A Journey Through Stories: Ten Years of Listening and Learning with SEEQ
I’ve been reflecting lately on the journey we’ve taken at Share More Stories, a journey now a decade in the making. This wasn’t a straight path—it was a meandering one, full of twists, turns, and insights gained from the stories people have trusted us to hear and understand. What started as a mission to listen and capture people’s experiences has evolved into SEEQ, a platform that goes beyond numbers, uncovering the emotional and relational aspects of employee and customer experiences.
It’s been a journey of building connections—between individuals, within teams, and across industries. Over the years, we’ve collected stories that reveal the heartbeats of organizations and brands alike: the unspoken anxieties, the quiet moments of trust, and the powerful breakthroughs of collaboration. With every story, SEEQ has grown, not just as a platform but as a mirror reflecting back the human side of data. SEEQ has become something of a microscope, revealing the fine details that might otherwise go unnoticed, the subtle emotional cues that shape the way people engage with both brands and workplaces.
How SEEQ Scores Emotion: Before we dive into the insights, let’s quickly cover how SEEQ analyzes and quantifies these emotions. SEEQ breaks each story into segments, called “expressions,” which capture different perspectives and emotions within the story. Our AI technology then analyzes each expression and assigns it a score ranging from very low to very high. We do this for 50 different emotions (including values, needs, and attitudes) for each segment. The scores reflect the intensity of the emotion and provide a clear view of what people are feeling, both individually and collectively.
The scores for each segment are recorded and tallied, providing a comprehensive emotional profile of each story, and the group of stories as a whole. This process happens in real-time on our cloud platform, which can handle the analysis of thousands of stories at once, offering flexible scaling for different project needs. SEEQ operates much like an emotional MRI scan, offering a layered view of the emotional health of an organization or brand, allowing us to see the hidden dynamics beneath the surface that drive employee engagement and customer loyalty.
Exploring Employee Experience (EX): In our work across various sectors, we’ve uncovered that trust and collaboration are the cornerstones of employee satisfaction and retention. For example, one study inside a large organization showed that even when achievement is high, a lack of trust can hamper team cohesion. The scores indicated very high achievement but low agreeableness, which was a stark reminder that while achievement is essential, trust is the glue that binds teams together.
Reflecting on this, I’m reminded of “I Need Your Empathy, and You Need Mine.” In this piece, I talk about how understanding and empathy lay the foundation for strong connections. Much like SEEQ’s role in providing that emotional MRI scan of employee experiences, empathy helps us look beneath the surface of people’s behaviors to see what they’re really feeling. In highly competitive corporate environments, we’ve learned that trust, even when collaboration is low, can allow employees to thrive under challenging circumstances.
In the nonprofit sector, we found that organizations with moderate trust levels saw a noticeable improvement in engagement and retention when trust and achievement were both high. This underscores that recognition and trust are powerful drivers of a committed workforce.
Even in mature industries and established companies where hierarchy and structure are the norm, transparent leadership has emerged as a powerful force for driving both trust and achievement. High trust paired with high achievement shows the impact of clear, open communication from leadership. And in fast-paced, high-risk industries, transparency from leadership helps employees feel supported and empowered, resulting in stronger performance and innovation.
Diving Into Customer Experience (CX): Our work has shown that customer experiences are also deeply impacted by trust and anxiety. In brand-driven industries like consumer packaged goods or alcoholic beverages, we’ve seen how customer trust can lag behind satisfaction, creating a risk of churn. Even when customers are highly satisfied, trust can sometimes fall to low levels, revealing the need for emotional connection and brand consistency to transform satisfied customers into loyal advocates.
In the travel industry, SEEQ acts as a microscope, zooming in on the details that influence customer emotions, which can make or break loyalty. This brings to mind “The Traveler’s Why,” where I share my personal experiences of movement and the anxieties they bring, as a deeper reflection on the macro-level dynamics of holiday travel. SEEQ’s ability to bring those small emotional details into focus helps brands understand how to better support their customers. Just as a microscope reveals minute details to enhance understanding, SEEQ shines a light on the subtle yet significant elements of customer emotions that shape their experiences.
In healthcare, SEEQ continues to serve as both microscope and MRI, zeroing in on specific patient anxieties while also scanning for broader emotional patterns that exist beneath the surface. We found that anxiety is often very high for patients, overshadowing even high-quality care. Healthcare organizations that focus on reducing stress through empathetic care and communication can foster trust, leading to better patient outcomes and higher retention.
The childcare industry revealed a similar dynamic. Even when service achievement was high, parental anxiety could still be moderately high, indicating that trust plays a critical role in customer loyalty. In industries like childcare, where emotions run high, proactive communication and trust-building measures can ease concerns and ensure long-term satisfaction.
The Power of Emotional Insights: Over the past decade, SEEQ has shown that emotional insights are not just nice-to-have—they’re essential. In “Your Story is a Bridge,” I reflect on how stories connect us across vast divides. SEEQ’s ability to measure emotions within stories creates those same connections, bridging the gaps between brands and the people they serve both in the organization and in the marketplace.
Like an emotional MRI, SEEQ can see what traditional metrics can’t: the unseen anxieties, trust gaps, and moments of joy that influence how employees and customers truly feel. This in-depth view helps organizations focus on what matters most, allowing them to address core emotional needs that drive loyalty and engagement. And as a microscope, SEEQ reveals the small yet significant interactions that build the bigger picture of brand loyalty or employee engagement. It’s in this interplay between the fine details and the broader trends where SEEQ truly captures the emotional essence of a story.
What We’ve Learned: Ten Years of Stories and Insights Reflecting on this journey, one thing is abundantly clear: emotions are the undercurrents of both employee and customer experiences. Ten years of stories have taught us that trust and empathy are not just buzzwords but the building blocks of resilient, enduring relationships. From understanding the anxieties of patients and travelers to recognizing the importance of transparency in leadership, we’ve learned that emotional insights bridge the gap between numbers and real human experiences.
I’m reminded of “The Hopeful Way,” where I wrote about the optimism that has carried me through challenging times. As I look back on what SEEQ has taught us, I see a journey shaped by a commitment to understanding the human side of data. It’s been an incredible ten years, and we’re just getting started. We’ll continue listening, learning, and building on what SEEQ has taught us about the transformative power of stories. Here’s to the next decade of insights and the connections they will foster.
Closing Reflections: It’s hard to believe that it’s been ten years since we started this journey. And yet, in many ways, it feels like we’re just getting started. SEEQ has become more than just a platform; it’s a lens through which we can see the deeper, more human side of data. It has taught us that stories are more than anecdotes—they’re powerful tools for change.
As we look forward to the next decade, we’re more committed than ever to listening, learning, and helping organizations understand the emotional insights that drive both employee and customer loyalty. Here’s to the stories yet to come, and the insights we’ll continue to uncover along the way.
If you’re ready to take your listening to the next level, drive deeper connection and engagement with employees and customers, let’s talk.
Read Part 1 of my 10-year anniversary reflection: A Story Ten Years in the Making: The Journey of Share More Stories and SEEQ.
Check out our SEEQ Overview to learn more about the platform.
Participate in our SEEQ demo project and experience SEEQ for yourself.
