The Intuitive Customer - Helping You Improve Your Customer Experience To Gain Growth

Colin Shaw and Professor Ryan Hamilton tackle the two processes that decide everything in customer experience: how memories get in, and how they get out. If you haven't heard Parts 1 and 2, start there — Colin and Ryan build on the "memories are structured like fishing nets" idea throughout.

Here's the uncomfortable truth at the center of this episode: a customer's memory of your experience isn't a recording you can trust. It's reconstructed, emotional, and easy to distort — and most organizations are accidentally reinforcing the worst version of it.

In this episode, Colin and Ryan cover:

S...

Silos are the silent killer of customer experience — but for years we've only argued that from one side of the coin: the customer's. This episode flips it over. Colin and Ryan are joined by Dan O'Connell, CEO of Front, to look at silos from the side that actually moves a boardroom — the cost.

Front's new research, the Coordination Tax, surveyed B2B customer service, operations, and account management leaders and uncovered a startling baseline: the typical company spends nearly three hours coordinating work for every one hour it spends actually solving a customer's problem. Worse, 42% of companies don...

In this episode of The Intuitive Customer, Colin Shaw and Professor Ryan Hamilton continue their deep dive into memory — arguably the most underused idea in customer experience. Because here's the uncomfortable truth: customers don't act on the experience you give them. They act on the memory of it.

Ryan introduces a brilliant analogy: memory works like a fishing net. Pull up one memory and you drag a whole network of related memories with it. Colin and Ryan then walk through the major types of memory — explicit, implicit, episodic, and the one that matters most for CX, evaluative — before...

Nobel laureate Professor Daniel Kahneman said we don't choose between experiences; we choose between the memory of an experience. If that's true — and the science says it is — then most organizations are investing in the wrong thing. In this episode, Colin and Ryan explore how memories are actually formed, the difference between short-term (working) and long-term memory, and why your brand is really just a memory structure in the minds of your customers. They dig into how heuristics and biases shape what we remember, why humans are relentless pattern-recognition machines, and what all of this means for the experiences you...

Episode Summary

Trust is the foundation of every customer relationship. But here's the uncomfortable truth: most businesses assume they have it when they don't. PwC's latest research found that 90% of executives believe their customers trust them highly — yet only 30% of customers actually do. That's a 60-point gap. And it's growing.

In this episode, Colin Shaw and Professor Ryan Hamilton from Emory University break down the five rules that are guaranteed to build genuine, lasting trust with your customers. These aren't theoretical — they're drawn from decades of real CX work, rooted in behavioural economics, and illustrated with...

After more than a decade of companies pouring money, technology, and consultants into customer experience, US customer satisfaction sits almost exactly where it did in 2013. Flat. Now AI arrives as the promised cavalry — and leaders are racing to bolt it onto everything before they understand what they're actually trying to fix.

In this episode, Colin and Ryan separate the smart play from the slow-motion mistake. "AI-first" is sound management: if AI delivers a better, faster, or cheaper experience than a human, use it. But "AI-only" — AI sprinkled over everything like fairy dust because leaders are terrified of bein...

Summary

Artificial Intelligence is transforming marketing faster than almost any technology before it. Brands can now create professional-quality advertisements in hours rather than months and at a fraction of the cost. But as AI-generated creative becomes more common, an important question is emerging: Are brands becoming more efficient while losing some of the humanity that customers value?

In this episode, Ben Shaw and Professor Ryan Hamilton explore the growing use of AI in advertising and marketing. They discuss why customers may care less about how cheaply content is produced and more about whether it feels...

Nostalgia isn't just "remembering the good old days." It's a bittersweet emotion—the strange mix of warmth, loss, pride, and longing that can make you feel good… even when the memory you're describing sounds objectively terrible.

In this episode, Colin and Ryan dig into why nostalgia is so powerful (and why it's everywhere right now). They explore the paradox: people don't just get nostalgic about the happy stuff—they also get nostalgic about the hard stuff, because it becomes part of identity ("I survived," "it made me," "we were close," "look how far we've come").

