At a time when brands face an increasing volume of customer service interactions, across more and more channels, some may feel tempted to question whether they will ever get on top of delivering the service that consumers want. It can feel like they are running on a treadmill with the pace continually being ramped up, increasing the likelihood that they’ll be catapulted off the end before to...
Given the complexity of business today and the rising expectations of consumers, most organizations will be on the receiving end of customer complaints. It could be down to a problem with an order, overcharging, or a complete failure to provide services, such as when a telco’s network goes down.What all of these examples have in common is that it will be the customer service team.
Email has been a mainstay of customer service since its inception, providing a digital alternative to the telephone for consumers. Despite the growth of other digital channels, such as social media and chat, it continues to thrive – 69% of people still want to contact companies through email, according to Forrester. In some sectors (such as retail), ...
As we enter 2016, I’m already seeing plenty of predictions about what the year will bring for the customer experience and customer service markets. However, before exploring some of these trends in future blog posts, I’d like to take the opportunity to review 2015 – specifically some of the most popular topics covered by the Eptica blog.Looking through the posts that had the most...
Customer satisfaction is key to success in every industry across Asia Pacific, but in few places is it as visible as the hospitality sector. The service a consumer receives contributes a large part of the experience in a restaurant, hotel or attraction – meaning it can make the difference between a satisfied customer and one that will never return. Additionally, in the age of social media an...
Housing demographics are changing across the world, driven by longer lives and the increasing cost of getting onto the property ladder. In the United States 4 out of 5 households don’t fit the traditional mold of two parents and pre-college kids, with a growing number containing multiple generations, such as grandparents or boomerang children that have left, then returned home...
Recruiting and retaining high quality customer service staff is one of the cornerstones of keeping consumers happy and loyal. Even with the rise of self-service options, for the majority of channels (email, social media, chat, phone, face to face) the experience created by the people you employ is crucial to the success or failure of the customer relationship. Gartner predicts...
While all industries need to ensure they are delivering an excellent customer experience, some seem to be intrinsically better at it than others. This concept is backed up by recent research carried out by service design consultancy Engine. Its survey found that consumers rated the public transport, utility, insurance and broadband sectors, as worst for customer experience and service...
Over the last ten years, customers have become increasingly more demanding in terms of the service that they expect from companies. At the same time, and as part of the same trend, governments have acted to make it easier and more straightforward to complain, particularly in industries such as telecoms, utilities and finance. They have set up new regulators and ombudsmen...
One of the biggest complaints consumers have when they raise an issue with a company is that customer service agents don’t show sufficient understanding or sympathy for their plight. In contrast, when agents apologize and demonstrate that they realize that there is a problem that is causing inconvenience, customer satisfaction rises. This is even the case if the issue can’t be solved...