in insurance, and 15 percentage points in electric power and natural gas (EPNG) in cross-sell. Given that these activities are directly linked to value, it was possible to calculate an approximate link to the value that moments of delight created. Our research showed that, in insurance, if companies delighted a significant portion of their customers who were already satisfied, this could lead to additional revenue of 8 to 12 percent— translating into several billion euros a year. More broadly, we noticed that companies differentiating basis customer experience also witnessed their revenue growth double. Uncover the drivers of delight We have seen that delight can deliver significant value—so what are its biggest drivers? Through our research, we developed a large database of moments of delight mentioned by customers and analyzed them to understand the type of experiences, triggers, and longitudinal impact of different types of delight drivers. At the most basic level, we found that the majority of delight drivers falls into two categories—service excellence (intangibles) and product innovation. Within these areas, wherever expectations are high, the bar for delight becomes even higher. Service excellence We found that genuine, authentic human interactions that lead to personal connections usually result in significant customer delight. Courtesy and kindness create a break from transactional interactions, sparking moments of delight. Take, for example, a barista who learned American Sign Language to be able to deliver a consistent experience to a differently abled customer. Or, imagine if a cab driver had a preset “menu” to offer customers (for example, essential items such as beverages and snacks, or backseat gaming) that would lead to a positive emotional impact, causing delight. And, as many basic interactions now move to digital, self-service channels, the remaining employee or frontline interactions become even more important— they form connections with customers in more authentic ways and bring the human touch to experiences. As an example, take a customer who, when referring to his interaction with a call center employee, said, “The agent talked about their personal life, we laughed together and had a wonderful conversation.” This interaction created a personal connection for him. In another example, a US-based online pet retailer received a call from a grieving customer who wanted to return an unopened bag of dog food as her pet had died. The rep didn’t just give the customer a full refund but suggested she donate the food to nearby shelter, and sent her a personalized note of condolence. In these types of simple and inexpensive ways, companies can focus on creating environments and playbooks that promote personal interactions between customers and employees. In fact, as digital and cognitive assistants become more human-like, perhaps it is even possible that some of these delightful interactions may be delivered more authentically by digital agents in the future. Proactive service recovery is also a strong driver of surprise. Many hospitality companies know that guests who experience spectacular service recovery after facing an issue often rate their stays even higher than satisfied customers who have not encountered problems during their stays. This learning is applicable to other sectors as well, such as banking or insurance. When a service break occurs, most customers have a rational level expectation of what recovery should look like. But brands that significantly supersede that expectation of recovery, or do it in unexpected ways, can generate surprise and create promoters out of detractors. Product innovation Tangibles beyond people-driven moments strongly contribute to delight. Unexpected sensory experiences—especially multimodal ones—trigger joy and surprise, while participation and personal indulgence amplify this effect. For example, airlines 6 Fueling growth through moments of customer delight