When Nike and Disney disappear, and a new GDPR right for citizens
Plus: Ashtrays in airplanes, and how to win true customer loyalty
Hi everyone, thanks for coming back to Customer Futures.
Each week I unpack the disruptive shifts around Empowerment Tech. Digital wallets, Personal AI and the future of the digital customer relationship.
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Hi folks,
A mini digest for you this week about digital customer relationships, brands and loyalty. A mix of Empowerment Tech perspectives.
But let me start with this: It’s time for the Oxytocin Team.
Why?
Because we’re addicted to our devices. Especially the endless pull of social feeds. Where BigTech keeps designing for maximum time-on-screen.
Their quarterly metrics - of ‘session length’, of ‘engagement’ - are melting our brains and damaging our relationships.
Today, weapons-grade psychology runs the show. Outrage, division, and a drip feed of dopamine hits to keep us hooked. The ‘like’ button. Infinite scroll.
Facebook even had a design group that nicknamed itself the ‘Dopamine Team’. Their whole job was to keep you online using psychological hacks and nudges. Sean Parker, FB’s first president, later admitted they knew they were exploiting “a vulnerability in human psychology” from the start.
Revolting.
And so here we are. Still scrolling. Still trapped. Still wired for addiction. And wasting hours like zombies in the ‘For You’ tab.
The most ridiculous part? We’re now having to treat - and even regulate - social media as a drug. To protect our children until they are 16. At which point they’ll still become addicted, like everyone else.
Social media is our generation’s smoking.
But there’s another way.
What if we designed our digital tools not for dopamine hits… but for oxytocin?
Not for addiction, but for connection. For trust.
Oxytocin is the hormone of relationships. It’s what we feel when we hug our kids, laugh with friends, or share something meaningful. It’s about deepening bonds.
So here’s an idea: what if our digital customer tools were designed for that?
Not attention traps. Not engineered loops. But experiences that step back when they’re not needed, and step in only when they make life easier. Tools that give us more time with the people who matter, not less.
Because sometimes the best customer experience on a tech platform will be no experience at all.
And here’s the kicker: I’m betting we’ll actually spend more money on these things.
Where the businesses that offer us more valuable, more private and more secure digital relationships will end up outperforming the ones that just make us addicted.
Because connection lasts longer than compulsion. And trust is stickier than clicks.
With digital wallets and Personal AI, we’ve finally got the chance to change the game. Creating experiences we can trust, and enabling digital relationships that last longer than a swipe.
So goodbye Dopamine Team.
And welcome, dear reader, to the Oxytocin Team.
For those of us designing and building meaningful, long-term customer relationships. For those of us putting digital trust at the centre.
That’s what Empowerment Tech is about. And it’s already shaping up to be a billion-dollar category.
It’s all part of the future of being a digital customer. So welcome back to the Customer Futures newsletter.
In this week’s edition:
When Nike and Disney disappear, what happens to branding?
BigTech’s control over our data will fade - just like ashtrays in aeroplanes
A new GDPR right for citizens: The Right To Disconnect
How to win true customer loyalty - lock in for value, not retention
… and much more
So grab a cappuccino, settle in, and Let’s Go.
When Nike and Disney disappear, what happens to brands?
Can you imagine 20 years ago that Nike, one of the world’s greatest brands, would become subservient to another brand in a customer channel?
Yep. It happened that fast: www.facebook.com/nike.
And just look at the URL for Disney on Amazon.com:
In case you missed it in the address bar above, it’s: https://www.amazon. com/stores/page/EF081BE7-FC57-4715-9A43-440C8BAF0514
Wow.
It’s Just. Another. Page.
That’s quite something in brand positioning terms. Now, it probably says more about today's use - and importance - of ‘web2’ domains.
But it's undeniable that B2C has now become B2A2C (B2-Amazon-2C) and B2G2C (Google).
Brands have relied on retail marketplaces for years and years. But that was mostly for distribution. Now, the digital middlemen have taken over the entire Digital Customer Relationship. From customer acquisition through to checkout. Even to real-time delivery (Amazon’s chess move).
With smart, AI-powered chatbots now entering commerce, things are about to get wild for brands. Discover-choose-check out-deliver. All handled by your AI assistant.
Who needs the storefront?
Today, more than ever, brands need to compete on customer experience. On cost. On customer insights. But how on earth can any business realistically get close to the customer without handing complete control of the customer relationship to one of the BigTech platforms?
And now the agents are coming.
It used to be Google in the middle. Then Facebook. Then Amazon. Now it's going to be OpenAI, Anthropic and the rest. Brands are now at risk from being disintermediated from the digital customer relationship.
So what to do? What's the way out?
Well, guess what: customers also want to connect to brands that matter to them, too.
The answer is to give customers their own digital tools. To give them EmpowermentTech. Digital wallets, verifiable credentials, and Personal AI. A new private and secure digital channel for businesses to connect directly with individuals. And for customers to connect directly to brands they love.
Remember: genuine, authentic brands just want to build genuine, authentic customer relationships. They don’t want 3rd parties in the way.
Empowerment Tech channels will be a much better way to build real and trusted customer relationships. While also offering the cost-effective, personalised, seamless experiences that customers want.
I can only imagine that Nike and Disney can’t wait. To finally get a direct customer relationship with the fans that matter.
Rather than just help Jeff Bezos fund grand rocket adventures in Cape Canaveral.
BigTech’s control over our data will fade - just like ashtrays in aeroplanes
This week, Jeffrey Schwartz, the CEO of Dentity, gave us an overdue jolt about the ID bubble we’re living in.
Because we too often forget that all the mad customer verification checks - the document selfies, the one-time SMS passwords, the 18-character secrets with no special characters allowed, and the mother’s maiden name BS - are all just a function of living in this technology moment.
