Lauren Janney does not talk about customer experience like a slogan.
For her, it sounds more like a responsibility.
Before co-founding CXperks, Janney worked in healthcare, counseling and insurance. Those fields gave her a front-row seat to the moments when people are not casually browsing for help. They are stressed. They are waiting. They are trying to understand what happens next.
“I have been in health care, and I know how crazy the day to day is,” Janney said on The Fervent Four. She said healthcare workers are often caring for people in some of their worst moments, while families sit nearby watching it happen. For CXperks, the goal is simple: “let us take something off of your plate so you can be there for those people.”
That line is more than a product pitch. It is an operating philosophy.
CXperks gives businesses a way to offer digital magazines, games, trivia and messaging to customers in waiting environments. A patient or visitor can scan a QR code, access content without a personal login and continue using it for 72 hours after leaving the location. For hospitals, the platform can also become a communication tool, pointing people toward things like MyChart downloads or volunteer recruiting.
But the more interesting story is not just what CXperks does. It is how Janney thinks about the customer.
Her background in insurance helped shape that view. When disaster hits, people do not care about a clever campaign or a polished sales pitch. They care about whether someone can help them move through the next step.
“I would say claims is our time to shine,” Janney said. “That’s why people buy insurance.” She described the work as empathy, expectation-setting and advocacy: “I may not be in your shoes, but I’m here to help you.”
That same instinct carried into CXperks. Whether someone is filing a claim or waiting for a medical test, Janney sees the same underlying need: reduce anxiety, remove friction and help someone feel less stuck.
The company itself came from a rethink.
The original idea was not CXperks as it exists today. Lauren and Scott Janney were exploring a coffee shop concept that included a magazine wall. Scott had worked at Barnes & Noble growing up and remembered sitting with a magazine and a Starbucks. Then COVID changed the reality of shared spaces. When the CDC pulled magazines, the Janneys paused the coffee shop plan and started asking a different question: was there a way to still offer magazines without the physical touch component?
That question sent them into research and publisher conversations. From their kitchen, Scott began reaching out to major publishing companies while Lauren tried to keep the kids outside during calls. What began as a magazine wall problem became a broader customer experience opportunity.
The company has since expanded beyond magazines. Lauren said customer feedback led CXperks to add games, trivia and Spanish content. The pattern matters: they did not chase every idea. They listened for repeated requests across partners and markets, then acted when the signal was strong enough.
That same measured approach shows up inside the business. Lauren and Scott have worked together for years, first in insurance and now across multiple ventures. To keep hiring decisions from becoming purely subjective, they built a point system for interviews and often involve current team members in the process. They look for people who can handle the reality of startup work: wearing different hats, adjusting quickly and caring about the success of the business.
Janney is equally direct about hard conversations. When someone is not working out, she believes the conversation should not come as a surprise. If communication has been clear along the way, the final decision is part of a longer pattern, not a sudden blow.
That is the throughline in Janney’s work: make the hard moment easier before it gets worse.
In healthcare, that means helping staff give patients and families a better experience while they wait. In insurance, it means guiding people when they actually need the product they bought. In hiring, it means creating a process that gives both the company and the candidate a clearer picture of fit.
Plenty of companies talk about customer experience after something breaks. Janney’s approach is different. She is building around the moment before frustration becomes the story.
And for founders, that may be the real lesson: the best customer experience is not always the flashiest feature. Sometimes it is simply taking something off someone else’s plate when they need it most.
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For another look at the company, watch the Disrupting the Tide episode on CXperks and how the team is building around customer experience, waiting environments and making everyday moments easier for businesses and their customers. Watch here.
