Ten Customer Experience Lessons from the Great Harry Houdini

This article answers the question: What customer experience (CX) lessons can businesses learn from Harry Houdini?

Answer: Businesses can learn from Houdini to create memorable customer experiences by knowing their audience, building anticipation, making excellence look effortless, recovering impressively from problems, protecting their reputation, and always leaving customers wanting more.

This coming October 31 is more than just another year of Halloween. It’s the 100th anniversary of Harry Houdini’s death. If you’ve been following me for some time, you may know that I’ve been doing magic tricks since I was 10. In high school and college, I performed in comedy clubs and at corporate events, before I graduated and started my business doing keynote speeches on customer service and customer experience (CX).

So, let’s have some fun. I’ve read a dozen or more books on Houdini’s life, and as I reflect on the upcoming 100th anniversary of his death, what CX lessons can we learn from the man who could escape from almost everything but obscurity?

Here are 10 CX lessons we can learn from Houdini, 100 years after his death:

1. Own What You Want to Be Known For: What is the one thing that you do really well, maybe even better than almost everything else? Make sure your customers know, too!

2. Be Memorable: Being good gets you in the game. It will even make you competitive. The next level is being memorable enough to get people talking about you.

3. Know Your Audience: Houdini understood what his audience wanted: excitement, thrills, suspense and amazement. He never let them down. What does your audience (i.e., customers) want? Give it to them!

4. Turn Marketing into an Experience: Houdini’s publicity stunts weren’t just advertising. The marketing became part of the show. What do your publicity and marketing do to add to the customer’s experience?

5. Create Anticipation: This follows up on turning marketing into an experience. Houdini knew the experience started before he stepped on stage. As people entered the theatre, the anticipation created excitement about what was to come. What can you do to create excitement for the customers before they start doing business with you?

6. Practice Until It Looks Easy: Part of Houdini’s showmanship was to make his stunts look dangerous. Preparation and repetition made what seemed impossible easy. It’s the same in business. The best customer experience looks effortless, but behind the scenes are people, processes, and training that make it that way.

7. Keep Raising Expectations: Once the audience saw a show, he would return the following year with something better. What’s your version of “new and improved?” What do you do to stay fresh, and even ahead of the competition? Think like Houdini!

8. Turn a Problem into a Performance: Houdini was famous for getting out of impossible situations. In customer service, customers bring us problems and complaints. Just as Houdini escaped difficult situations to a rousing round of applause, we should strive to turn our customers’ complaints into something they will rave about.

9. Protect Your Reputation: Houdini knew the value of his name and protected it. Your reputation is one of your most valuable assets. It takes years to build and just one bad experience to damage. Protect it!

10. Leave Them Wanting More: This is an old show business line, and a perfect lesson to end on. Great performers know when to exit the stage, leaving the audience wanting to come back. It’s the same in business. Be sure your customer service and experience leave your customers saying, “I’ll be back!”