The Account Experience Podcast

The CPG CX Initiative & Strategy w/ Nigel Tordoff

When we care, it makes all the difference.
Adam Dorrell, CEO & Co-Founder of CustomerGauge, sits down again with Nigel Tordoff, Chairman of the CPG Experience Council, to consider the ways customer experience can grow a business. 
Nigel kicks off this episode by sharing his 'CX Hypothesis' on what he thinks is the best approach for reaching customers and making an impact.
Adam and Nigel dive into testing the hypothesis through an Airline Industry example along with discussing the four groups of people businesses generally have to please + just HOW many people make up each.
If you've been following along with the CPG Experience Council podcast series, this is a fantastic topic to end on.
 

“Did You Understand What I Said?”

It's all about surpassing customer expectations.
Back for the fourth CPG Experience Council-edition episode, Nigel Tordoff joins Adam Dorrell to explore CX drivers and what leads to Promoters, Detractors, and Passives. 
What happens once you have a happy customer? What is the consequence of not taking the proper action on an upset customer? 
The two take a deep dive into Net Promoter Score (NPS), the pitfalls everyone should avoid when leveraging NPS, and how to close the loop reactively and proactively. 

“How Many Times Do I Have to Tell You?”

Are you listening to 80% of your B2B customer base?
Nigel Tordoff, Chairman of the CPG Experience Council, joins Adam Dorrell to discuss the scale of the CPG industry and the impact it can have on customer experience.
When you look at the consumer packaged goods industry from a wide lens, there are so many different relationships that must work to provide for the end customer. 
Adam and Nigel discuss the impact of scale in CPG, embracing technology, setting out what 'good' looks like, and a handful of CPG CX best practices.
Any CPG industry professional won't want to miss this breakdown of the context of scale and how to strengthen every B2B relationship in the process.
 

How Trust Leads to Revenue Growth

Host Adam Dorrell welcomes back Nigel Tordoff, Chairman of the CPG Experience Council, to discuss how a customer's trust in a business ultimately leads to revenue growth. 
The two dig into what happens when you open the lines of communication and provide feedback — whether it's a relationship with a consumer, a business (or even a significant other!) 
They also highlight Adam's research on how many times companies use the word 'customer' in their public pronouncements. And one well-known brand has revealed just how customer-centric it really is.
If you're looking for a deep-dive on where the roads to revenue begin with your B2B customer-base, this is a must-listen.

Offer Exceptional B2B CX & the Rest Just CLiCS

Host Adam Dorrell welcomes Nigel Tordoff in the first of five CPG Experience Council-edition episodes.
Nigel, with 30 years of CPG industry experience under his belt, is now Chairman of the Council and ready to recruit those in the trade just as eager to make an impact.
Together they share how to kickstart great CX in CPG and break down the acronym that must be at the core of every program: CLiCS.
What is CX? And why bother? What goes into a program that CLiCS together? Both pull back the curtain on what good looks like and share their own real-life experiences along the way.

NPS—the CX Catalyst at Novozymes

Adam Dorrell sits down with Per Braginski, Director of Insights at the Danish-based Novozymes, a world leader in bio-solutions, in a special “on-site” episode. This is a company that operates behind the scenes, as a supplier to well-known brands, including many CPG companies. Process and quality is all-important, not just in product but also in their customer relationship domain. 
Per shares how they manage Customer Experience, and measure Net Promoter at Novozymes. The Scandinavian commitment to transparency is shown here: NPS results are published in the annual report - currently, it’s 69. 
He also explains the importance of follow-up in the business, and how they ensure a consistently high response rate. 
If you are in B2B manufacturing this is a must-listen masterclass in how to run a top-quality CX program.

Big Ticket Transformations: Doomed to Run Late and Overbudget?

