With so many brands struggling on the user-experience front, it can be difficult to admit when their competitors truly get it.
The following examples, for instance, will likely induce some eye rolling by those following customer experience (CX) closely but they are truly pushing the envelope of digital experiences and are quickly setting the expectations for everyone else.
The people at Starbucks have revolutionized mobile payments and are likely to be very influential in consumers finally embracing mobile wallet technology. That's because Starbucks app users can pay for their orders by presenting their mobile phone and even add funds to their accounts with a touch of their fingerprint (when touch ID is enabled). Starbucks recently even upgraded its mobile payment technology in that it used to be a pain to transfer gift cards to the mobile app and now it's a much more automated experience where getting a gift card isn't a hassle but rather a true gift. Starbucks is also proving that buy online (or rather in app) and pick up in store can be truly seamless as a person creates an order, pays for it within the app, just walks up to the pick-up counter and walks away with their order - self-service at its current finest but Amazon is going to do them one better.
Yes, Amazon. It has given us one-day delivery, subscription memberships for free, one-click ordering, expedited shipping, our order history for years and personalized recommendations galore. Amazon just blew many of our minds though, announcing a beta program of "Amazon Go," which is a cashier-less grocery store where people gain access to the brick-and-mortar location by scanning their app and then can purchase anything in the store by simply picking up items and walking out. Amazon later charges them and sends them a receipt (similar to how no transactions are made with an Uber driver).
Can't get away with a customer experience story without mentioning Uber, which single handedly put digital transformation on the map. Uber took a very inconvenient industry and made it convenient by allowing passengers to request an Uber via the app, pay for the ride within the app, rate the driver and much more to simplify the process of going to and fro with a stranger.
The sharing economy is hot, but Venmo helps people pay for it. Whether it's paying a roomie for bills or settling up services from a local vendor, Venmo allows for the easiest payment transferring there is. Young adults are using "Venmo" as a verb, which means it's made it and is nailing the digital experience.
Investing has been a hands-off industry for many people but Stash makes putting a little money (or a lot) into some pretty interesting funds very simple. Investments for as little as $5 in the hands of everyone young and old is a truly digital experience that Stash is nailing, and we should see many more advancements in the financial-tech industry - soon.