Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou, founder of Easyjet has just announced he’ll be launching a new, low cost, supermarket. The first easyFoodstore will open in Croydon and will offer a limited range of tinned and packaged goods, avoiding selling products from big brands and focusing on day to day foodstuffs.While the grocery business appears crowded, the trend is for the market to become increasingly ...
Delivering a straightforward yet engaging customer experience can be a major challenge in complex, highly regulated markets such as insurance. Companies need to make sure that customers understand what they are buying, but at the same time ensure they comply with stringent regulations. And while the majority of the industry has moved to internet-based selling of insurance there can be an enormous ...
Over the last ten years customers have become less and less likely to put up with poor service. Social media provides a platform to air concerns and the internet and deregulation of many industries has opened up a much wider choice of providers. So, if you don’t like your existing supplier it is theoretically easier to take your business elsewhere.However while switching in some industries (...
At long last the UK economy seems to be improving. Figures from the Office of National Statistics show growth of 0.6% in Q1 2013 and the CBI is forecasting an increase of 1.2% over the whole year. Other recent surveys have shown positive results in manufacturing, housing, services and construction.Obviously this is all good news, but how does it affect customer service teams? After a prolonged per...
Tickets for the 2014 Commonwealth Games have just gone on sale, and organisers are reporting high demand. The 11 day games, which begin on 23 July 2014, will see 4,500 athletes from across the world compete in 17 sports across 14 venues in Glasgow. Given the overwhelming triumph of the London 2012 Olympics, Glasgow will be hoping for a similar success story, boosting the Scottish economy and inspi...
Despite the fact that millions of people now regularly use social media, many brands have been slow to embrace it as a customer service channel. But now there are signs that some companies may be starting to get the message about the importance of social customer service.According to a new survey, around 80 per cent of consumers who have contacted a brand through social media received a resp...
Guest post by Dominic Tavassoli, VP Product Management, Eptica Customer service teams should look to leverage cutting edge linguistic technology to address challenges of scalability and efficiency, as well as customer satisfaction.Great hospital emergency rooms excel at what is known as triage, being able to rapidly determine the priority of the treatment of patients, based on the severity of thei...
Knowledge is at the heart of delivering a successful, consistent and efficient customer experience whatever type of organisation you are in. Collecting and sharing information, incorporating feedback and keeping centralised knowledge updated is central to delivering superior customer service.However while most managers understand the importance of knowledge, many are simply not sure where to start...
This week saw the re-emergence of a new name in British banking, with the creation of TSB. Formed from 600 branches of Lloyds Group, it has 5 million customers and promises to focus on local customers and businesses.The divestment of the branches was mandated by the EU as part of the state bailout of Lloyds during the banking crisis. Originally due to be sold to Co-Operative Bank, when that deal f...
More and more of us are using mobile devices to interact with companies online. The combination of the ease of use of tablets and the fact that we always have our smartphones to hand, mean that for many it is fast becoming the default way of accessing the internet. Backing this up, consultancy IDATE predicts that by the middle of next year more people will get online through smartphones and tablet...