Subject To Change: Creating Great Products & Services for an Uncertain World

Four Steps to Your Long "Wow!"

The art of the Long "Wow!" is finding and managing a system that fosters a deeper relationship with customers. Here's how it's done:

1. Know your platform for delivery. Recognize the palette of touchpoints that you can combine to deliver "Wow!" experiences. Select a small set of touchpoints across channels that can a) be coordinated to demonstrate your capability to meet a customer's needs, and b) be remixed to deliver new solutions to customers as you define them.

   The Nike + iPod Sports Kit combines a pedometer, iPod, and web site to deliver an entirely new running experience that includes spoken feedback on your run, one-button access to "power songs," and the ability to visualize recent runs. You can easily imagine the delivery of future "Wow!" experiences with this set of touchpoints, such as the selection of songs based on your running pace.

2. Tackle a wide area of unmet customer needs. Find an area of the customer experience that your organization is passionate about, and has a competitive advantage in understanding or delivering on. It should be an area big enough that you can return to it repeatedly for new insights and opportunities. This is an opportunity to identify some new green space or to re-invent an old space long overlooked by everyone else.

   OXO wasn't scared away from kitchen tools just because these items had looked and functioned the same way for decades. Instead, they passionately believed that kitchen tools should work for everyone—including ...