|
|
Simply atrocious customer service...
Customer Service
I visited an online forum today where a member was ‘outing’ a company with atrocious customer service. Obviously, Social Media is flourishing and your customer service sins can catch up with you.
One reply to the post suggested that no matter how bad the company’s service was they would never go bust because they dominated the industry’s online search results.
He said that “If you have #1 rankings for almost every search term for an industry that gets 10's of thousands of searches a month, no matter how bad you are service wise you will do ok.”
Hmmm... you only have to read The Balanced Scorecard to know that believing this is sheer folly. Through the mid-1970s, Xerox enjoyed a virtual monopoly on plain paper copiers but its customers were unhappy about the high breakdown rates.
Meanwhile, the Japanese had targeted copiers as another industry they could dominate worldwide.
From 1976 to 1982, Xerox's share of American copier installations fell from an estimated 80 percent to 13 percent... a staggering decline... because the Japanese offered machines that were comparable or better quality copiers that were lower priced and did not break down.
The Japanese embraced Xerox’s dissatisfied and disloyal customers and Xerox almost failed. Only under a new CEO with a passion for quality and customer service did Xerox make a remarkable turnaround.
Clearly, bad service is merely conditioning your customers to leave you once there is a viable alternative.
Now, let’s take a look at the American Express Global Customer Service Barometer for some recent compelling findings on the need for good customer service.
“Customers want and expect superior service,” said Jim Bush, Executive Vice President, World Service. “Especially in this tight economic environment, consumers are focused on getting good value for their money. Many consumers say companies haven’t done enough to improve their approach to service in this economy, and yet it’s clear they’re willing to spend more with those that deliver excellent service – suggesting substantial growth opportunities for businesses that get customer service right. It’s important to see customer service as an investment, not a cost.”
Nearly half (48%) of consumers report always or often using an online posting or blog to get others’ opinions about a company’s customer service reputation. But when consumers go online they’re looking for “watch outs,” saying they put greater credence in negative reviews on blogs and social networking sites than on positive ones (57% and 48%, respectively).
Companies who get it wrong should realize it’s at a cost. Half of consumers (52%) expect something in return after a poor customer service experience, beyond resolving the problem. Most consumers (70%) want an apology or some form of reimbursement.
A majority of consumers in all but one country surveyed felt that customer service has become more important in the current economy:
|
India
|
82%
|
Canada
|
58%
|
|
Germany
|
68%
|
U.K.
|
58%
|
|
Japan
|
65%
|
Italy
|
55%
|
|
Mexico
|
65%
|
Australia
|
53%
|
|
U.S.
|
61%
|
Spain
|
52%
|
|
France
|
59%
|
Netherlands
|
47%
|
But some consumers are not feeling the love. In Australia (71%), Germany (66%), and Canada and Italy (65% each), consumers say they feel companies haven’t increased their focus on service or are paying less attention to it. – (end quotes)
The continued evolution of social media will certainly keep businesses on their toes and I will watch it with interest.
What atrocious customer service experiences have you had?
Keep your powder dry,
Warren Cottis
|