Creating Superfans

Did you know that awkwardness is  your greatest asset for professional and personal growth? My guest today is here to tell us all about it. She's my dear friend, Henna Pryor. Henna is an author, sought-after workplace performance expert, executive coach, and award-winning, two-time TEDx speaker. Following two decades in the corporate world, a few career pivots, and a wildly successful leap to entrepreneurship, she shares her work from the stage and screen to expand on her belief that the key to most people's success is embracing their bumpy edges.

Henna and I discuss the importance of owning your uniqueness and how leaning into awkwardness can actually strengthen your relationships.

Show Notes

6:37 - Henna's origin story that led to her book, "Good Awkward."
7:51 - Henna's awkward story from 5th grade that still lives with her today
8:50 - Leaning into the awkward and embracing it changes everything
9:17 - How does Henna define 'awkward'
11:36 - The important difference between awkwardness and ineptitude
12:29 - The pratfall effect
12:57 - How the pratfall effect is similar to the service recovery paradox
14:13 - The key skill is to learn how to 'repair'
16:08 - People are almost untrained to deal with awkward situations now because we hide behind technology
18:18 - How technology has hindered certain interactions
20:08 - How Henna slowly embraced her uniqueness at her corporate job and boosted her performance
21:48 - The avoidance of awkwardness increases awkwardness
23:13 - Awkward versus vulnerable
27:58 - The one thing that Henna fought for when writing her book
29:40 - Henna shares some of her awkward experiences that ended up getting cut from the book
31:21 - The biggest takeaway Henna has from her research
32:15 - Henna's embarrassing moment from a recent TV interview promoting her new book

Get your copy of Good Awkward

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About Brittany 

Brittany Hodak is an award-winning entrepreneur, author, and customer experience speaker who helps businesses turn customers into superfans. She’s delivered keynotes to hundreds of organizations around the world, including American Express, Benihana, and Keller Williams. Her trademark SUPER Model™ framework has empowered teams in every industry to transform customer apathy into advocacy. 

Enjoying the show? Subscribe, leave a rating and review, and share this episode with someone who wants to create more superfans.

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In honor of Customer Experience Day (10/3), I'm thrilled to be joined by my good friend, and fellow CX expert, Jay Baer. Jay is a Hall of Fame speaker, New York Times best-selling author of 7 business books, founder of 5 multi-million dollar companies,  and a trusted business growth advisor to 40 of the FORTUNE 500 brands.

In today's episode, Jay and I chat about his new book, "The Time to Win," and why speed and responsiveness are crucial for succeeding in today's experience economy. Jay explains why EVERY business needs a 'fast pass,' how to close the uncertainty gap with your customers, and the complex correlation between speed and trust.

Show Notes:

4:30 - Jay talks about his love for Tequila and how he has become a Tequila influencer on Instagram
6:05 - The intentional design of Jay's new book, "The Time to Win"
8:51- When you lose out on speed, it's often invisible
9:52 - Why customers perceive responsiveness as a sign of respect
10:55 - How businesses end up ruining their profit margins when they're too slow
12:54 - How speed contributes to the emotional connection your customers have with your brand
16:07 - Jay explains the Goldilocks Zone of speed
17:25 - Why being too fast can decay trust
21:35 - Why every business should offer a 'fast pass' option
25:54 - Expectations about time are more important than speed itself
28:04 - Jay shares his experience of ordering leather sneakers online and how the company exceeded his expectations
30:16 - The big mistake a sofa company made that completely eroded Jay's trust
35:13 - Do NOT overpromise on speed
36:07 - Brittany shares her experience at BNA airport and the problem with inaccurate signage
39:02 - A brand that Jay is a superfan of

Jay Baer's website
TheTime to Win

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About Brittany 

Brittany Hodak is an award-winning entrepreneur, author, and customer experience speaker who helps businesses turn customers into superfans. She’s delivered keynotes to hundreds of organizations around the world, including American Express, Benihana, and Keller Williams. Her trademark SUPER Model™ framework has empowered teams in every industry to transform customer apathy into advocacy. 

