Articles by Nienke Bloem

The story behind the blue dress

Maybe you know, maybe you don't. But me wearing a blue dress when I perform and speak, has a start. I call it the birth of my personal brand. Let me share the story with you. It was Sunday March 29th 2015. I was invited to my first Professional Speaker Association event, not only to [...]

It is possible

My new couch would be delivered. Over seven weeks later than planned. There was something about the fabric (or lack thereof), delivery issues and hassle at the factory in Italy. The communication did not go very well, but now there was good news. The bank had arrived in the Netherlands and was at the transport company. I got a call from a [...]

Coolblue-weary

"Nienke, shall we just not talk about Coolblue for once? Aren't there other cool examples when it comes to customer experience?" A comment from a recent Customer Experience Masterclass. It could be that there is Coolblue fatigue in the world of customer experience. And yes, I get that. Always that brand promise, that 'Everything [...]

Reality check for marketers

...why you are getting it all wrong when it comes to the visual revolution We are in the age of the visual revolution. I'm sorry? What? Yes, visuals are the bomb. Not just a little bit, but all over the place. Where Instagram is growing like crazy, YouTube is the second largest search engine and [...]

The Why and How of my Customer Experience study trip

"How do you stay inspired, Nienke?" "What companies do you want to visit and learn from their CX secrets?" "Where do you get new material for your speeches and masterclasses?" Three random questions I got from CX peers and personal friends. Very valid questions, because I am a teacher to others, inspire others, get them [...]

25 ways to stay inspired as a Customer Experience professional

The thing I hear often is that fellow Customer Experience Professionals work hard. They are focused on realizing their customer centric transformation, improving NPS and CES (or other customer metrics, but that is another blog post ?) and engaging the organization. You might also recognize that as you are working hard, it can make you [...]

George Michael

The waiter in the restaurant puts down the sushi bowl and gives me his broad smile once again. "What is your favorite George Michael song?" I ask him. He does not have to think about that for long. And he answers that secretly, he is a bigger fan of Engelbert Humperdinck. But that George Michael is his ....

The experience paradigm: Customer or Employee first?

When it comes to organizational transformation, this is an important and often raised question. What are the leading principles coming out of your strategy in order to transform your business model? Frank van den Brink, Chief Employee Experience Officer of ABN AMRO bank and I share our insights and opinions. We try to get our heads [...]