DCX Links | May 4, 2025
Emotion, Momentum & the Future We’re Building
Welcome to the DCX weekly roundup of customer experience insights!
It’s getting harder to ignore the shift happening in customer experience. From bots that make you feel something, to onboarding that persuades instead of instructs, to Kevin Kelly’s vision of emotionally intelligent AIs — the future of CX isn’t just operational. It’s personal.
And the leaders who get it? They’re doubling down on three things:
Emotion. Design. Strategic clarity.
In this week's lineup, you’ll meet the thinkers who are turning CX from a metric into a movement — and you’ll walk away with a dozen ideas to put into practice right now.
Ask yourself: Are you optimizing for task completion... or emotional connection?
Let’s dig in.
-Mark
This week’s must-read links:
Feel Something? Good. That Means Your UX Is Working.
Who’s Leading the CX Charge in 2025?
Writing Onboarding That Actually Works
The Great Progression: 2025–2050
CX in the Hot Seat: Where to Focus in 2025
CX Best Practices for 2025: What the Best Are Doing Differently
Feel Something? Good. That Means Your UX Is Working.
The big idea from Hans van Dam, CEO of The Conversation Institute in Amsterdam: Most bots still feel like digital filing cabinets. Helpful? Maybe. Memorable? Not even close. This article makes the case that the best user experiences aren’t just fast — they’re emotional.
Why you should care: Ever gotten the right answer from a bot but walked away feeling... nothing? That’s the problem. Helpful answers don’t always feel helpful. And in CX, feeling is everything.
What’s your bot really delivering? Let’s talk about CDI’s Emotional UX Pyramid (inspired by Aaron Walter):
Functional — It works. Cool.
Trustworthy — I feel safe. Getting warmer.
Behavioral — It helps me take action. Nice.
Contextual — It fits me. Now we’re talking.
Memorable — I won’t forget how it made me feel.
Where does your brand land? And more importantly... where do you want to be?
What are you really designing? Conversations aren’t just tasks — they’re rituals. Greetings. Reassurance. Sign-offs. These tiny moments show people they matter. Do your digital experiences do that?
Words that land — or fall flat When a bot says “You’re all set,” it’s not just a line. It’s closure. It’s the emotional punctuation that tells someone: you’re good now. Do your interactions land with that kind of care?
Here’s the real question: Are you designing for task completion, or emotional resolution?
My take: If your bot can’t say goodbye like a human, it probably shouldn’t be starting the conversation either.
Quick tip: Add a “ritual checklist” to your bot QA: Did we greet? Did we guide? Did we close the loop?
🔗 For all the details and to subscribe to Hans’ Substack:
Who’s Leading the CX Charge in 2025?
CX Network just dropped their annual list of the top 50 customer experience influencers — and it’s packed with people who are shaping how the world thinks about CX.
Why this matters: If you want to stay sharp, stay inspired, or stay ahead, you need to follow the right voices. This list highlights the thinkers, builders, and boundary-pushers who are moving the needle in CX right now.
What stood out:
It’s global. These aren’t just the usual suspects. You’ll find leaders from every corner of the world.
It’s diverse. Founders, CEOs, academics, creators — each one bringing a different lens to CX.
It’s practical. Each profile links to top blog posts, videos, and articles so you can dive deeper.
What should you do with this list?
Ask yourself: Who do I already follow — and who’s missing from my feed?
Use it to upgrade your learning circle. Who do you want to learn from this year?
Share it with your team. Great way to spark ideas, build curiosity, and fuel next-level thinking.
My take: This isn’t just a vanity list. It’s a radar for what’s shaping the CX conversation. If you're trying to lead change, you need to know who’s out in front.
Quick challenge: Pick 3 names you don’t recognize. Follow them. Read one of their pieces. Ask: what can I borrow, remix, or build on?
🔗 Learn more→ CX Network
Writing Onboarding That Actually Works
Your product’s first few screens aren’t just about orientation — they’re about persuasion. Done right, onboarding doesn’t just show how something works. It helps users want to keep going.
What to keep in mind:
There are two types of onboarding: one that explains, and one that learns. The best flows usually mix both.
Onboarding isn’t a tutorial. It’s a conversation — one that should feel light, human, and inviting.
Tips that hit home:
Set expectations early: How long will this take? What info will users need? If it’s more than just their name, give them a heads up.
Start with fun, not forms: Let people explore before asking for payment or commitment.
Balance simplicity and speed: Single-question screens look clean, but lots of them slow the flow. Mix it up.
Show progress: Progress bars, step counts, % complete — anything that makes users feel like they’re getting somewhere.
Explain the why: Don’t just ask for info. Tell users why it matters.
Lose the login wall: Can someone try your product without creating an account? Let them.
Save their spot: Assume they’ll get distracted. Let them come back where they left off.
Make it optional: Not every new user is new. Give a way to skip it.
Cut the clutter: One clear point beats five vague ones. Say less, better.
Let the product speak for itself: If you need five screens to explain it, maybe it’s too complicated.
Question to ask your team: Could a first-time user fall in love with your product before logging in? If not, what’s getting in the way?
🔗 Learn more→ UX Collective
The Great Progression: 2025–2050
What if AI doesn’t lead to a monolithic superintelligence, but instead spawns a diverse ecosystem of tools, assistants, and bots, each shaped for different jobs? In this sweeping conversation, Kevin Kelly urges us to imagine a future of many AIs, decentralized, emotionally intelligent, and deeply human-centered.
Why it matters: This isn’t sci-fi. It’s a strategic vision for the next 25 years. As part of Leyden’s “Great Progression” series, Kevin’s ideas help us rough out a roadmap for the kind of AI-powered world we’d actually want to live in.