Enjoying the show? Subscribe, leave a rating and review, and share this episode with someone who wants to create more superfans.

Subscribe to Brittany's biweekly newsletter
Follow Brittany on LinkedIn and Instagram
Grab a copy of Creating Superfans on Amazon

On this episode of the Creating Superfans podcast, I'm joined by Andy Cockburn, the co-founder and CEO of Mention Me. Mention Me is an award-winning referral marketing platform that helps brands harness the exponential power of their fans through referrals. 

Since 2013, Mention Me has delivered more than 6m referrals totaling $1.8b in revenue for 500 brands, including Puma, Charlotte Tilbury, and Michael Kors. Andy shares fascinating insights on the psychology behind advocacy and why your highly satisfied customers may not be telling their friends about you. We also chat about the importance of measuring the extended lifetime value of your customers and the steps any brand can take to make advocacy the center of their business growth.

Show Notes

[00:03:41] How does Andy define an advocate and why are they important for every business
[00:05:18] The three challenges to customer advocacy
[00:07:04] The difference between intention and action when it comes to referrals
[00:08:34] How social capital and social risk influence a customer's willingness to refer
[00:012:32] What might hold a customer back from promoting a brand on social media?
[00:13:08] How younger and older generations differ when it comes to the psychology of advocacy
[00:14:38] The origin story of Mention Me
[00:16:32] The crucial difference between a  customer's lifetime value and extended lifetime value
[00:18:46] Andy shares an example of an online florist who was blown away at the referral data they discovered through Mention Me
[00:20:08] How can a business owner get started on tracking extended lifetime value and building a referral network?
[00:21:25] What is earned growth rate and why should your business be tracking it?
[00:23:42] What is a "good" earned growth rate?
[00:25:44] Brittany shares an anecdote about a charity she worked with and the most effective method for asking for donations
[00:26:55] How to tell your story to boost your referrals
[00:28:39] The best time to ask for a review or referral
[00:29:02] How to stay connected to your customers even if your industry has very unpredictable purchasing cycles
[00:30:10] The genius way that Mention Me enables customers to refer each other
[00:35:06] What is a brand that Andy is a superfan of and why?

Visit Mention Me's website
Brittany's blog post on Earned Growth Rate
The Ruckraft that Andy is a superfan of

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About Brittany 

Brittany Hodak is an award-winning entrepreneur, author, and customer experience speaker who helps businesses turn customers into superfans. She’s delivered keynotes to hundreds of organizations around the world, including American Express, Benihana, and Keller Williams. Her trademark SUPER Model™ framework has empowered teams in every industry to transform customer apathy into advocacy. 

Enjoying the show? Subscribe, leave a rating and review, and share this episode with someone who wants to create more superfans.

Subscribe to Brittany's biweekly newsletter
Follow Brittany on LinkedIn and Instagram
Grab a copy of Creating Superfans on Amazon

In this week's episode of the Creating Superfans podcast, I'm joined by Charles Ryan Minton, a customer and employee experience expert, keynote speaker, and best-selling author. Ryan has worked with high profile brands such as Hilton Hotels Worldwide, Marriott International, and InterContinental Hotels Group.

As a Hotel Executive, Ryan created environments where employees felt valued and empowered, leading to record-breaking revenues, profits, and some of the highest recognition in hospitality.

In our conversation, you'll learn about:

• how employee enablement affects morale and retention
• why employees should act like they're "on stage" while working
• the heartfelt story behind the title of Ryan's book, "Thanks for Coming in Today"
• what led both Brittany & Ryan to walk out of businesses recently 

Even if you're not in hospitality, the tips and insights you'll hear can be applied to any industry for fostering a positive workplace, maximizing your customers' first impressions, and improving the customer experience from the inside out.