And fo...

Everyone's racing to be "AI-first." The problem? Customers didn't vote for it. In this episode, we unpack a practical decision framework for when AI should lead, when humans must lead, and how to avoid automating the very moments that drive loyalty (or churn). We also get into a surprising twist: why AI can sometimes sound more empathetic than people—and what that says about how most service teams are set up today.

What you'll learn in this episode

Why "AI-first" is usually a cost initiative pretending to be a strategy

A simple way to...

Customer Experience isn't short of activity—it's short of new ideas that actually land. In this episode, Colin and Ryan dig into why genuinely fresh thinking in CX struggles to break through, how industries get stuck in "normal science," and why it feels like we're doing more measurement… without more progress. They explore what a real disruption looks like, the warning signs that a paradigm is reaching diminishing returns, and how leaders can break out of the loop.

Best Quote

"When a paradigm hits its limits, the next move isn't 'do more.' It's think diff...

In this episode, Ryan Hamilton and I dig into the invisible "scripts" that hold everyday customer experiences together—those unwritten psychological expectations about what happens next, what signals mean, and how both customers and employees coordinate without even thinking about it. The trouble is: when technology (like mobile payments, kiosks, or automation) changes the steps, it can quietly break the script—creating uncertainty, awkwardness, and friction that wasn't there before. We explore why these scripts matter, how they differ by culture, and what leaders can do to help customers adopt new scripts without creating "prairie dog" moments.

Best...

Why do we actively seek out content that makes us angry? In this episode, Colin Shaw and Professor Ryan Hamilton explore the idea of consuming anger as an emotional experience. From doomscrolling and rage-bait headlines to viral customer complaints and outrage-driven media, they unpack why anger is such a powerful, bonding, and profitable emotion — and what this means for Customer Experience.

Best Quote from the Episode

"Sometimes people don't just experience anger — they actively consume it, because it makes them feel alive."

Professor Ryan Hamilton

Key Takeaways

Anger is not...

How will customers decide which decisions to hand over to AI?

As AI agents move to the front of the customer journey, brands are no longer competing for attention. They're competing for selection. And in many cases, they don't even realize they're being bypassed.

This conversation goes beyond tools and technology to examine the psychology of decision-making, trust, empathy, and what happens when AI becomes the primary decision-maker on behalf of customers.

🔑 What We Explore in This Episode

Why AI isn't replacing people—it's replacing decision effort

How customers decid...

What does customer experience look like when AI starts acting on behalf of the customer?

As AI agents increasingly understand customer context, remember past behavior, and reduce friction, they begin to insert themselves between companies and customers.

That shift has major implications for CX, branding, differentiation, and how organizations stay relevant when customers stop visiting websites, apps, and even stores.

This conversation focuses entirely on the customer's perspective, not internal AI efficiency. It's about what happens when customers trust AI agents to search, filter, recommend — and sometimes even buy for them.

Be...

How are you really using AI — and how does that compare to others?

In this episode, Colin Shaw introduces a simple behavioural framework for understanding how people are actually using AI today — not in theory, but in practice — and why this matters enormously for the future of Customer Experience.

Rather than treating AI as a technology maturity model, Colin reframes it as a behavioural curve, shaped by confidence, trust, intent, and the consequences of being wrong.

Drawing on real usage examples, ChatGPT analytics, and current research, Colin outlines four AI usage patterns that people...

Customer satisfaction has barely moved in over 30 years — despite enormous investment in Customer Experience.

In this episode of The Intuitive Customer, Professor Ryan Hamilton and Morgan Ward speak with Forrest Morgeson from the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI).

ACSI has tracked customer satisfaction continuously since 1994 using the same questions and methodology across the entire US economy. And the long-term data tells a story that challenges many comfortable CX assumptions.

Rather than steadily improving as CX practices mature, customer satisfaction rises and falls in cycles — heavily influenced by pricing, profitability, cost-cutting, and broader economic forc...

