Articles by Nienke Bloem

25 ways to stay inspired as a Customer Experience professional

The thing I hear often is that fellow Customer Experience Professionals work hard. They are focused on realizing their customer centric transformation, improving NPS and CES (or other customer metrics, but that is another blog post ?) and engaging the organization. You might also recognize that as you are working hard, it can make you [...]

George Michael

The waiter in the restaurant puts down the sushi bowl and gives me his broad smile once again. "What is your favorite George Michael song?" I ask him. He does not have to think about that for long. And he answers that secretly, he is a bigger fan of Engelbert Humperdinck. But that George Michael is his ....

The experience paradigm: Customer or Employee first?

When it comes to organizational transformation, this is an important and often raised question. What are the leading principles coming out of your strategy in order to transform your business model? Frank van den Brink, Chief Employee Experience Officer of ABN AMRO bank and I share our insights and opinions. We try to get our heads [...]

The fair price?

It's been a while since I finished HEAO (international marketing). Much of what I was taught there, I have lost. But what still sticks in my mind are Kotler's 4 Ps: Price, Place, Product and Promotion. Those are rammed into me and I know them as the marketing mix. While browsing on [...]

F#ck the FAQ

That's not language for a lady, is it? No, it's not. Sorry in advance. But sometimes it escapes me. Steam comes out of my ears when I'm searching for the answer on a website. When I once again get lost in the Frequently Asked Questions. FAQ is a widely accepted English term in the world [...]

The happy jerk

"Good morning ma'am, would you like to fly to the Netherlands with us?" A big smile on his face betrays that he is having fun. His female colleague behind him, looks with a straight face at a point somewhere 20 centimeters above my head and ignores my "Good morning this morning. As I pull up my chair - [...]

The 4 elements of a brand promise

More and more, I come to the conclusion that this is the missing link in many businesses and a must have when it comes to customer experience. The need for clear promises to customers. To see if this is an issue in your company, please try to answer these questions: How does your company or [...]

Unfortunately, I'm out of sales

Twice recently I have been called by an unlisted number. Often these are sales calls, I know. If I check my history, it's from a newspaper or a credit card company. The phone rings again and when I see the secret number, I hesitate. Maybe something has happened to my parents [...].

Begin with the end in mind

"All for fun and fun for all." Does this appeal to you or would you rather go on a heavy metal cruise? Would you like to go on holidays with a cruise company who is really clear on what to expect? Let me take you on a cruise and learn about Customer Experience in the [...]