A few years ago I found myself standing in front of an audience of 700 entrepreneurs in Iran, sharing my views on the growing importance of making the mind shift from simply doing transactions with our customers to creating meaningful, engaging experiences, writes best selling author and business expert, Andrew Griffiths.

Whilst I had been talking about this concept around the world for many years, I realised that if people in Iran wanted to know about moving from transactions to experiences, it truly was a global trend that businesses everywhere needed to take seriously.

The modern consumer is experienced, educated, aware and united. To put it simply,  they have a great deal of choice and they are not afraid to use it. This means that businesses, of all kinds, need to find more ways to not only get the consumers attention but also to engage with them on a deeper level. And this means that simply taking money for a product or service, a simple transaction, is no longer enough. Consumers want more. They expect more. They demand more. If your business can’t provide an experience, as opposed to a simple, bland transaction, they will find a business that can.

The product itself is only a part of the experience

When we are selling something it’s easy to think that it’s all about the product or the specific service we are selling, but as consumers become more sophisticated, that is only a part of the overall experience. For example, the meal is only a part of the overall dining out experience. The packaging that our online order arrives in is increasingly important in the overall experience (as is the ease of making an online purchase on a website). The experience from end to end when we deal with an accountant, solicitor or other professional plays a major part in our total satisfaction, not just the end result of what they do for us. In other words, the entire interaction is a process and we need to do what we can make as much of it engaging, easy, enjoyable and memorable for our customers.

Apple of course realised this long before many other retailers. And whilst there has been much said about the overall Apple experience, the part that I think illustrates this thinking so well is the little white box that anyone who has ever owned an iPhone knows intimately. Surely a box is just a box, something to hold the product that we’ve purchased? Not anymore – it’s part of the overall buying experience for a smart manufacturer and retailer.

A little white box is the best example of moving from transaction to experience

For Apple the little white box is sleek, it feels sturdy, solid and absolute quality – a hint of what is to come. And of course the best part is opening it. It take a couple of seconds for the two parts of the box to be pulled apart and a little puff of Steve Job’s breath escapes the box as it opens. All of which makes for a strangely satisfying moment and a big part of the experience.  And to show how effective this has been, pretty much everyone on the planet who has purchased an iPhone still has the box, even if they no longer have the phone.

Some might argue that this is fine for a product but does it apply for a business that sells a service? Absolutely. It applies, even more, when there isn’t a tangible product or item. In my opinion, this concept applies to any kind of business selling anything. Wherever there are human beings involved in the interaction, there is an opportunity to find ways to move from simple transactions to engaging experiences.

In an increasingly competitive world this could be the secret weapon

For the business owner trying to find an advantage in a highly competitive world, making the move from transaction to experience provides many opportunities.  It’s an opportunity to differentiate from competitors – the business with the best experience tends to win in a 2021 world. It provides wonderful social media fodder, where people can talk about their experience in a very public arena. It provides stories, brand building conversations, team pride, customer loyalty and so much more. It provides a way to level a playing field for smaller operators who can offer greater experiences compared to larger more rigid organisations that are slow to adapt and evolve.

In many instances, the business with the superior experience will win out over the business with the superior product. And this is something every business owner needs to consider. We can’t just rest on our laurels in terms of the product or service we sell. Of course, the ideal combination is to create a superior product or service and have an extraordinary end to end customers experience. This is the real unicorn of the business world and any business that can master both has an extraordinarily bright future.

Want more? Get the latest coronavirus news and updates straight to your inbox! Follow Kochie’s Business Builders on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn.