Budd Feed

Book 2 – how does Best Service Is No Service develop?

2013-05-15T22:53:36Z

It’s an open secret that colleagues Bill Price (US) and David Jaffe (Aus) have been preparing “book 2″. Over the last 6 months Bill has presented some aspects of the work in progress under a working title of “Back to the Customer Future” based on extensive interviews and research in several countries. Last week at [...]

Stop Doing Dumb Things Unconference #SDDT3

2013-05-13T13:07:09Z

Seems like yesterday I was at the Planning Forum’s annual conference, now a major event with 600 people, 3 streams and a frustration of great things you have to miss when you’re presenting! In fact it was the week before but many things are still fresh in the mind. If you were there – what’s [...]

Amazon, then and now: what’s the not-so-secret secret?

2013-04-13T22:17:31Z

I make no apologies for printing this Amazon shareholder communication in full. It’s rich in its simplicity on short v long term decision making and its investment in customers ahead of any need to do so. And fascinating to see the consistency with the 1997 communication shown below it. To our shareowners: As regular readers [...]

Customer effort – even after you’ve left

2013-04-10T22:01:04Z

I got a letter in the post this morning from a windscreen company. It politely told me that Admiral had refused to pay them because they (Admiral) said my insurance cover didn’t cover windscreens. So a first – asking me the customer to solve the payment problem between two businesses. Given the company had been [...]

We haven’t cut you off…again

2013-04-10T22:01:04Z

In a postscript to the last blog, I went away to Croatia the week after Easter. After a few days I thought my phone was quiet and checked – it wasn’t working. Same story as New Orleans but without the warning texts saying it was going to happen. Borrowed phone and at least this time [...]

We haven’t cut you off……

2013-03-19T21:06:28Z

Nice dumb things story from 3 today. I’m in New Orleans at our 20th LimeBridge gathering. Very pleasant I’ve got to say. Someone asked me this morning if it was business or pleasure. Sharing latest practices with 70 degrees and live music on the side? Gotta be both! I was walking to the lift when [...]

Multichannel – not so simples

2013-02-28T16:22:04Z

Great example here of typical multichannel in a vacuum – flybe with their new onphone check in (ah but read the end bit…..it involves 3 too) Announcements on the plane to tell you can use it next time you book online Default option in online booking ( that’s a whole other story of just web [...]

The survey is the experience

2013-01-21T22:57:55Z

I was struck by two examples of customer experience surveys today. I don’t answer them anymore. Even professionally interested, it’s just an endless stream of requests – too much effort for anyone. One was from Southern Water and “4Delivery Ltd”. Apparently they’ve been upgrading a sewage works some half a mile away. They are thanking [...]

The insurance saga, part n….

2013-01-21T20:05:15Z

I can sense you falling asleep already…. but couldnt leave the story unfinished. Just going back to the proof of no claims discounts from Admiral (NCD). I’ve been away for a few days and come back to a pile of post – ah it must be those NCDs. Doh – 5 separate envelopes! But on [...]

How tiny inconsistencies cause customer effort and business cost

2013-01-20T16:26:25Z

So having bought from Axa last week, how’s it going? Of course first thing you have to do is confirm to them the no claims discount (NCD)- see requests to Admiral in the last but one blog “We appreciate your call”. Recap: they say they can only do by post, not email. They email them. [...]

Outsourcing the work to the customer – and it feels like it

2013-01-17T00:52:15Z

So just to complete the renewal of insurance – who did get the business then? I had little time this week and a deadline. So late at night online only. I was determined to try and buy from Direct Line but couldn’t. I’d got the saved quotes – each car separately. The new scheme meant [...]

We appreciate your call

2013-01-10T19:01:36Z

The Admiral saga continues…..I just had a call from Caroline Chalmers, Swansea renewal office who had picked up on the experience and the blog I”m not sure we communicated 2 way but at least they’re trying. I’m not sure but it sounds like the feedback goes into … well, I should have asked specifics but she’s [...]

Renewals again

2013-01-10T03:18:50Z

Mid way into my car insurance renewals – just a quick update so far, I’ll do a bigger write up when time allows. 2 typical customer journey problems and 1 specific problem. 1) Insurer X advertised multi car policies on its front page ( and it has changed it since Monday). There was no online [...]

Dear Insurance Industry

2013-01-06T14:13:00Z

It’s January and, in my case, it’s that time for insurance renewals. I wonder if it’s got any better in the past few years? The next few days will tell. But the first steps say ….well yes and no. Multitrip travel insurance, sent me one self explanatory email, priced reasonably, I did nothing. Perfect. RH Insurance [...]

How to transform your customer experience in your current budget

2012-11-20T00:00:00Z

This white paper has been produced for the Call Centre Helper webinar of the same name, sponsored by NewVoiceMedia.

We share your pain

2012-12-23T07:19:30Z

I love this in house Microsoft video on getting engineers to share the pain – WSYP – oh that it were true, then the software would have been fixed. It’s such a laugh and MS branding people could get a long way by acknowledging the reputation of laptops…. let alone the engineers by addressing the [...]

Built to jump to conclusions

2012-12-23T07:19:30Z

Still working hard through Kahneman’s Thinking, Fast and Slow. I’m enjoying all the revelations about the way we think as humans. Most of all I’m excited about solving a puzzle that I challenged myself to a few years ago: Why do people resist change? But more on that another time. I think he’s making the [...]

Sales bonus schemes are old hat – you need a leaky bucket

2012-12-23T07:19:30Z

I came across a good article talking about eMetrics via Smart Insights always a good source on real e-stuff rather than hype. Apparently there’s a whole event for it. Talking of hype, it has a Gartner graph on hype over ‘big data’ technologies – quite an interesting list. The article is written by someone I [...]

Is marketing dead? Yes – at least as we knew it

2012-12-23T07:19:30Z

Having a great time at a conference for my French colleagues in Paris today – & thanks for the upgrade and great service at Intercontinental Paris Le Grand. I was asked to give an international perspective on the “new customer” – in fact it’s interesting how transnational the customer is in their behaviours. As indeed are [...]

Measuring national well-being in the UK

2012-12-23T07:19:30Z

I like the original idea at Cabinet Office that there was a link between the feeling of well-being and GDP. The collection of data must be costing a good few bobbies on the beat’s wages so let’s hope there’s something to it. But to be useful one must research the drivers of well-being, not just [...]