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Writer's pictureEsa Nettamo

The Importance of Continuous Customer Learning: Insights from Ville Österlund at JourneyOps Stockholm

Updated: Jun 29



In a captivating presentation at the JourneyOps Stockholm event, Ville Österlund, founder and CEO of LeanLab, underscored the critical importance of continuous customer learning. LeanLab provides a platform to facilitate ongoing customer dialogue and research at scale, helping organisations stay competitive in today's fast-paced market. Here’s a detailed look at Ville's key points and how LeanLab is transforming customer research.


Embracing the Era of the Customer

Ville began by highlighting the current era of the customer, where consumers can easily switch brands and are spoilt for choice. To build loyalty and drive repurchase, companies must create meaningful experiences, which hinge on their ability to learn from customers quickly. The speed of customer learning is crucial for building these experiences and staying competitive.


The Learning Curve Dilemma

Ville presented a common issue in many organisations: the speed of learning from customers is often flat. He illustrated this with a hypothetical company scenario where internal decisions were made without adequate customer input, leading to poor adoption of new features or services. This approach often results in missed opportunities and dissatisfied customers.


The Aha Moment Behind LeanLab

Ville shared his personal journey as a user researcher, which led to the founding of LeanLab. Frustrated by the lack of time and budget for rigorous user research, he envisioned a platform that allows continuous user collaboration. LeanLab was born as a fast, safe environment where organisations can bring users into the development process to test ideas and concepts iteratively.


LeanLab: A Continuous User Collaboration Platform

LeanLab connects customers with teams working on different customer journey initiatives. The platform's core is building a private lab where selected customers from various segments can contribute to design, UX, or CX development initiatives. This approach eliminates the constant need for recruitment and enables rapid results within 24 hours.


Tools for Every Stage of the Process

LeanLab offers a balanced set of tools for different stages of the triple diamond process. From discovery tools like diaries and discussions to preference testing and unmoderated usability tests, LeanLab equips teams with qualitative and quantitative tools to understand customer journeys deeply and validate concepts quickly.


Streamlining Reports and Decision Making

One of LeanLab's innovations is simplifying reporting to expedite decision-making. Ville explained how LeanLab offers various types of reports that combine qualitative and quantitative data, allowing teams to move faster and make informed decisions without getting bogged down in lengthy documentation.


Case Study: Lindex Group

Ville showcased a case study with the Lindex Group, a subsidiary of Stockmann in Finland. Lindex built an extensive voice of customer program using LeanLab, enabling them to connect closely with their customers and make informed decisions quickly. This collaboration led to higher engagement rates and valuable insights that improved their service offerings.


Improving Survey Engagement

LeanLab has significantly improved survey engagement rates by creating a private environment where participants feel more connected to development teams. This approach has led to five to ten times higher response rates compared to traditional surveys, addressing the issue of survey apathy.


Where Is Your Company on the Learning Curve?

Ville concluded with three learning curves representing different levels of customer learning maturity. He encouraged organisations to evaluate their position and identify areas for improvement. Whether starting from scratch or looking to optimise existing processes, continuous customer learning is vital for staying competitive.


Start Your Journey Management Transformation Today

If you are interested in exploring how continuous customer learning can transform your organisation, we would love to hear from you. Let's discuss how we can tailor these strategies to fit your unique needs and drive success in your business. Please feel free to contact us to start this exciting journey together.



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