Customer engagement innovation - Going beyond the sale

These kinds of innovations are about creating innovative interactions with people to allow them to connect with the business, outside of the core product or service you offer them – often free of charge.

Think of the Lego Company as a prime example of this type of innovation. A company founded in 1932 that sold plastic, interlocking toy blocks, now has a media (movies and TV shows), theme park and gaming empire worth a whopping $7.57 billion as of 2018.

This type of innovation requires you to intimately understand your client’s aspirations, developing insights and tapping into those to create compelling experiences that continue to keep them engaged. 

American Family Insurance, a Fortune 500 company that offers auto, home, business, and life insurance, was seeking a way to make an impact beyond its traditional insurance services, helping people earn and protect—not just insure—the things they value.

They did this by establishing the Moonrise platform which is a match-making platform for people looking and organisations offering short term shift work. Workers can sign up for shifts through a simple text message interface and get paid as soon as their shifts are done. Through Moonrise, American Family Insurance is able to provide their customers with the ability to earn more, building on their desire to offer more than just insurance.  This innovation engages their clients in a new and unexpected way, keeping American Family Insurance front of mind.

Harley-Davidson is another brand that achieves excellence in its approach to customer engagement. Once a customer purchases a Harley, that customer is a member of the Harley family for life. For more than 15 years, Harley-Davidson has organised an initiative called Harley Owners Group, or HOG, that connects owners with each other and the company. HOG helps members with all sorts of bike-related issues, providing seminars on maintenance and assistance in developing a local chapter of their motorcycle club. By far, HOG is the world’s largest factory-sponsored bike club, claiming 325,000 members and 940 chapters. By encouraging customers to remain active in the Harley-Davidson community, the company provides them with an outstanding experience and nearly guarantees their loyalty to the brand.