People need space. Taking in new ideas, concepts or information requires the brain to not only receive, but also to process. And process requires space.

When it comes to creating events or conferences, attendees need a little bit of time and (dare I say) quiet to be able to process what they are taking in.

Time after time, I encounter event sponsors who want to schedule every possible minute of every day of an event, in order to maximize the amount of information they can pass on to their attendees. Conventional Wisdom and the bean counters argue, “So much money has been spent on travel, lodging, registration, food, etc. We need to get our money’s worth out of this event. Let’s fill up the schedule with lots and lots and lots of sessions, breakouts, activities, seminars and meetings”. In so doing, they cut out any “free time” that may not appear to have value.

Granted, organizations spend a lot of money to train, educate and motivate their people. But quantity of information does not equal quality. In actuality, the opposite is true. The law of diminishing returns is in full play when we throw too much information or stimulation at people. After a while, the more we pour into their “learning” buckets, even more leaks out.

Which is more useful, for people to vaguely retain two out of ten watered-down points, or to fully embrace four out of four critical points?

Less is more.

(part 2 click here)

I’m just looking for a little bit of fun and relaxation when I go out. I don’t want to have to work at anything, or try hard or wonder where I fit. I just want to get what I came for and be treated with a little respect.

I especially enjoy my experience if I believe the people serving me (waiter, salesperson, conference presenter, whatever) make me feel like they are actually there for me (not the other way around).

That’s a small part of what creates a good experience for me. A sense that it’s about me. Now, I know that life is really not all about me, but sometimes, it should feel that way. Examples:

• at a restaurant
• at a conference
• at the hospital
• when I’m on vacation
• at the airport

The list could go on and on. If it’s not “about me”, then I walk. Or, if I don’t walk right at that moment, you can bet I won’t choose to be back any time soon.

How many of our everyday interactions could become meaningful experiences if only a little focus and effort were applied? What would life be like if the person at the DMV actually smiled at you, treated you kindly, didn’t rush you and didn’t make you feel like a number? We wouldn’t know what to do with ourselves.

In the end, it’s all about our customers, our audience, our clients, our viewers. If we don’t make it about them, then we may not see them again. And can we really blame them?

I have a new “Hero-CEO”. Bryant Keil, CEO of Potbelly Sandwich Works, has gone above and beyond in responding to my pickle saga (you can read my original post here). I thought it was only fair to tell the rest of the story.

A few days after I sent off my original letter to Mr. Keil, I received a personal voice mail from him telling me he’d received my letter. He apologized for the situation and asked if I’d call him back. He then left his direct number.

I called the next day and Mr. Keil immediately took my call and again apologized for the “pickle incident”. He said he appreciated that my letter was very constructive. He told me they work very hard to create the best experience for their customers, but because they are growing so fast, it’s sometimes hard to pass the culture along to everyone. I told him I completely understood.

He added that, like me, when he orders a pickle, he never gets it sliced.

He thanked me again for my letter and said, “It was important to me that I give you a call. This is what it’s all about.”

I was shocked and amazed. To think the CEO of a large company would take the time to make a personal phone call to a disappointed customer was simply mind-boggling to me. His kind gesture showed such great respect and more than made up for the original issue.

But that’s not all.

The next day I received a call from the General Manager of the Algonquin Potbelly store. She apologized for the situation and asked if she could bring dinner to my home for my entire family (unbelievable!). I thanked her, but said that wouldn’t be necessary. She then asked if I could describe the Manager who treated me disrespectfully. I mentioned that I didn’t really want to get anyone in trouble, but she assured me that she simply wanted to reinforce Potbelly’s excellent standards on the importance of the customer’s experience.

I thanked the Manager for her kind phone call and assured her that I would be back in their store some time soon.

But the story doesn’t even end there.

A few days later I received another call from the Potbelly District Manager. He apologized for the experience I had in the store and wanted to double check to make sure the store Manager had taken care of me. He also said that they had “addressed the issue internally”. I assured him that everyone had gone above and beyond to follow up with me and told him I would certainly be back in his store.

Again, amazing.

Culture starts at the top. It doesn’t always trickle all the way down, but a strong CEO knows the importance of carrying the culture and follows through to make sure everyone understands it and is owning it. That’s exactly what Bryant Keil did. He made sure (in multiple redundancies) that the Potbelly culture was carried out in my situation. That’s the sign of a great, “Hero-CEO”.

Surprise is one of those things that can take an experience to a higher level. It’s the joke that catches you off guard, the unexpected guest on stage, the freebie that is generously provided, or an unexpectedly comfortable environment.

Surprise is the element that makes us say:
• “I never expected that”
• “I can’t believe they just did that”, or simply
• “Wow, I wonder what they’ll do next time?”

