"OW"edFactor/WOWEDFactor Differentiation ScaleEvaluate your experience ... where does it lie?

  OR

 

1   2   3   4   5   6   7   8   9   10

"OW"ed                               WOWED

Congrats to OfficeMax for Celebrating Employee's WOWEDSighting

Amanda Kassabaum, OfficeMax Employee and WOWEDSighting Certificate Recipient,
Acknowledged by OfficeMax

Some background ...

WOWEDSighting: "Jane Doe" - Southwest Airlines"I have never felt so taken care of. I truly felt that this woman was my angel. I try to only fly Southwest now because they never fail me in their customer service and other airlines never fail me in not providing it."

Keziah Aaliyah WOWEDSighting: "Jane Doe" Southwest Airlines
Date of Sighting: circa 2007; Date of Submittal: 2/1/2011

WOWEDSighting Recipient, Keziah Aaliyah, Testimony: 

"Have you ever just had one of those days? Mine happened about 4 years ago and I still talk about it. I am a single mother and my daughter had just turned 2. We were flying to see my family for the Thanksgiving holiday in Utah, just after a... rough divorce. I left thinking I had just enough time to make it. On my way I noticed we were almost out of gas and needed to stop. Then traffic was horrible and the worst happened, my car got a flat. I landed out getting to the ticket counter 45 minutes before the flight was supposed to leave.

WOWEDFactor: Do We Have Something In Common With Cows?

OK, now what's this article about??  Bear (or cow) with me. 

In a 2009 study (published in the academic journal Anthrozoos), involving 516 dairy farmers in the UK, Dr. Catherine Douglas and Dr. Peter Rowlinson at Newcastle University found if cows were treated with a "personal touch" (an interaction), it increased their production (the amount of the transaction).

The average amount of milk produced by a cow over its annual 10 month lactation period is 13,198 pints. Those cows with names had an average higher milk yield of 454 pints!

1-800 "Shell, You Got a Problem!"

I get a great gig.  I'm brought down to Houston by Shell Oil Company to do some workshops for the folks who answer their 1-800 number.  I'm there as part of their "Experience the Difference  - You Make the Difference" customer service program.  The essence of the program: if customers are to "experience the difference," employees need to "make the difference."  Makes so much sense.
 
Let's just say the people who call into the Houston center aren't doing so to thank Shell for the great experience.  They're calling because something is wrong.  Their bill is wrong.  They received poor service.  The pricing is unfair. etc.  Essentially, when they call they're saying, "I'm about to drop your brand!"

Announcing Contest for "Best Southwest Airlines WOWEDSighting!"

Year end results for 2009 marked Southwest's 37th consecutive year of profitability. WOW.  Doubtful any other airline can claim this amazing record.

Here's my take.  In part, their success is because they're not in the same business as many of the others. Southwest is in the experience business, while the others are merely in the airline business.  Quite simply, if you've ever flown Southwest, I'd venture to say your airline "transaction" (you pay X amount for the airline to take you from point A to point B) morphed into an "interaction" very quickly.  They are the epitome of a WOWEDFactor organization: every crucial touch point along their cycle of service is designed to deliver an extraordinary customer service experience that adds significantly to the Southwest value proposition.