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 “Willy Wonka’s Chocolate Experience” in Glasgow caused customer outrage to the point of police intervention. Customers who paid about $45 per ticket expected a magical escape—a whimsical world straight out of Wonka’s imagination. Instead, they were met with a barren warehouse, sparse decorations, and a tiny amount of candy. They angrily demanded their money back from event organizers, and it got so heated the police showed up. Social media exploded, illustrating how quickly a brand's failure can snowball into public humiliation. The company organizing the event issued a public apology.
Source: USA Today
A Definite Win! Therapy Pups in the Istanbul Airport
Istanbul Airport, one of the world's busiest airports, is known for its intensive, award-winning focus on creating inclusive customer experiences. It has introduced a new program where trained, certified therapy dogs roam the airport to help passengers feel more relaxed and less stressed while traveling. These friendly dogs, with names like Kuki and Alita, are professionally trained to stay calm and provide comfort in busy, noisy environments. Passengers can pet them, cuddle them, or enjoy their company, which can make the often stressful airport experience more pleasant.
Source: The Associated Press
Win: Inclusive CX at Pottery Barn
Pottery Barn launched a second wave of accessible home furnishings in 2024 following the initial success of its Accessible Home collection in 2022. The idea emerged when the company’s then-president Marta Benson noticed while on a routine retail store visit that none of the furniture in a store’s bathroom was wheelchair accessible—a wake-up call that the brand was overlooking certain customers and could be doing more to live up to its inclusive values. Customers with disabilities—whose global spending power is immense—are driving demand for premium, accessible designs in the $709 billion furniture market.
Sources: Fast Company, Grand View Research
Looming Win: AI for Contact Center Reps in Japan
About half of customer service reps in Japan have experienced traumatizing, rude customer behavior. Even the Tokyo Metropolitan Government is considering an ordinance (although without punitive consequences) aimed at "abusive and unreasonable demands that harm workplace environments." Separately, emerging AI tools in development for customer contact centers will be able to change the voice tone of angry callers to reduce psychological stress on reps. Reps may even be able to choose the voice that they want to hear. Fingers crossed, it will help with heavy employee turnover.
Source: NHK World Japan
Win: Easier Subscription Cancellations U.S. Customers
SiriusXM, the North American-based satellite radio company, lost a legal battle in the New York Supreme Court over its subscription cancellation practices. Customers accused the company of deliberately creating an obstacle course to cancel subscriptions, wasting time and breeding frustration. Of course, SiriusXM isn’t the first to face penalties CX-related penalties. In 2023, Toyota Motor Credit had to pay $60 million in government fines for adding extra fee-based products to customers’ auto loans, leading 118,000+ customers into a contact center cancellation maze that the U.S. government said had been purposefully set up to be a dead end. Adobe, as well, is under fire for its subscription cancellation policies.
Source: Morningstar, CFPB
Win: Government Complaint Handling in Jersey (the country, not the U.S. state)
CX is far more than complaint handling, but it can be argued that any step toward considering citizens’ experiences with their government is better than none! Jersey, a small island country in Northwestern Europe, is publicly reviewing its government’s policies and systems for collecting and acting on customer complaints. Leaders want one standard approach for collecting and triaging complaints across the government. Next steps: public hearings on how they’re going to do it!
Source: BBC, Jersey's Elected Parliament
Win: Rigorous Evidence on Why Customers Return, Recommend, or Refer
Businesses are built on customer recommendations, but what really makes customers refer other customers? Until now, businesses have relied on hunches and anecdotes about customer loyalty. However, scholars have now pinpointed through rigorous study that, at least In the case of peer-to-peer accommodation companies (like Airbnb), 10 things really matter: accommodation, perceived enjoyment, perceived friendliness, perceived convenience, surroundings, perceived response, and trustworthiness—a mix of hedonic and utilitarian, tangible and intangible, values.
Source: Journal of Consumer Behavior
If this year’s CX wins and wipeouts have shown us anything, customers wield more power than ever to amplify their experiences—good and bad. The way forward is clear: inclusive, intuitive, and trust-driven experiences must take center stage. Frustration and disappointment can snowball into backlash at lightning speed, but brands that design for everyone—valuing ease and accessibility—are on the right path for themselves and their customers.
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