Customer service is at an all time low! That's according to a new report from Henley Business School. Apparently 75% of customers believe that customer service levels are the worst they have ever been and over half of us have complained as a result.
The report also says that two-thirds of customers believe retailers, leisure providers and service firms in the UK are "arrogant, make no effort to understand their customers and fail to supply against customer demand".
I'm certainly not questioning the results, but I do just wonder whether the issue is more that customer expectations have increased, and continue to do so. This of course doesn't alter the facts that many customers are 'disappointed', and a key challenge for any business in today's ever competitive marketplaces is to recognise that customer expectations are getting higher. Their task is then to meet those needs (even better, exceed them and create 'Customer Delight'!)
So, 3 questions for you:
- How well do you understand your customers' expectations?
- Are they increasing? (answer: yes!)
- What are you doing about it?
Remember... Good isn't good enough if better was expected!