In this episode of The Intuitive Customer, Professor Ryan Hamilton is joined by Ben Shaw, seasoned brand strategist, to unpack the promises and pitfalls of synthetic audiences - AI-driven research used for faster, cheaper market research.

Synthetic audiences, powered by large language models (LLMs), can replicate customer segments and respond to creative concepts or product questions at scale cutting the time and cost of traditional surveys. But does it come with trade-offs? 

Expect lively debate on the AI vs. LLM naming debate, the enduring value of ethnography and nuance, and practical tips for blending synthetic a...

Sales and Customer Experience—two critical functions that should work together, but too often operate at odds. This week, Colin and Ryan explore how traditional sales tactics can undermine long-term loyalty and create organisational silos. They share personal stories (including Colin's car-buying nightmare) and practical advice for aligning sales with your desired customer experience. If you want to sell AND build trust, this episode is for you.

Best Quote of the Episode:
"If you can't proudly stand behind the experience you're creating, you've got a problem." — Colin Shaw

Key Takeaways:

✅ Traditional closing techni...

Trust in traditional institutions is eroding. As customers lose faith in advertising, government and even online reviews, they're turning to voices that feel most relatable: peers and communities. Edelman's latest Trust Barometer shows the most credible spokesperson for a company is now "people like me."

Ben Shaw and Professor Ryan Hamilton explore the decline of influencer credibility, the rise of community-driven word-of-mouth, the tension between authenticity and control, and why attention + trust will be the "coins of the realm" for brands in the decade ahead.

🔑 Key Takeaways

Trust > control – brands that o...

Episode Overview

When everything is one-click easy, do we lose something meaningful? Guest host Dr. Morgan Ward joins Dr. Ryan Hamilton to explore how the right amount of friction in the consumption experience can boost connection, meaning, and long-term use of the product—while the wrong kind just gets in the way.

Quote of the Episode

"Consumption, in some ways, has just gotten too easy." — Dr. Morgan Ward

🔑 Key Takeaways

In this episode, Colin Shaw shares a recent personal experience with a major brand that imposed a 'gag order' (NDA) after a poor service experience — and how this reflects a deeper organizational issue: silos. Together with Professor Ryan Hamilton, Colin explores why siloed thinking leads to incoherent customer experiences, how internal motivations can conflict with CX goals, and what leaders must do to ensure learning, trust, and advocacy remain priorities. A must-listen for CX professionals and senior leaders alike.

Best Quote:

"Who decides? That is the question every leadership team should ask — and answer wisely."

Episode Overview

Ever buy something you couldn't wait to get—and then let it sit in the box for days (or weeks)? You're not alone. Guest host Morgan Ward joins Ryan Hamilton to explore why we often love the pursuit of products more than the possession of them.

From unopened tools and "someday" sweaters to the viral Stanley Cup craze, they unpack the psychology of anticipation, dopamine, and why the thrill fades once the package arrives.

This episode reveals what's really driving that "add to cart" impulse—and how brands can design experiences that...

In this episode of The Intuitive Customer, Professor Ryan Hamilton is joined by guest host Ben Shaw to explore the high-stakes world of rebranding.

From Cracker Barrel's logo backlash to Jaguar's radical design overhaul, they unpack what happens when brands chase new audiences at the expense of their loyal customers.
The conversation dives into the tension between rebranding vs. repositioning, why heritage brands face special challenges, how politics and culture can hijack brand decisions, and practical lessons for leaders trying to grow without alienating their core base.

Key Takeaways

Rebrand ≠ Reposition: A...

Summary

Traditional customer feedback is broken. Post-call surveys and quarterly reports are too slow, cumbersome, and overly focused on the company's needs rather than the customer's reality. By the time insights land on a dashboard, the customer has already left—or worse, lost trust.

In this episode of The Intuitive Customer, I (Colin Shaw) and Professor Ryan Hamilton sit down with Devidas Desai, SVP of Product Leader at ASAPP, to explore how AI that listens is reshaping the way organizations understand and respond to customers in the moment.

