A Look Back at the Top Articles and Podcasts of 2024

We have crossed over into the new year, and 2024 is now a history lesson. But there is a lot we can learn from history. In 2024, I wrote 52 Shepard Letter articles and released 52 podcast episodes. Here are the five best from each category. Enjoy – and learn from these “history lessons.” 

Top Five Shepard Letter Blogs – My weekly blog is available on the website and is also emailed to subscribers. Some people have told me they love the cartoons and don’t read the articles. Here is the best from 2024: 

1. Rip the Band-Aid Off Communication: Communication is a cornerstone of the customer experience. Typically, nobody wants to hear bad news, but if you must relay it, do it quickly. 

2. Customer Service Week 2024: This special week is celebrated the first full week of October. While we want to recognize our customers, the true meaning of this is to celebrate the employees who take care of our customers. This year, I shared five ideas to inspire, motivate, and appreciate your employees.  

3. Top Customer Service and CX Predictions and Trends for 2024: Each year, I make observations based on what I see and hear happening in the customer service/CX space and what we find in our annual CX research.  

4. Don’t Throw Fellow Employees Under the Bus: When mistakes occur, how employees react and what they say impacts the customers’ perception of the business. It may be someone else’s fault, but to the customer, you are the company. Your goal is to win back the customer’s confidence. That doesn’t happen when you blame others.  

5. Make the Complicated Simple: The quote I used in the opening paragraph of this article sums up the point. Steve Jobs of Apple once said, “It takes a lot of hard work to make something look simple.” Our customers appreciate it when we can de-complicate and simplify anything related to doing business with us. Find ways to be simple! 

Top Five Amazing Business Radio Episodes: 

1. How to Create Amazing Customer Experiences in 2024 with Shep Hyken: I kicked off 2024 with five trends and 10 dos and don’ts. With all the rockstar executives and experts I interviewed, I was delighted that this episode was the No. 1 episode of 2024. (Thanks for listening!) 

2. How to Be Ridiculously Easy to Do Business With with David Avrin: I’m a big fan of a convenient CX – so much so that I wrote The Convenience Revolution. Since writing that book, a number of other books on convenience have been published. Avrin’s is one of the best. 

3. The Secret to eBay’s Phenomenal Customer Experience with Derek Allgood: I had the pleasure of interviewing Allgood, eBay’s VP of global CX. Hearing from the guy in charge of CX for a globally recognized brand is fascinating! 

4. A Company Culture of Good with Chad Jensen: What is TCC? It is one of the largest Verizon retailers in the U.S., with nearly 850 locations, and Jenson is the president. Beyond its retail business is a commitment to giving back by serving employees, customers, and communities.  

5. How to Build a Culture that Employees and Clients Love with Terry Turner: If you want a better customer experience, start with the employee experience. That – and so much more – is the wisdom that Turner, president of Pinnacle Financial Partners, shares in one of the top downloaded podcast episodes of the year. 

There you have it – the top five of my articles and podcasts from 2024. If you are more of a visual person, check out my videos on ShepTV. Each week, I release a video based on one of my blogs. They are short and informative, and organizations use them for employee meetings and training.   

Thank you for subscribing and tuning in! May 2025 be your best year yet, with even better years to follow!

Shep Hyken is a customer service/CX expert, award-winning keynote speaker, and New York Times bestselling author. Learn more about Shep’s customer service and customer experience keynote speeches and his customer service training workshops at www.Hyken.com. Connect with Shep on LinkedIn.