cashiers to upsell an extended warranty. Such warranties are extremely profitable for retailers yet rarely deliver value to customers. In fact, if you Google certain retailers’ names and add the phrase “extended warranty rip-off,” you find thousands of derogatory customer comments verifying that most of the time the warranties are not worth the money.

This short-term gain for long-term pain has become institutionalized in many organizations. Yet treating your customer—who has honored you with their purchase—to a sales pitch to buy something you know does not offer real value is a perfect example of how organizations become extinct. This behavior is not limited to extended warranties. It might be pressuring customers at checkout to sign up for credit cards and other things they simply don’t want. To paraphrase the old TV show Kung Fu, before you decide to do this, “Choose wisely, Grasshopper.”

Like most touchpoints, the last-touch can be subtle, but it is incredibly powerful as we architect a continuous journey of memorable moments. Think of your last-touch as a way to prove to your customers that you love and cherish the relationship. Surprise them with something terrific, and most important, dig deep and eliminate anything that might be seen as punitive. Last-touch moments are the most ignored touchpoints; yet as we’ve seen, they can be the most important.

As you hold brainstorming sessions around the various touchpoint moments, you will become extremely good at finding enjoyable and exciting ways to please your customers. You will also become more granular as you search for the subtle ways that the sounds, smells, visuals, and other impressions can permanently affect the way in which your customers view your product or service. Great organizations like Disney always look for ways to make their experiences across the entire customer journey ten times better than what the customer expected.

This is actually enjoyable work, so lean into it. Cocreate these experiences with your stakeholders so they can feel a sense of ownership. If you do, the financial benefits can be massive, the quality of your work life escalates, and you bulletproof your business from the competition.