Show Notes

[00:01:45] Brittany shares how she first met Ryan and discovered his book, "Thanks for Coming in Today."
[00:04:05] What led Brittany to walk out of her Acupuncture appointment
[00:05:16] Why customers shouldn't see your behind-the-scenes operations and how Ryan obsesses over these first impressions
[00:08:05] How Ryan transformed underperforming hotels through employee enablement
[00:10:10] The most important aspect of any leader's job
[00:11:56] Ryan's small gestures that significantly improved the employee experience
[00:14:27] Why employee enablement is so crucial for morale and retention
[00:16:31] The first thing Ryan looks to improve at any company
[00:18:31] A pet peeve of Ryan that many organizations make and why it's a poor reflection on your employee experience
[00:21:42] Everything speaks - even the welcome mats, signage, and the status of your bathrooms.
[00:24:30] Brittany's great experience at her dog ophthalmology appointment
[00:28:46] The story behind the title of Ryan's book, "Thanks for Coming in Today."[0035:21] Ryan and Brittany have a major disagreement about Costco and both share their respective experiences

Buy "Thanks for Coming in Today"
Visit Ryan's Website

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About Brittany 

Brittany Hodak is an award-winning entrepreneur, author, and customer experience speaker who helps businesses turn customers into superfans. She’s delivered keynotes to hundreds of organizations around the world, including American Express, Benihana, and Keller Williams. Her trademark SUPER Model™ framework has empowered teams in every industry to transform customer apathy into advocacy. 

Enjoying the show? Subscribe, leave a rating and review, and share this episode with someone who wants to create more superfans.

Subscribe to Brittany's biweekly newsletter
Follow Brittany on LinkedIn and Instagram
Grab a copy of Creating Superfans on Amazon

In today's episode of the podcast, I have TWO special guests: Bridget Hilton and Joe Huff.

Bridget and Joe are obsessed with experience - but not in the same way that I am. They're all about how to embrace the human experience. In fact, they call themselves experiential billionaires. Determined to unlock the secrets of their power to transform lives, they have spent years interviewing social science experts, conducting the largest study on life experiences ever done, and turning themselves into experiential guinea pigs.

Together they have trained to be samurai, stood face to face with hungry lions on safari, built schools for kids in need, worked with A-list celebrities, helped give 50,000 people hearing,  and explored the experiential riches life has to offer. In our conversation, we talk about their new book, Experiential Billionaire, the top experiences they've had, and the actionable steps you can take to build a truly fulfilling life and die with no regrets.

Show Notes:

[00:01:54] Bridget and Joe share what it's like to officially be published authors.
[00:03:26] Bridget and Brittany share how they know each other and their "three careers"
[00:05:01] Joe recounts a vulnerable experience he had with this dad that led him onto the path of becoming an experiential billionaire
[00:07:41] Bridget shares her background growing up in Flint, MI and working the 'worst' jobs in the music industry.
[00:8:39] How Bridget got the idea to start an electronics company (LSTN Sound Co.) that would provide hearing to tens of thousands of people
[00:11:33] Where did the name 'experiential billionaire' originate?
[00:12:46] The entrepreneur irony of being broke while running a 'multi-million dollar' business
[00:13:31] How Bridget and Joe's social impact led to a ripple effect of experiences
[00:19:31] The difference between the younger generation and the older generation when it comes to the experiential billionaire mindset.
[00:20:48] What percentage of people regret not doing the things they wanted to do in their lifetime
[00:22:34] The connection between strong relationships and meaningful experiences
[00:28:01] Has Bridget ever met the woman in the YouTube video that inspired LSTN Sound Co.?
[00:30:06] Joe gives us the top five experiences he's ever had, including amazing trips across the country and some of the most vulnerable moments with his family.
[00:31:47] Joe caveats that the journey of achieving something has to be as enjoyable as the result itself
[00:33:18] Bridget shares her top five experiences she's ever had, including giving the gift of hearing to young children, seeing all 50 states, and going through a mental health crisis.

You can get "Experiential Billionaire: Build a Life Rich in Experiences and Die With No Regrets" here.

More on Experiential Billionaire, including the Treasure Maps Card Deck, merchandise, and FREE instructional guides here.

Bridget Hilton's Website
Joe Huff's Website

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About Brittany 

Brittany Hodak is an award-winning entrepreneur, author, and customer experience speaker who helps businesses turn customers into superfans. She’s delivered keynotes to hundreds of organizations around the world, including American Express, Benihana, and Keller Williams. Her trademark SUPER Model™ framework has empowered teams in every industry to transform customer apathy into advocacy. 

