Every six months the Institute of Customer Service publishes its UK Customer Satisfaction Index (UKCSI). Run since 2008, the UKCSI both provides a snapshot of current performance by organizations across the country, and allows longer term trends to be measured. The latest index has just been released and is based on over 39,000 responses from more than 10,000 people, cover...
In an ever more competitive business world, the customer experience that companies offer can be a key differentiator in winning and retaining consumer loyalty. But how can you quantify this in financial terms?
Customer service directors face increasing challenges. They have to deal with a growing number of queries, calls, emails and tweets from consumers, who demand the highest levels of service, irrespective of channel. At the same time, they have to balance their budgets and ensure that they are delivering value to the business through efficient and cost-effective operations.Meeting these two objectiv...
As an industry, the travel sector has been radically changed by the internet. More and more journeys, whether by air or rail, are booked online, and the rise of social media and review sites has provided consumers with the opportunity to give their views on the service they receive. Passengers and guests are consequently becoming more and more demanding when it comes to the customer experience.Rec...
With 144.8 billion emails sent every day, it continues to be a vital channel for customer service. Indeed, the rise of mobile devices, which allow consumers to quickly email wherever they are, means that the number of messages companies receive is actually growing.With many midsize organisations receiving over quarter of a million emails every year, coping with email customer service can be a stru...
Customer service is continually evolving. Driven by customer needs and channel expansion the original telephone-only call centres have added new contact methods, such as email, chat and social media, to become multichannel customer engagement centres. However the biggest shift is still ongoing – from a silo-based channel by channel approach to a more integrated, seamless and consistent omnic...
Whatever the industry, customers now have more choices than ever before. The balance of power between companies and consumer has shifted dramatically due to increased competition, the ability to share bad experiences instantly on social media as well as higher expectations of service. As a consequence, companies that have built their brands and reputations on rock solid customer service are flouri...
Organisations need to radically change how they interact with their customers proclaimed Jo Causon, CEO of the Institute of Customer Service (ICS) in a recent speech. In her state of the nation address, she highlighted how the balance of power has shifted dramatically from companies to their customers. While many organisations see this swing as a threat, it can actually deliver benefits to t...
Customer satisfaction with UK companies is worsening. That’s the stark headline finding from the latest Institute of Customer Service (ICS) UK Customer Satisfaction Index (UKCSI).Researched every six months, the Index fell in July 2014 for the third consecutive time, with over half of organisations seeing a drop of at least one point in their ratings. Satisfaction levels fell in 12 out of th...
Despite the rise of new channels, most organisations understand that the telephone is still vital for customer service. Whether it is to discuss details of an order or to get to the bottom of a query, it is still the number one channel of choice for many consumers.However, telephone service is expensive – and it could be about to get even more costly in the UK. From 13 June 2014, companies w...