Are company’s big IT transformation projects like the Berlin Airport, the Elizabeth Line, or the Second Avenue Subway similar in that they take forever with massive cost overruns? We turned to an expert to find out.
Host Adam Dorrell talks with Steve Abramson of Jasmar Associates. Steve has 30+ years of professional services experience across the consumer goods and retail sectors working for large businesses such as IBM and KPMG, and smaller, high-growth companies. In that time he’s worked in many CPG and retail companies including Unilever, Diageo, Coca-Cola, Tesco, Kingfisher, Boots, and Marks & Spencer. 
Steve’s practice is specializing in helping companies avoid the pitfalls of big-ticket projects. It’s a scary statistic to know that only 0.5% of projects deliver on time, on budget, and with the required benefits.
He explains that projects don't usually “go” wrong, they start wrong.
What’s needed is for leadership to abandon "False Certainty“ and accept tradeoffs. And those in Customer Experience should watch out for a lack of appropriate buy-in and ownership from the business. Managers can get through this by making it a “business project” with a business owner. 
It’s a fascinating insight for anyone trying to wrestle a big project through. Steve’s details are on https://www.jasmarassociates.com

How the ”Digital Shelf” Shapes New Consumer Experiences w/ Mert Damlapinar

Adam Dorrell talks with Mert Damlapinar to explain how digital experiences are at the forefront of today’s retail experience, and how CPG companies need to transform their thinking from a physical world paradigm. Mert is a well-known expert in the field of e-commerce and digital marketing: an author, a former director of brands like L’Oreal, Mondelez, Sabra, and holder of multiple degrees from Boston, Cornell and MIT. His current role is Principal of CPG Digital Commerce Acceleration at EPAM Continuum.
Mert shared his insights into how the Digital Shelf has evolved - from the  “Long Tail” concept of merchandising everything to now - with a low number of featured items that seem to perfectly match your search. Behind the scenes is an incredibly complex system of algorithms that make up the Digital Platform Strategy. 
As the majority of purchase decisions are made online, CPG vendors need to understand this rapid shift. Mert explains the three pillars of the Digital Shelf, and the skills needed to harness it. 
And Mert and Adam finish the podcast by contrasting a few concepts from Paco Underhill’s  1999 book, “Why We Buy (the science of shopping)” to today - if you’ve not heard of “Butt Brush” before you should stay to the end! 
Mert’s contact details: https://www.epam.com/services/epam-continuum
 

How Engro Grows With Better CX and 90%+ Response Rates

Muhammad Idrees joins host Adam Dorrell to talk about growing sales by focusing on Customer Experience basics. It’s a lesson for B2B CX leaders on how a unified company approach brings an impressive return on investment. 
Muhammad is the Chief Commercial Officer at Engro Polymer and Chemicals Limited, a subsidiary of Engro Corporation — one of Pakistan’s largest and most diversified conglomerates. The company’s vision is to become a globally competitive PVC producer, and they are well on their way.
This is a perfect B2B Manufacturing case study as he explains, “How can you make selling a commodity different? Simple — make it a great experience."
And this is for the CX nerds like me: They have a near 100% response rate and you’ll learn how it can be done. In just a year, Engro increased their Close-Loop Rate by 8%, which drove NPS up 16 points. And then had a result of topline growth of 17%!
Learn more about Engro https://www.engropolymer.com/ 
“You have to believe in success with customers,” Muhammad says. Enjoy his boundless energy in a very practical podcast. 

The Man Behind the Drinks That Define the Modern Age

David Gluckman is the genius who invented dozens of the best-known drinks of recent decades, including the iconic Baileys Irish Cream developed 50 years ago this year.
Host Adam Dorrell digs deep into David’s wonderful anecdotes behind the birth of drinks we all grew up with: Baileys, french wine Le Piat d’Or, Cîroc vodka, Tanqueray Ten gin, soft drinks Aqua Libra and Purdeys, the Singleton Malt, Sheridans Coffee Liqueur and so many more. 
David tells stories of how a small and determined innovation team flourished inside the huge enterprises that eventually became Diageo. As he explains, It’s not always research-led — it can be gut feeling and a beautiful label that can drive creativity. 
He’s also a gifted writer. His book is called “That Sh*t Will Never Sell!” a witty and fascinating account of the beverage business and highly recommended. 
If you’ve worked in the industry you’ll know what a legend he is. And if you just enjoy drinking, then you are sure to enjoy the stories behind the brand. A really entertaining episode.