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Plenty of\u00a0marketing, HR, and technology\u00a0leaders have made astounding improvements in the experiences they create for customers.","datePublished":"2019-08-19","dateModified":"2020-11-06","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/contributor\/jeannie-walters\/#Person","name":"Jeannie Walters","url":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/contributor\/jeannie-walters\/","identifier":350,"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/65cb991d4ea0fed85125462b7a935b0afbaff965c0035a713c981a3bff7c81b8?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/65cb991d4ea0fed85125462b7a935b0afbaff965c0035a713c981a3bff7c81b8?s=96&d=mm&r=g","height":96,"width":96}},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"The Future of Commerce","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/logo-foc-schema-app-1.png","url":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/logo-foc-schema-app-1.png","width":172,"height":60}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/thumbnail-8462ba6851afc68e01ea1c8233af0a5c.jpeg","url":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/thumbnail-8462ba6851afc68e01ea1c8233af0a5c.jpeg","height":375,"width":1200},"url":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2019\/08\/19\/5-ways-to-become-a-customer-experience-leader\/","video":{"@context":"http:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"VideoObject","@id":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=Y3qg6P3grWk#VideoObject","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=Y3qg6P3grWk","name":"Meaningful Micro-engagements : Jeannie Walters at TEDxNaperville","description":"Micro engagements in society actually have enormous impacts on us all. 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We’ve got the answers.There’s a really exciting change happening – organizations across a wide range of industries are creating positions like Chief Customer Officer and Customer Experience Executive. They’ve realized the importance of investing in the overall experience of customers, and that doing so generates phenomenal business results.We have only just begun the customer experience revolution, and yet, many people have decided to\u00a0become experts! That’s great – organizations need customer experience leaders who know how to put customers first to deliver great experiences.These leaders can certainly be the ones with the fancy titles like CXO or CCO, or they can be someone with a totally unrelated title, but a passion for making things great. I’ve seen plenty of\u00a0marketing, HR, and technology\u00a0leaders who have made astounding improvements in the experiences they create for customers.Customer-focused organizations smoke the competitionCompanies considered customer experience leaders outperformed their competitors by a whopping 128% compared to companies identified as customer experience laggards by Forrester, according to Watermark Consulting for a five-year return.There are plenty of reasons to make your customer experience a priority. There are even more reasons to want to be a leader at the forefront of this movement! If you and your organization can master customer experience, you can make a significant difference in your customers’ lives – and your bottom line.But how can YOU become a customer experience leader?How can you be the leader you want to be in the fast-paced and changing business world?If you really want to be a true champion in your customer experience role, it takes resolve and determination, not to mention some\u00a0education. Passion is a start, but information and knowledge will help you get a lot farther.Here are five ways you can educate and empower yourself to be the customer experience leader you want to be:1. Catch up on your reading.There are now zillions of books (that’s a lot) focusing on customer experience. Some are better than others, but there are a few I think are required reading. Here’s a shortlist of some of my favorites:The Power of Moments\u00a0by Chip and Dan Heath: a great exploration on why the moments of truth matterChief Customer Officer 2.0\u00a0by Jeanne Bliss: a classic for any CX leader, written by one of the original Chief Customer Officers and updated for today\u2019s worldExcellence Wins: A No-Nonsense Guide to Becoming the Best in a World of Compromise\u00a0by Horst Schulze: You want to know why the Ritz-Carlton is the best in the world at service? This book has the story.2. Be observant.This seems so obvious, but to master customer experience you must really\u00a0start paying attention to the experiences you have as a customer. What made the experience great or infuriating? What could have worked better?Start taking note of these observations and pay attention to how events or situations made you feel as a customer. Then turn the lens around and consider WHY a company might be organized that way. Start considering ways to improve that scenario. You’ll get tons of ideas!Observing is what led me to speak about\u00a0micro-moments\u00a0\u2013 those small, often overlooked moments that matter. It’s amazing what you can learn by watching carefully.3. Join us!There are plenty of groups on LinkedIn focused on customer experience.While there are many general CX groups out there,\u00a0the ones I find most interesting are the industry-specific groups.\u00a0If you are trying to become a customer-centric leader at a bank, that can be very different from an independent bookstore. Try finding your industry first — the results can really inspire you.4. Stay current.I love blogs because they tackle topics in a timely way. Our blog at\u00a0Experience Investigators is, of course, a good place to start, but I also follow blogs focused on retail, metrics, customer service, and more.5. Get certified.If you really want to master customer experience, then the\u00a0Customer Experience Professionals Association\u00a0is the place for you.This community of CX pros from around the globe provides tons of resources, educational opportunities, conferences, and more. There is now a special certification for people who know their stuff well enough to test it.The Certified Customer Experience Professional (CCXP) certification process\u00a0involves a test covering many areas of customer experience and then committing to continuing education. It’s a really great step forward in this evolving world.Not quite ready for such a commitment? Check out some courses on LinkedIn Learning. Each is under an hour total and can give you a quick advantage and help make you a customer experience leader:Customer Service BlueprintingCustomer Experience: Journey MappingCreating a Positive Customer ExperienceWhether or not your title says it, your leadership is needed! Take a minute to dive in and keep learning.During uncertain times, what makes a great CX?Join experts as they discuss.This post first appeared on LinkedIn, and is syndicated here with permission.\u00a0"},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"2019","item":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2019\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"08","item":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2019\/\/08\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"19","item":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2019\/\/08\/\/19\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":4,"name":"Become a customer experience leader: 5 ways to master CX","item":"https:\/\/www.the-future-of-commerce.com\/2019\/08\/19\/5-ways-to-become-a-customer-experience-leader\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]