CX Goalkeeper with Anna Noakes Schulze S1E23 is about Platforms and their implications on business and CX

The CX Goalkeeper had a smart discussion with Anna Noake Schulze

Anna is a Senior Partner for CX and a founding member and platform advisor of “Women in CX”. She is a best-selling author of the «Customer Experience 3» book, a TEDx & Keynote Speaker and a Startup Mentor.

My learnings:

Platforms will change how business works as it is a different way of doing business.

• The comparison between pipeline businesses and platform businesses makes it quite clear.

• A pipeline business has a linear value chain (i.e., one flow from the company to the customers)

• Platform businesses offer the infrastructure as they control the access to the value creation chain.

• The value itself is created by the participants (sellers and buyers). Both are contributing to the value creation. Increasing the traffic creates more value for the participants (e.g., the Amazon flywheel clearly shows the network effect)

• The telephone is a good example. If only 2-3 people would be connected via phone the value of the platform “phone” would be really low, however, if the whole world would be connected the value would be immense (as it is).

• Investors value platform businesses with higher multiples then pipeline businesses.

Three key implications on CX: value, usability and trust

• Value: It is created by the interactions within the community and by the power of involved community.

• BlaBlaCar in France which matches riders and drivers, is a great example. During the pandemic they created a new App within 10 days to help people who were not able to leave their houses. The community volunteered to pick up grocery, medicines etc. for the community and bringing them the to the houses of other community members in need.

• Usability is important also in platform businesses: Finding partners easily, ensuring frictionless experiences and making possible to quickly interact.

• Trust is the third key component. All the participants need to trust themselves in the ecosystem.

Her book suggestion:

• Convenience revolution by S. Hyken

• Outside In by K. Bodine and H. Manning

• The Platform Revolution by G. Parker, M. Van Alstyne and S. Choudary

Anna’s golden nugget:

Start thinking about platform businesses and try to find out more about them. Find out how to improve platforms for the better from a customer and a partner experience perspective.

How to contact Anna:

• https://www.linkedin.com/in/annanoakesschulze/

Thank you, Anna!

#customerexperience #leadership #platforms #cxgoalkeeper