Enjoying the show? Subscribe, leave a rating and review, and share this episode with someone who wants to create more superfans.

Subscribe to Brittany's biweekly newsletter
Follow Brittany on LinkedIn and Instagram
Grab a copy of Creating Superfans on Amazon

This week, I am joined by one of my dear friends, James Shaw. James is an accidental entrepreneur who turned an engaged Facebook group into a thriving mastermind during the pandemic. 

In this episode, James shares his journey of building a connected community, providing value to his customers, and the key choice every leader must make. After listening to our conversation, you’ll understand the power of identity and belonging in order to create an army of superfans.

James D. Shaw, the founder of  the Inspire Collective - a thriving agent mastermind community - is a true legend in the real estate community. He has been a member of the Keller Williams family since 2005 and has consistently demonstrated exceptional leadership and expertise. From 2012 to 2015, James led the Northwest Tampa market, transforming it into South Florida’s most profitable region. Prior to Tampa, he was the Team Leader for the Cary, North Carolina division and helped it grow from #4 to #1 in the area. James is a distinguished member of the Keller Williams University international master faculty and continues to inspire and mentor the next generation of real estate agents.

Show Notes:
[00:02:17] How James turned a Facebook group into a business
[00:03:07] How James responded to the pandemic and helped out fellow real estate agents
[00:07:01] When James realized the impact his Facebook group had, and what happened when he tried to shut it down.
[00:09:20] How Brittany heard of James through dozens of his superfans
[00:11:10] How James provides significant value for free to his audience
[00:12:00] Creating a paid mastermind community for progress and support.
[00:13:00] What community does for your business
[00:16:57] When you build your business, you can put your focus on one of two things: people or money.
[00:18:27] How to serve people who don't need you
[00:20:37] Caring for people leads to business success.
[00:24:53] How to delegate as an entrepreneur and why it's important to invest in a trustworthy team
[00:27:50 A creative way that James stayed in touch with his community while going on vacation and the 1-3-7 model he teaches to other entrepreneurs
[00:31:11] Be obsessed with adding value and understanding your customer's story. Then, find people that have answers to the problems and interview them.
[00:35:04] Position yourself as someone who can help. If your customer aren't coming to you for help, ask yourself why they don't look at you as someone to guide them.

The Inspire Collective
Pivot Shift Ahead Facebook Group

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About Brittany 

Brittany Hodak is an award-winning entrepreneur, author, and customer experience speaker who helps businesses turn customers into superfans. She’s delivered keynotes to hundreds of organizations around the world, including American Express, Benihana, and Keller Williams. Her trademark SUPER Model™ framework has empowered teams in every industry to transform customer apathy into advocacy. 

Enjoying the show? Subscribe, leave a rating and review, and share this episode with someone who wants to create more superfans.

Subscribe to Brittany's biweekly newsletter
Follow Brittany on LinkedIn and Instagram
Grab a copy of Creating Superfans on Amazon

In this week's episode of the Creating Superfans podcast, I'm joined by David Wachs, the founder and CEO of Handwrytten. 

Handwrytten is bringing back the lost art of letter-writing through scalable, robot-based solutions that write your notes in pen - directly from your CRM. 

Used by major subscription-service brands, eCommerce giants, nonprofits and individual professionals, Handwrytten is changing the way brands and people connect.

Prior to Handwrytten, David founded Cellit, a mobile marketing platform and agency that pioneered the concept of mobile customer relationship management. 

David and I chat about the creative ways your brand can stand out in today's AI-powered landscape, the do's and don'ts of sending personalized notes, and the power of automation and repetition in creating superfan customers.