We delve into why silence doesn't mean sa...

In this episode of The Intuitive Customer, Professor Ryan Hamilton is joined by guest co-host Ben Shaw, Chief Strategy Officer at MullenLowe, to explore the enduring role of brand archetypes in marketing and customer experience. They revisit the origins of archetypes in Jungian psychology and the influential book The Hero and the Outlaw (Pearson & Mark), before debating how useful the framework remains today. Together, they discuss the power of archetypes to create consistency, unlock creativity, and guide internal decision-making while also recognizing their limitations, risks of rigidity, and occasional resemblance to horoscopes. The conversation ranges from brand strategy in...

Your Customers are Lazy... and Bored: How to Use That to Your Advantage

Show Notes:

This week on The Intuitive Customer, Colin takes a step back and welcomes guest host Morgan Ward to explore one of psychology's favourite contradictions: why customers cling to the familiar, yet crave novelty. From music playlists to yogurt purchases, from comfort food to product design, Colin and Morgan unpack why we're wired for both—and how brands can use that tension to create better customer experiences.

Best Quote from the Episode "Familiarity earns trust. Novelty earns attention. Get th...

In this milestone episode, The Intuitive Customer undergoes a transformation. Colin Shaw announces a step back from the regular hosting role, prompting a fresh chapter in the podcast's evolution. Hosts Colin Shaw and Professor Ryan Hamilton introduce two new expert contributors — Dr. Morgan Ward, a consumer psychologist, and Ben Shaw, a brand strategist — to bring fresh perspectives on customer behavior, brand experience, and the future of CX.

Together, the four hosts discuss the state of customer experience today, particularly in light of the stagnant growth in the American Customer Satisfaction Index over the past three decades. They deba...

You can theorise about Customer Experience all day, but gaining a Net Promoter score of 90 is not a theory. It shows a great focus and implementation of Customer Experience. This week, we are exploring how this was achieved with Kamron Kunce, VP of Marketing & Customer Experience at RJ Young. https://www.rjyoung.com/

RJ Young has been in business for over 70 years and boasts a world-class NPS score of 90+ — no small feat in today's hypercompetitive market.

Kamron shares how they've transformed their Customer Experience, navigated organisational silos, and are thoughtfully introducing AI into their processes — with...

In this episode of The Intuitive Customer, Colin Shaw speaks with Andy Traba, VP of Product Marketing at NICE, about the company's new mission: Creating a NiCE World. This isn't just a rebranding message — it's a strategic shift toward unified, proactive, and AI-enabled customer experiences.

Andy and Colin explore why AI alone isn't enough, the dangers of siloed implementations, and why leading organizations are turning to platforms — not point solutions — to orchestrate connected, emotionally resonant journeys.

If your organization is serious about CX transformation, this conversation provides clear guidance on where to start, what to avoid...

AI is taking over—well, at least some parts of customer service. But how do you know when to automate and when to stick with the good old-fashioned human touch? In this episode, we dive into one of the most crucial decisions organizations are making today: When should you use AI, and when do customers actually need a human?

Spoiler alert: If you let AI handle everything, you might save money—but you could also drive your customers straight to your competitors.

Best Quote from the Episode:

"You don't want AI handling a $300 mill...

How do you grow your revenues without upsetting your existing customers?

In this episode, Colin Shaw and Professor Ryan Hamilton dive into the new book he has written with Anne Wilson, Senior Lecturer at Wharton.

Published by Harvard Business Review Press, the book is called:

The Growth Dilemma: Managing Your Brand When Different Customers Want Different Things

Available here: https://bit.ly/3ZCN2wD

Professor Ryan Hamilton reveal how brand growth often gets derailed not by bad strategy, but by insufficient attention to how your customer segments relate to...

Have you ever said "thank you" to a chatbot or Chat GPT? Well, you're not alone—and you might just be weirder than you think. It turns out AI can be more empathic than people. But what do Customers think of AI experiences? Academic research reveals the answers we discuss in this show.

