Small changes, huge impact: The secret to CX success

Introduction

Creating a great customer experience doesn’t require a massive transformation or a hefty budget. In this edition of Building Great Experiences, I share insights from my conversation with Steven Keith, founder of CX Pilots. Steven and I discuss how even smaller organizations can make significant strides in customer experience by focusing on small, intentional changes that create lasting results.

Let’s explore how midsize companies can improve their CX through no-BS communication, small experiments, and customer-focused design.

1. Cut the jargon: Straight talk wins trust

One of the most effective ways for companies to improve CX is through clear, no-nonsense communication. Steven explained how a simple, straight-talking document called a CX Charter can unify teams and clarify the purpose of improving customer experience. Instead of relying on jargon or buzzwords, the charter lays out why customer experience matters, how it benefits customers and employees, and how people can be involved.

The beauty of this approach? It doesn’t require a huge and expensive transformation. A well-crafted charter can help get folks aligned and create momentum across your organization without overwhelming your teams.

Putting this into action:

• Create a CX charter: Draft a one-page document that clearly outlines your company’s customer experience goals, the benefits of achieving them, and the steps everyone can take to contribute.

• Involve your team: Solicit feedback from employees at all levels to ensure the charter feels relevant and practical.

• Distribute and discuss: Share the charter widely and make time to discuss it in team meetings, so everyone understands their role in improving the customer experience.

2. Experiment early & often: Small pilots, big learnings

One of the topics Steven and I discussed is the power of experimentation. Many organizations hesitate to try new things because they think they need to overhaul their entire system at once. Instead, companies should start with small pilots to test ideas, gather feedback, and iterate quickly. This approach minimizes risk while delivering valuable insights.

Companies of all sizes can use a pilot to address specific pain points without committing to a massive transformation. By focusing on a small subset of customers or a single process, companies can gain meaningful insights and refine their approach.

Putting this into action:

• Identify & prioritize opportunities: Evaluate the experience end-to-end and identify several areas where your customer journey could be improved. Develop a hypothesis for the impact if you invest to improve it and pick the area that has the biggest potential ROI.

• Test a solution & iterate based on results: Generate potential ideas to address the opportunity, prioritize by effort and impact, then rapidly design and build a solution. Once ready, run a pilot with a small group of customers to see how it performs. There’s a wide range of different types of solutions I’ve seen. A pilot could be an alternate approach to your sales process, or testing a new customer service platform. Maybe rolling out a new training program or modifying a service offering. Ultimately, the goal is to come up with the cheapest, fastest way to test with customers. Use feedback and data from the pilot to refine your solution before rolling it out more broadly.

3. Make it tangible: Show, don’t tell

It’s important to make customer experience real for teams and customers. Too often, companies rely on theory or high-level metrics that don’t really make sense or are disconnected from reality. Instead, make an effort to create tangible examples to illustrate who the customer is and what their experience could/should look like.

One idea Steven mentioned is designing the “unboxing experience” of a transformation, similar to how Apple carefully curates the experience of opening a new product. This approach makes the abstract idea of CX improvement concrete and relatable.

Putting this into action:

• Map the customer journey: Create a visual representation of your customers’ experience, highlighting both pain points and opportunities.

• Celebrate wins: Share success stories that demonstrate how CX improvements have positively impacted customers and employees.

• Design your “unboxing” moment: Consider how you introduce new processes or systems to your team, making the rollout an experience in itself.

4. Focus on incremental change: The 1% rule

Improving CX doesn’t have to happen all at once. There’s tremendous value in small, incremental changes that compound over time. Drawing inspiration from Atomic Habits by James Clear, companies can focus on making 1% improvements in key areas, which can lead to transformative results over time.

By breaking down CX improvements into manageable steps, organizations can build momentum and avoid the overwhelm of tackling everything at once.

Putting this into action:

• Start small: Choose one simple improvement you can make today, such as updating an FAQ page or streamlining a process.

• Track progress: Measure the impact of each change and celebrate milestones along the way.

• Keep building: Use the momentum from small wins to tackle larger CX challenges over time.

Conclusion: Big results from small moves

Transforming customer experience doesn’t have to mean huge investments or a years-long program. By focusing on clear communication, small experiments, and incremental improvements, midsize companies can make meaningful changes that drive loyalty and growth.

I hope these insights inspire you to take action and create customer experiences that truly stand out 😊

Onward & upward,

Drew

P.S. If we haven’t met yet, I’m Drew Burdick, a leader in Customer Experience (CX). For over 15 years, I’ve worked with organizations of all sizes to enhance their CX and design solutions that drive business results. Have a question? Send me an email or reach out on LinkedIn.