Show Notes
7:05 - The automated birthday campaign feature
7:38 - Why it’s much harder to stand out through email these days
10:27 - the intent behind the technology and why it’s important
13:10 - A mistake a real estate agent has made with handwritten notes
14:00 - Why you need to send a  “full stop thank you”
16:02 - More ideas for when to send personalized notes to your customers
17:18 - The prospecting feature within Handwrytten that helps you generate leads through personalized notes
18:37 - A genius way a solar panel company utilizes Handwrytten
19:20 - How to use personal or contextual information in handwritten notes in an appropriate way
20:46 - Brittany shares ideas for more ways to follow-up with customers with handwritten notes
23:10 - How Handwrytten can help entrepreneurs who sell products off Amazon or other third-party sites that want to implement a level of personalization
26:18 - How Chewy excels at handwritten notes and surprise and delight
27:40 - David share an odd customer story
29:15 - What’s the most personal form of communication?
30:13 - If you’re asking what the ROI is on handwritten communication,  you’re asking the wrong  question.
33:20 - Another way some people ruin their thank you notes
33:50 - Visit handwrytten.com and click the business tab to request a free sample kit

Get your free sample of Handwrytten

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About Brittany 

Brittany Hodak is an award-winning entrepreneur, author, and customer experience speaker who helps businesses turn customers into superfans. She’s delivered keynotes to hundreds of organizations around the world, including American Express, Benihana, and Keller Williams. Her trademark SUPER Model™ framework has empowered teams in every industry to transform customer apathy into advocacy. 

Enjoying the show? Subscribe, leave a rating and review, and share this episode with someone who wants to create more superfans.

Subscribe to Brittany's biweekly newsletter
Follow Brittany on LinkedIn and Instagram
Grab a copy of Creating Superfans on Amazon

If you've been on the Internet at all this year, you have likely seen many stories about Taylor Swift's game changing Eras Tour. She is breaking records, rewriting the rules, and has had a seismic  (literally seismic!)  impact on just about every area of pop culture.

In today's episode of the podcast, I am thrilled to welcome my friend Emily Yahr to talk about the Eras tour and what it means not just for concert experience, but for pop culture experience moving forward.

Emily Yahr is an entertainment reporter for The Washington Post, where she covers TV, music, movies and celebrity culture. She joined the Washington Post in 2008 after previously writing for the Boston Globe, USA Today and the Lexington Kentucky Herald Leader. She was a guest covering the Eras tour at multiple stops and will share her thoughts not just on the tour, but on what's ahead for Taylor. 

Regardless of the industry you're in, you'll hear some actionable takeaways from the Eras Tour that you can incorporate into your business to create your own fervent army of superfans.

Show Notes:

[00:02:54] Trevor Noah impressed by Taylor Swift's popularity.

[00:05:33] Taylor Swift's concert exceeded everyone's expectations - especially with the duration of the show!

[00:09:37] Taylor Swift surprised fans with full-length performances.

[00:12:24] Eras tour creates online fandom frenzy.

[00:15:16] Stretching the customer experience: how Taylor masters the before, during, and after.

[00:20:08] How the Eras Tour perfectly showcases Taylor Swift's evolution as an artist

[00:27:57] Creative jobs at venues attract thousands of applicants.

[00:30:15] What Emily appreciates most as she has witnessed Taylor's evolution

[00:34:18] Taylor Swift's tour creates nonstop news from the most unlikely angles

Emily's article that I mentioned in the podcast: "The bonding experience of watching a Taylor Swift concert from a parking lot."

Read Emily Yahr's entertainment articles (including several more on Taylor Swift) here.

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About Brittany 

Brittany Hodak is an award-winning entrepreneur, author, and customer experience speaker who helps businesses turn customers into superfans. She’s delivered keynotes to hundreds of organizations around the world, including American Express, Benihana, and Keller Williams. Her trademark SUPER Model™ framework has empowered teams in every industry to transform customer apathy into advocacy. 

Enjoying the show? Subscribe, leave a rating and review, and share this episode with someone who wants to create more superfans.

Subscribe to Brittany's biweekly newsletter
Follow Brittany on LinkedIn and Instagram
Grab a copy of Creating Superfans on Amazon

To wrap up season 1 of the Creating Superfans podcast, I sat down with Angela Higgins and Traci Saliterman of Total Expert.

Angela and Traci are two of the masterminds behind Total Expert’s annual customer conference, Accelerate.

As a keynote speaker, I attend over fifty events each year, and Accelerate has truly set the standard for creating the best attendee experience. 

