Customer connectedness according to Rien Brus: building a connection between people and people

Soda: 'Aegon was originally a product-oriented insurer, but has now made significant development into a customer-oriented service provider. That is a journey that I try to guide for the Aegon company. Worldwide. We want all countries to move forward with the same strategy; not only in products but especially in customer connectedness, i.e. the connection with the customer.'

The things that matter to a customer are universal

'Do we see major differences between the countries? Yes, but that answer is much more no. I have stood in front of many large groups. Think of Japan, Brazil, America and Turkey. And of course there are differences between countries, cultures and Aegon branches. But overall I see more similarities than differences. Those things that a customer finds important or those things that would really surprise a customer are universal. Not dependent on culture or industry.

Rien Brus is Global Vice President of Customer Strategy at Aegon and international keynote speaker.

''Customer connectedness is not something that comes on top of your product. It is the essence and raison d'être of your organization.”

Deeper motivations are needed to turn a customer into a fan

Sometimes I do an exercise within a country where I ask which company people are fans of. Of course the answer differs per country, in Japan they mention a different organization than in the Netherlands. But there is little difference as to why someone is a fan. It is much more about the deeper motivations.'

Moving towards customer connectedness

'An example? As a human being, everyone wants to feel that they are different, special or special. That is a human characteristic. The fact that an individual customer sometimes feels like a number is often inevitable within large organizations. A natural phenomenon that you cannot always do anything about. But the moment you meet your customer overall can give the feeling that it is about the connection between people and people and not between company and people, only then can you really move towards customer connectedness. This must be noticeable in everything you do towards your customers, whether letters or telephone calls.'

My bottle of coke is no different from the neighbors'

'I have completed various studies. Also in the field of customer experience and customer connectedness. But when I look at my career so far, I have learned the most from my student job behind the bar and later in my own cafe. When I think back, it ultimately benefited me more than my studies and work at large companies. The basic idea that you should provide a good product but also give your customer a good feeling really came to fruition for me. At the time, people did not come to my catering business for my beer or my coke. Nobody sits on a terrace just to be thirsty (okay sometimes). But my bottle of coke is no different from the neighbors'. It's about how you make people feel rather than just the underlying product. My challenge is that this not only applies to a cafe, but also to a large organization like Aegon.'

The essence & raison d'être of your organization

'I often hear people say that customer experience and customer connectedness are the sauce that goes on the product. In my view, it is not the sauce, but the essence. I would like to convey that mindset change; the realization that being connected to your customer is not something you do on top of your product. But that it is actually the essence and raison d'être of your organization.'

In a webinar Earlier this year, Rien spoke about his experience at Aegon, but he mainly woke people up in the field of customer connectedness.