Dark patterns expose deeper ethical issues in customer experience. Here’s how virtue ethics grounds fair decisions that build customer trust.

The $2.5 billion Amazon "dark patterns" settlement illuminates deep ethical CX questions.

Sludge is more than a nuisance. It's a communication choice made by leadership. Sometimes it isn't intentional. Sometimes it is.

Updated December 21, 2024 Customer experience (CX) has had its share of highs and lows in 2024—a roller coaster ride of triumphs that deserve celebration and failures that serve as cautionary tales. These seven nuggets stand out as critical moments, showing what works, what doesn’t, what's promising, and where brands can do better. Wipeout: Chocolate Backlash in Glasgow Willy Wonka is a pop culture touchstone of color and wonder, but a big event heralded as an immersive “Will

CX friends and enthusiasts, you didn’t really think it’d be that simple, did you? In mid-October, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) announced its much-anticipated “ Click to Cancel ” rule, aimed at making life a bit easier for millions of customers. You may have noticed a wave of celebratory posts about it on social media. The rule’s goal? To ensure that, from a customer’s perspective, canceling a subscription is just as easy  as signing up for one. If you can subscribe

The White House's New Time is Money Memo Spotlights Bad CX But Isn't the Regulatory Crackdown Some Hoped For

CX professionals can help build a future where exceptional customer experiences go hand-in-hand with ethical business practices.

There are a few well-known but unwritten beacons in customer experience. Here’s one: Don’t give customers the runaround on purpose to benefit your cash flow.  Example:  Setting up an easy, one-click way for customers to subscribe to your services online. Then, to cancel the same subscription, customers are forced to call a contact center where representatives have been trained to do anything but immediately process the cancellation request. It seems like it should be the ex

Too many rules and too much sludge can lead to a host of negative employee and customer experiences. Sludge audits can help attach a dollar cost to the customer and employee pain. Some years ago, I worked with a superstar sales executive. She frequently traveled the United States meeting with clients. One day over lunch she mentioned she had never submitted a travel expense reimbursement form to the company we worked for. I was surprised. We all know how expensive travel can

Data breaches, hacks, and leaks have become so ridiculously common that sometimes you can't help but wonder, "Should customers just expect to have their data stolen as part of their experience with a company?" If you’ve replaced your credit card over the past few years due to a breach or two or three, then it is possible you have wondered the same thing. No industry has been immune to data breaches. Tens of millions of customers have had their personal bank account numbers, c

It has been argued that trust is the currency of business. Earned in drops, lost in buckets, as they say. Nobody has mastered the basics of trust. And yet, the subject of trust grows more complex and more critical for businesses and government agencies, every day. We all want customers to trust us. We all want our businesses to thrive. But customer trust has to be earned. At the same time, you must avoid breaking trust. Here are five trust-building strategies to follow. 1. Un

When Wendy Beban and her team got the chance to slash some red tape for the citizens and employees of Auckland, New Zealand, they charged at the problem like champs. Back then, if you wanted to report something as simple as a broken public park bench to the city, you had to call a government contact center, send a message to a generic government e-mail address, or go see someone at a government office, in person. That interaction then set off a 55-step manual business process