I asked Traci and Angela to share their top tips for event planners, including how to pick a good theme, how to maximize content opportunities at the conference, and ways to create incredible memories for your attendees.

Show Notes:
2:57 - What is Accelerate all about?

3:32 - Traci’s advice for mapping out the attendee experience

4:24 - How Total Expert creates unique networking opportunities for guests

6:02 - Light-up badges that you need to use for your next event

7:17 - How TE uses photo opportunities throughout the conference to keep people engaged

11:19 - The theme for 2023 Accelerate and how a theme helps the event marketing team

12:45 - Traci & Angela’s tips for choosing a theme

14:46 - Why Total Expert announces next year’s location during the current Accelerate

15:40 - How does Total Expert maximize the energy from the attendees to bring the company value throughout the year?

16:47 - The cross-departmental communication at Total Expert that ensures every team gets the content they need at Accelerate

18:26 - Angela & Traci’s tips for stretching the event budget

23:06 - How Accelerate gathers and implements attendee feedback

24:50 - How the event team debriefs right after the conference

26:00 - Spoilers of what guests can look forward to in a few weeks!

Learn more about Accelerate here.

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About Brittany 

Brittany Hodak is an award-winning entrepreneur, author, and customer experience speaker who helps businesses turn customers into superfans. She’s delivered keynotes to hundreds of organizations around the world, including American Express, Benihana, and Keller Williams. Her trademark SUPER Model™ framework has empowered teams in every industry to transform customer apathy into advocacy. 

Enjoying the show? Subscribe, leave a rating and review, and share this episode with someone who wants to create more superfans.

Subscribe to Brittany's biweekly newsletter
Follow Brittany on LinkedIn and Instagram
Grab a copy of Creating Superfans on Amazon

This week's guest on the Creating Superfans podcast is Laura Casselman. From broadway to boardroom, Laura is a former professional dancer turned CEO of JVZoo and co-founder of Vidastreet. She’s also the author of the new book, Trust Your Increments: How Small, Consistent Steps Can Lead to Massive Success. 

Companies under Laura’s direction have landed on the Inc. 5000 Fastest Growing Companies in America four times. 

In this episode, we talk about her journey as a female CEO in a male-dominated industry, how she prioritizes the employee experience at JVZoo, and her best tips for sales and affiliate marketing. 

Show Notes

2:15 - How has it been since Laura’s new book came out on March 7th

2:55 - Laura shares her background in entertainment and how she ended up in her corporate career

5:43 - How did Laura learn some key leadership skills at such an early age?

8:17 - How did Laura transition from the corporate world to being a CEO?

9:25 - One of the many sexist interactions that Laura experienced in her career

12:05 - What are some of the standards Laura has set at JVZoo that she would like to see across the board?

12:50 - How Laura’s team handles “bad” customers

16:44 - What is JVZoo and how do they help their customers?

17:36 - Why is affiliate marketing such a powerful tool?

18:55 - How does JVZoo ensure the integrity of the brand through their affiliate teams?

22:10 - The need to over-communicate the vision and expectations of your brand

23:11 - The massive move toward Mobile and what this means for your business

24:38 - This UX experience may be hurting your mobile success

27:25 - Younger generations may trust influencers more than they trust media or review sites

29:13 - How can people become an affiliate marketer to earn a new income stream?

30:17 - Which products on JVZoo is Laura a SUPERFAN of?

31:07 - How may AI change the digital customer experience over the next few years?

32:40 - Laura’s message to those who are concerned about using AI

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About Brittany 

Brittany Hodak is an award-winning entrepreneur, author, and customer experience speaker who helps businesses turn customers into superfans. She’s delivered keynotes to hundreds of organizations around the world, including American Express, Benihana, and Keller Williams. Her trademark SUPER Model™ framework has empowered teams in every industry to transform customer apathy into advocacy. 

Enjoying the show? Subscribe, leave a rating and review, and share this episode with someone who wants to create more superfans.

Subscribe to Brittany's biweekly newsletter
Follow Brittany on LinkedIn and Instagram
Grab a copy of Creating Superfans on Amazon