They will pass.
Just like floppy disks (ask ChatGPT), green screens (ask your parents), and cheque books (eh?)
Jeffrey nails it:
“Airplanes had ashtrays, kids rode in cars without seatbelts, we burned mix tapes on CDs, and there were pay phones on every corner. What feels normal one day becomes absurd the next.
“There’s an immutable, powerful force that winds its way through history. Call it sovereignty — the pursuit of individual freedom, self-determination, or control. When humans have it, things blossom, and when they don’t, they wither.
“People, products, markets, and political systems are pulled in this direction. The industrial revolution didn’t take off until it gave machines to consumers, and the internet didn’t explode until it gave networks to users.
“For the past 20 years, third parties have owned our identity. Consumers have struggled with hundreds of passwords they can’t remember, while their data are stored in vulnerable databases across the web.
“And Big tech has smiled and waved as they've made billions on their user's data.
”It's all changing. A new category of digital identity is taking hold which gives individuals sovereignty over their data. There will be over 500 million identity wallets on smart phones in the next couple years.
“Tech tidal waves happen quickly, just ask Kodak, Xerox, or Blockbuster.”
Exactly. Remember, Empowerment Tech is going to happen in two ways.
Gradually, then suddenly.
A new GDPR right for citizens: The Right To Disconnect
Since 2018, the GDPR has enshrined 8 rights for individuals. But new digital Personal Agents will give customers a kind of new digital ‘9th right’:
The Right To Disconnect
Let me explain.
Today, once a business has your contact details, they keep it - and use it - as they wish. Ever tried to unsubscribe from a grubby online business? Or been sent a message from a company you've never heard of?
Yup.
The data regulations are supposed to force companies to be transparent. To get 'consent'. And to delete your data when you ask them.
But really? Honestly, do you know:
Which businesses have your phone number right now?
Which have your email or home address?
Which of them have already sold that data, or shared it with 'trusted 3rd parties for marketing purposes'?
Nope.
Millions of businesses are simply betting that we can't remember. That we lose track. Or that we don't have the time or effort to stop them.
Plus, there's the 'data connections' black hole. Where social platforms help us 'connect' our digital services.
Uber and Spotify
Facebook and Shopify
And now ChatGPT and payments
Let's be honest. The personal digital economy is a mess.
But there's a change coming.
With new digital 'Personal Agents', we will be able to remember what data we have shared, and with whom. To record and see who got what, why and when. And then help us manage it all.
And critically, these PAs will help us disconnect when we want.
They will quietly handle the data admin you can't see. The notifications. The data requests. The consent flows. And helping you update the 'manage my account' portals that businesses give us, but pray we don't get around to changing.
Soon, Personal Agents will enable us to connect in a whole new way. Securely, peer-to-peer, and to the people and businesses that we want and need. Without having another deviant digital platform in the middle.
Today, once a business has my email or phone number, they can contact me whenever they want. Tomorrow, with Personal Agents, not only can I screen unwanted business messages out, but I will be able to disconnect those companies completely. And have an auditable record that I requested it.
Remember, our contact details get hijacked by businesses and spam bots because they’re based on persistent, global and unique identifiers that once shared, anyone can use.
AI Agents (and Empowerment Tech generally) will give us much better spam management. So those businesses that do have my contact details will get less value from it.
And over time, it will prove more valuable to interact with me on my channels, not just WhatsApp and email.
Now that’s data protection.
Good luck shoving another consent screen in front of me, and then quietly tapping up my data for the next 180 days and selling it to your data broker buddies.
Personal Agents will give us new capabilities beyond the GDPR. Including the Right To Disconnect.
And I can't wait.
How to win true customer loyalty - lock in for value, not retention
I’ve written about loyalty a lot.
But few understand it as deeply, and have actually got their hands dirty building loyalty experiences, as Warren Hutchinson. He’s the CEO of experience design agency Else London.
“We used to stay loyal because it felt fair. 𝗪𝗲 𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝘄𝗲 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗽.
“Points don’t equal trust. Perks don’t make up for manipulation. Disloyalty isn’t an attitude shift. It’s a rational response to badly designed experiences. When customers feel like fools for staying, you’ve already lost them. You didn’t just break loyalty... you broke trust.
“But as AI agents start switching for us… Inertia won’t be a moat. It’ll be a leak. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝘂𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝘀𝗻’𝘁 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗹𝗼𝗰𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗶𝗻. It’s about making it easy to choose you again. And again. And again.”
But then he lands the most important point:
“That means designing for trust:
Legibility over obfuscation
Permission over push
Recognition over tricks
What if your customer loyalty had nothing to do with points? Nothing to do with handcuffs made from points? What if it started with trust by design?”
I’ve been diving into the experience design side of Empowerment Tech recently. Beyond the tech, the interop, and the important aspects of the business model.
Because adoption is going to come down to three things: value, distribution and designing for trust.
That’s it.
So much more to say here, but watch out for another deep dive coming on that soon.
OTHER THINGS
There are far too many interesting and important Customer Futures things to include this week.
So here are some more links to chew on:
News: iOS 26 Brings Digital IDs to Apple Wallet READ
Post: Age verification on porn platforms… live-streamed to Amazon READ
News: Whistle-Blower Sues Meta Over Claims of WhatsApp Security Flaws READ
Article: Online travel platforms prepare for the rise of AI Agents READ
Post: AI has dropped the price of crime to almost zero READ
Project: GSMA launches the ‘Open Verifiable Calling’ (OVC) project: trusting phone calls with verifiable credentials READ
And that’s a wrap. Stay tuned for more Customer Futures soon, both here and over at LinkedIn.
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