Customer service is being seen by the big players as a key growth driver according to this recent Wall Street Journal article.
So important is it that the article reports on an Accenture study that shows that 25% of 1,405 companies surveyed will be investing in this crucial area of business before anything else as the economy grows.
Many of the case examples in the article ring true to the basic premise that if you provide superior customer service you will engender superior customer loyalty. In identifying ways to create a sustainable competitive advantage, service is often a winner.
Great service and service systems are often difficult to copy because, if done right, they can become deeply ingrained in an organisation’s culture. Over the last few years we have encountered several organisations where service staff dedication to deliver the best customer service comes despite poor company systems and processes.
You just can’t replicate that culture of dedication overnight so it presents a strong customer value differentiation and a good sustainable competitive advantage..
Even Amex staff are being told to look for opportunities for related sales rather than focusing on ending the call as quickly and keeping the average handle time (AHT), and therefore costs, down. Organisations like Amex are now starting to recognise that service contacts come along much more often than sales contacts can really drive incremental business profitability by using those contacts wisely.
In all of this however you must know which element of the service experience are the most important to customers. To gather that knowledge you need to have an ongoing process to gather and apply those insights. Transactional Net promoter Score (NPS) is one such system. If you haven’t investigated this approach now might be a good time to start. Before you invest in organisational change.
Customer service is being seen by the big players as a key growth driver according to this recent Wall Street Journal article.
So important is it that the article reports on an Accenture study that shows that 25% of 1405 companies surveyed will be investing in this crucial area of business before anything else as the economy grows.
Many of the case examples in the article ring true to the basic premise that if you provide superior customer service you will engender superior customer loyalty. In identifying ways to create a sustainable competitive advantage, service is often a winner.
Great service and service systems are often difficult to copy because, if done right, they can become deeply ingrained in an organisation’s culture. Over the last few years we have encountered several organisations where service staff dedication to deliver the best customer service comes despite poor company systems and processes.
You just can’t replicate that culture of dedication overnight so it presents a strong customer value differentiation and a good sustainable competitive advantage..
Even Amex staff are being told to look for opportunities for related sales rather than focusing on ending the call as quickly and keeping the average handle time (AHT), and therefore costs, down. Organisations like Amex are now starting to recognise that service contacts come along much more often than sales contacts can really drive incremental business profitability by using those contacts wisely.
In all of this however you must know which element of the service experience are the most important to customers. To gather that knowledge you need to have an ongoing process to gather and apply those insights. Transactional Net promoter score (NPS) is one such system. If you haven’t investigated this approach now might be a good time to start. Before you start to invest in organisational change.
Interesting article Adam, I agree with both sides of the argument to be honest.
I think it also depends on what sector your company competes in as well as some sectors lie you mentioned (Finance/Banking) will already be loaded with past sins and even some wins.
Every interaction is a moment of truth with the customer, I think that the responsibility of customer experience is/should be the responsibility of all employees at any organisation.
Of course one of the best ways to measure this and to look to building benchmarks in any sector is with the net Promoter Score (NPS).
Cheers, Clinton.
Clinton,
Yes both sides have their points but I always come down on the side of managing customer expectations as the first step in managing satisfaction.
You are also completely correct that the customer experience is the responsibility of all employees BUT it is the job of management to help staff to understand what customers value. All the intent in the world is for naught if staff don’t know what customers actually want and how to deliver a good experience.
Thanks,
Adam
Agreed, and of course measured ongoing!
Thank you!