Who is Kevin Kelly? Kelly is the founding executive editor of WIRED and one of the most original futurists of our time. His work blends technology, philosophy, and optimism — always asking not just where we’re headed, but what kind of future we want to build.
Big shifts to think about:
AIs, plural — not one giant brain. Think of them like machines in the Industrial Age: specialized, distributed, and evolving differently.
Decentralization as a virtue. Small-data AIs, permissionless innovation, and robots that don’t need to be tethered to Big Tech.
Robots with feelings? Yep. Kevin predicts we’ll soon program emotional intelligence into machines — not just because we can, but because it’s the best interface for working with humans.
Slow tech adoption is still transformation. Even if AI breakthroughs happen fast, the real shift takes time, because people, systems, and infrastructure need to catch up.
Legacy systems will struggle. Schools, corporations, and cities aren’t built for fast change. Expect startups and solopreneurs to lead the charge.
Future-forward takeaways:
Focus on AIs that augment humans, not replace them.
Don’t wait for a “Singularity.” Plan for a long, messy, and very human evolution.
Embrace bioengineering and clean energy as allies in the AI era.
Build toward a decentralized world where abundance powers innovation.
Final word: Kevin’s version of the future is rooted in optimism, curiosity, and deep respect for human complexity. If we want a better world by 2050, we better start designing for it — now.
🔗 Learn more→ Source
CX in the Hot Seat: Where to Focus in 2025
The big idea from Telus Digital’s 2025 CX Leaders Trends & Insights: CX is one of the few bright spots in a murky economy. But that spotlight comes with heat. Leaders are being asked to do more, prove more, and move faster — all while budgets stay tight.
Why this matters to you: C-suites aren’t just watching. They’re measuring. That means if you lead CX, your ability to prioritize smartly and prove ROI is no longer optional — it’s your job.
Three things to double down on:
Quality: 84% of CX leaders said improving service quality is their top priority. But here’s the kicker — only 40% track CX’s impact on loyalty. If you can’t connect those dots, how do you defend your budget?
Agent performance: As self-service soaks up routine tasks, your frontline now handles what bots can’t: emotional nuance, product complexity, last-chance loyalty saves. How are you enabling your agents to rise to that challenge?
Speed: Time to resolution is up 7% as a KPI priority. Customers want help fast, without compromising quality. Can your tech stack deliver?
What’s holding teams back? Not surprisingly: budget. But also — lack of clarity. Leaders are still struggling to get their GenAI pilots out of "test mode." Only 10% say they’re steady-state.
What helps? Strategic partnerships. 82% are leaning on outside help for AI tools, analytics, agent enablement. Are you?
Ask yourself:
Are we measuring what matters?
Are we building with speed and trust in mind?
Are we getting the help we need?
In 2025, it’s not about doing everything. It’s about doing the right things, exceptionally well.
🔗 Learn more→Source
CX Best Practices for 2025: What the Best Are Doing Differently
Customer expectations are sky-high. The best CX teams aren’t chasing trends — they’re designing systems rooted in human behavior, emotional memory, and operational clarity.
Why this matters: Aslan Patov, Founder & CEO of Renascence Consulting in Dubai says: If you’re still optimizing forms while your competitors are redesigning emotional journeys — you’re falling behind. The new CX playbook is part behavioral science, part service design, and all about impact, and these 12 practices are the foundation.
12 moves to make in 2025:
Design for behavior, not just steps: Use tools like loss aversion, framing, and peak-end mapping to shape how people feel at critical moments.
Start inside out: CX lives in employee habits. Ritualize internal feedback, recovery playbooks, and team huddles around real customer stories.
Prioritize emotional consistency: Forget “omnichannel.” Aim for consistent feelings across every touchpoint.
Use VoC to fuel real-time action: If your insights don’t reach the frontline fast, they’re just noise. Tag emotion, act fast, close loops.
Personalize with boundaries: Over-customizing creeps people out. Opt for clarity, predictability, and opt-in experiences.
Think service design, not shiny features: A smoother checkout or smarter signage might beat your next chatbot.
Make recovery your brand signature: Fast, confident recovery builds more loyalty than perfection ever could.
Respect data by default: Trust is emotional. Be transparent, ethical, and nudge toward privacy.
Build loyalty with meaning: Surprise, recognition, shared values — not just points.
Rethink measurement: Use data to spark conversations, not just track metrics.
Govern CX like strategy: Embed it in decision-making, budgets, and executive roles.
One final truth: Best practices don’t matter if they’re not yours.
Real talk: Are your CX efforts designed to be remembered — or just measured?
Challenge your team: Which of these 12 are you doing well? Which need work? And what would your customer say if they saw your behind-the-scenes playbook?
🔗 Learn more→Source
Thank you!
I hope you found value in this week’s links. See you next Sunday at 8:15 am ET!
If this edition sparked ideas, share it with a colleague or team member. Let’s grow the DCX community together!
👋 Please Reach Out
I created this newsletter to help customer-obsessed pros like you deliver exceptional experiences and tackle challenges head-on. But honestly? The best part is connecting with awesome, like-minded people—just like you! 😊
Here’s how you can get involved:
Got feedback? Tell me what’s working, what’s not, or what you’d love to see next.
Stuck on something? Hit me up whether it’s a CX challenge, strategy question, or team issue—I’m here to help.
Just want to say hi? Seriously, don’t be shy. I’d love to connect, share ideas, or even swap success stories.
Your input keeps this newsletter fresh and valuable. Let’s start a conversation—email me, DM me, or comment anytime. I can’t wait to hear from you!
— Mark
www.marklevy.co
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