In this special live-recorded episode from the SOCAP Conference, Colin Shaw and Professor Ryan Hamilton explore the psychology behind how customers actually feel about AI—and what that means for your customer experience.

Ryan dives into the latest academic research on AI trus...

How happy are you when you buy auto insurance? If your answer is anything other than thrilled, you're not alone. In fact, years ago, a UK insurance company tried to convince us otherwise with their tagline "Quote Me Happy." Spoiler alert: Nobody was happy.

This raises a fascinating question: What role does advertising play in the customer experience, and why is there such a massive disconnect between the ads we see and what we actually get?

In this episode, Colin Shaw and Professor Ryan Hamilton dive deep into the Great Expectation Gap—and they've brought in...

Episode Summary:

Everyone's talking about AI like it's some kind of CX fairy godmother—"Bibbidi-bobbidi-boo! Your NPS just went up 50 points!"

Spoiler alert: it doesn't work like that.

In this episode, Colin and Ryan are joined by Frederic Durand, CEO of Diabolocom, and Collin D. Ehret, Senior Enterprise Sales Director (yes, another Collin… brace yourself), for a no-fluff, practical, and slightly irreverent discussion about what it really takes to implement AI in your customer experience.

Diabolocom

Website: https://www.diabolocom.com/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/diabolocom/

F...

Eight years, 750,000 downloads, and 400 episodes later, The Intuitive Customer is celebrating this major milestone! In this episode, Colin Shaw and Professor Ryan Hamilton reflect on what has changed in customer experience over the years and share their biggest learnings.

Podcasting is booming, with 546 million listeners worldwide.

47% of the U.S. population (12+) listens to a podcast at least once a month.

Podcast ad spending is projected to hit $4.02 billion in 2024.

But here's the kicker:

50% of podcasts die after three episodes.

Only 20% make it past 10 epi...

First impressions aren't just important—they're everything. Research shows that customers, clients, and even your colleagues are forming opinions about you, your brand, and your business in mere seconds—often before you even get a chance to introduce yourself!

In this episode, Colin Shaw and Professor Ryan Hamilton dive deep into the psychology of first impressions, exploring the fascinating (and slightly terrifying) science behind snap judgments. How fast do customers decide whether they like or trust you? Why do first impressions stick so stubbornly? And most importantly—how can you make sure your business gets it right?

Trust: it's the glue that holds relationships together—both personal and professional. Yet, so many businesses get it wrong. In this special milestone episode (yes, 400 episodes!), Colin Shaw and Professor Ryan Hamilton break down why trust is the foundation of every great customer experience and, more importantly, how you can earn it, keep it, and leverage it to drive growth.

From sneaky fees that erode confidence to honesty that wins lifelong loyalty, we're covering ten essential actions that will guarantee your customers trust you—and keep coming back. Plus, we share some eye-opening research on why people some...

Are we thinking less in the age of information overload? In this episode of The Intuitive Customer, Colin Shaw and Professor Ryan Hamilton discuss the hidden dangers of short-term thinking in customer experience. Businesses are obsessed with quick fixes, but is this addiction to fast results actually damaging long-term success?

Join us as we explore why short-form content gives the illusion of learning, why deep understanding requires more than a 30-second soundbite, and how behavioral science can transform your customer experience for the long haul.

From the pitfalls of Net Promoter Score (NPS) to the...

🔹 Ever wonder why you always end up choosing the medium popcorn, even when you weren't hungry? Or why some websites magically guide you toward the "best" deal? That's not luck—it's behavioral science in action.

In this episode of The Intuitive Customer, Colin Shaw and Professor Ryan Hamilton reveal the power of nudging—tiny tweaks that subtly influence decisions without forcing them. But here's the catch: sometimes nudges don't work at all. So, what separates a genius nudge from a total flop? That's exactly what we're unpacking today.

"Nudges feel like magic...