“Customers expect a lot more.” Luxury Escapes CCO Jason Shugg works in one of the world’s most competitive verticals. That’s why we thought he’d be the perfect person to talk to about customer experience.
Jason shares how they were able to pivot in early 2020 when COVID-19 very quickly impacted the travel industry and how they used technology to deliver a better customer experience.
What is a chief customer officer?
o Not sure there is a reg day-to-day
o Role creates a lot of demand
o Most work is done internally
o For Australian and international business
o A lot of digital marketing & partnership to grow
o Focus on the long-term as well as short term
o Short-term performance and long-term strat
Do you see CX and marketing as being more connected now?
o CX and marketing have lots of crossovers
o Marketing and CX sit next to each other
o CX connect 1:1, marketing 1:many
o Teams have worked very well together
o Customer is most important
Adapting to COVID-19: 5:25 – 8:08
Are consumers nervous about booking travel?
o Less nervous
o Lockdowns impact bookings for about 48 hours
o Consumers are more confident about getting out of bookings
Work from home has meant extended longer stays? 10:28
Why is Luxury Escapes a tech versus travel company? 10:40–12:50
o We’re both
o It’s a largely digital business
o It’s disrupted the travel industry
o Strong tech offering is primary platform
o Customer service needs to be seamless
o Our deals are handcrafted
• Industry has had to pivot to meet consumer demands 12:50¬¬–14:50
o Consumers expect more these days
o Customer experiences are more digital now
o LE want to become a one-stop travel shop
o Contact centre is still important
o Some OTAs you can’t talk to humans – LE are different
What makes Luxury Escapes different? All-round travel experience?
o LE want to make planning, organising and booking easier – better UX
o Customer-centric
Driving customer-centric culture in an organisation? How did they get voted Australia’s coolest place to work?
o You need to love and believe in travel
o Culture is founder-led
o Founder is passionate about customers
o Two company values:
Never screw a customer
Always do what’s right
o We celebrate wins, successes
o Take notes from customer feedback
How do you celebrate the wins? –18:03
o Have a meeting every month where we focus on big initiatives
o Use an NPS for getting customer feedback
o You can see the difference you make – you create amazing experiences
Many more businesses use NPS questions now. When is the right time to ask NPS questions, and how do they integrate it in? 18:03–20:27
o Score is just an outcome of comments
o You need a reason, not just a number
o Three levels of scores
Omnibus at brand level
Post-call for contact centre
Post-holiday, sent via email?
o NPS and CSAT have held up over COVID
How are you managing online reviews, and is it important for business growth? 20:27–22:12
o Founder is very passionate about reviews
o Have multiple people working full-time on reviews
o Want to help upset customers as soon as possible
How important is repeat business for LE? How many touchpoints do they have with a customer? 22:12–23:44
o Repeat customers are important
o Repeat customers are the ultimate indicator of success
o Invested in product during COVID
o Making every destination available for better repeat custom
How are LE going over and above to delight their customers?
o Group called the Platinum Club
o Invite-only free club
o They have their own team
o More insights, special offers, early deals
o Any Aussie who’s started their vaccine, can get a $200 voucher for when travel comes back
o Refer a friend program
o The core of it is listening to customers, undertsnaidng their feedback
What mistakes have you learned from? –27:13
o Going too slow, taking something for granted, not understanding well enough
o At the start of COVID, didn’t understand how to help customers at scale
o Focus on meeting customer problems when they arise
Is it predominantly a price point deal? 27:13–29:01
o More value than price
o Platinum buy a deal and then fly business class
o It’s the whole experience
o Want people to feel special, pampered, and talk about the little extras
o Extras = better memories
What’s your advice for a business to become more customer-centric?
o We’re practical and accountable
o We want to understand our mistakes and correct them
o Many businesses don’t implement customer feedback
o We try and understand customer pain points
How do you plan ahead now in business? 30:35
o Difficult to do in travel
o Strategy changes and evolves
o We don’t use big plans or external consultants
Connect with Jason:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/jason-shugg-6677523/
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