“73% of customers say experience is a key factor in their purchasing decisions just behind price and product quality,” according to a report from PwC.

Customer experience is no longer just a support function of your business... it’s a leadership strategy.

In this episode, we’re joined by Van Battle, a seasoned customer experience leader who has first hand experience on how it can improve a company’s success based on his career working with brands like Jamba Juice, Urban Remedy, and The Sharper Image.

In this episode you will learn:

• The real difference between customer service and customer experience
• How to turn your support team into your company’s most strategic asset
• Why empathy is a leadership skill
• How “minor league” development programs can retain top talent
• What most companies get wrong when using AI in customer experience
• How to empower reps to resolve issues without escalating every time
• What leaders must do to instill a culture of ownership

00:16 – Leading through stewardship: what it looks like

01:09 – Lessons from the restaurant world: empathy starts on the frontlines

03:26 – The invisible value of busboys and call center reps

05:18 – Why Van sends reps into stores and orders their own products

06:58 – Customer service vs. customer experience

08:46 – Anticipating issues before they happen

10:23 – Turning reps into “insight engines”

12:32 – Avoiding burnout: how to distribute workload fairly

13:40 – Baseball, development, and team balance

14:57 – The “minor league program” for career growth

17:11 – Upskilling with Learnit: real examples that worked

19:03 – Creating a culture of learning and mobility

20:04 – Training teams to own the resolution

22:45 – Building confidence through empowerment

23:39 – When the customer isn’t right—and how to respond

25:22 – Tracking patterns to prevent abuse

26:52 – Balancing trust between customer and employee

29:36 – How to turn customer data into internal action

32:01 – Getting specific: “friendly” means what exactly?

33:18 – How customer expectations have evolved

35:52 – Humanizing digital experiences in a tech-first world

37:49 – What Southwest’s shift says about customer loyalty

39:14 – What AI should never replace

41:04 – Will AI replace frontline workers?

42:47 – Van’s biggest leadership lesson about customer experience

Resources & Mentions:

• Follow Van on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vancbattlejr/
• Urban Remedy: https://urbanremedy.com/
• Jamba Juice: https://www.jamba.com/

Website: www.learnit.com

Email: [email protected]

Follow us on LinkedIn and Instagram for show updates