All these responses are almost guaranteed to bring a smile—and to make someone want to come back, purchase your product, or simply be open to the impact of your message.

It doesn’t necessarily take a lot to create a little surprise. My wife and I went out for an anniversary dinner the other night and our waiter took the time to explain to us how the dishes were prepared. He was knowledgeable, engaging, interesting and even humorous in how he described them. It was a nice little surprise that added to our experience (and the food was good, too).

Surprise creates a sense that someone (you) did something over and above the simple requirement to make them (your customer) a little happier. It communicates, “Hey, they’re thinking of me”. And it’s one element that raises the expected, status quo into an experience that people will remember.

What can we do to create an element of surprise in our offerings? What would it take to give a little surprise next time?

I’d love to hear about times you’ve experienced an unexpected surprise. What was it? How did it make you feel? Please join the fun and add your comments. Thanks.

Ever since I saw Star Wars as a kid, I wanted to be a hologram. Or, I wanted to be projected as a hologram. Princess Leia’s desperate plea for help to Obi-Wan was too cool back in 1977.

Well, it looks like the wait just might be over. I came across this technology and thought it was absolutely amazing. It seems a company in the U.K. called Musion has been doing hologram projection and communication for a while now.

Not only that, but there can be two-way communication using this technology. It also appears the subject can be:
• Live
• Pre-recorded
• Graphic or
• Virtual

If you haven’t seen it yet, you’ve got to check out this video (click here) where they used holograms on-stage at a live event for Cisco. The live on-stage presenter actually had an interactive conversation with the “hologram guys”—live.

The implications for special events, virtual presentation, advertising and entertainment are staggering. The only limitations are the imaginations of the people using this technology.

Amazing.

There are several other clips of how Musion has used their technology on their site. I especially liked the clip from the FIFPro XI World Player Awards. Click around their site a bit and see if it doesn’t knock your socks off. I know it did mine.

As our culture and economy continue to change and evolve, it’s becoming more and more apparent that if a company is going to compete for much-coveted business, they will have to go beyond simply offering their products, services or communication, and position their offerings around experiences they create for their customers.

At Transperia, our focus is on helping clients create transformational experiences to help them achieve their business results. It takes a lot of different forms, but often deals with live events, media or project consultation.

Our philosophy has been influenced by many different sources, but we would be remiss to not mention the impact of Joseph Pine and James Gilmore’s pivotal book, “The Experience Economy: Work is Theatre & Every Business a Stage”. It’s an amazing book that continues to grow in influence, even though it’s been in print for almost 10 years.

One of the beauties of the book is that Pine & Gilmore have given language to a lot of concepts that many of us have intuitively sensed for a long time.

If you haven’t read it yet, get it. It will help bring focus to you as you consider how to create meaningful experiences for the people you’re trying to reach.

Pine & Gilmore also have a new book out called, “Authenticity: What Consumers Really Want”. I haven’t read it yet, but when I got a chance to spend the day with Joe Pine last year, he told me a little about it. It sounds great.

Our world changes at a rate that’s no longer possible to measure or adequately describe (“speed of sound”, “speed of light”, etc. don’t seem to cut it anymore). And it’s becoming more and more difficult to distinguish our message and products in a culture/marketplace/business environment that is constantly in flux.

The competition for our attention and affections is getting tougher by the minute. More and more, what is required to differentiate a product, event or service is the experience that we create for people.

It used to be that our offerings would stand out if they were of excellent quality, were highly creative, or unique in some way. No longer. Today’s economy requires us to go beyond these expected qualities and provide an experience for people that transcends the status quo, engages them personally, excites their senses and becomes, in a word, memorable.

The Art of Experience is an ongoing dialogue in how to create experiences for our audiences (customers, employees, conference attendees…) that will not only engage them, but also change and transform them, and bring about the outcomes we’re hoping for.

Transperia Group (the sponsor of this forum) gets its very name from the concept of creating “transformational experiences” to drive the results we are after.

So, what creates a “transformational experience”? What does it take to move beyond the status quo and enter the realm of “experience”? That’s what we’re hoping to discuss in this blog. Some categories that we’ll cover are:

• Creativity
• Innovation
• Communication
• Technology

The topics may vary, but in general, we’re looking for things that will help us move beyond the normal and mundane, and will inspire us in the art of creating effective experiences.

Of course, we want this to be a multi-way conversation. Please join in. If you have new ideas to add, great. If you disagree with opinions stated here, great. If you want to share your experiences with “experience”, great. We’d love to have you join in the fun.

Thanks for dropping by. Here’s to some stimulating conversation.

Mark T. Bennardo
Transperia Group, Inc.