Customer Experience

By adaptive - April 1st, 2014

Placing world-class customer services delivered via multiple channels at the heart of your corporation is a commercial imperative no business can ignore

The immediacy that Twitter offers has made it a firm favourite with consumers looking for fast responses to customer service queries. However, according to new research by Eptica, only 39% of customer service tweets are actually responded to.

Looking at 100 companies, the vast majority had a presence on Twitter, but it seems they are now leveraging this network, and damaging their reputations via poor customer services. Says Olivier Njamfa, CEO of Eptica: “When it comes to Twitter companies are playing a dangerous game by establishing a presence and then failing to engage with customers. This could well backfire, leading to negative feedback spreading through the social network and damaging their overall brand. The web, email and social media are fast becoming the channels of choice for consumers, yet the biggest brands in the country are struggling to cope.”

For the third year running fashion retailers led the way, successfully answering 79% of questions via their web sites. However, 36% of the top 100 companies scored worse than in 2012, with entertainment and electronics retailers bringing up the rear, answering just 52% of questions asked via the web. Gaps are opening between best and worst – nearly a third of companies (32%) failed to answer more than half of the 10 basic questions they were asked online, yet 22% scored eight or more. There are major differences in performance, even in the same sector. For example, one entertainment retailer scored 100%, yet two competitors just 20%.

For the first time, the research looked at consistency across multiple channels, and uncovered a piecemeal approach to service. Just 12% of companies gave a consistent response to the same question asked through email, Twitter and (where available) web chat. Several directly contradicted themselves on different channels, with one company giving three diametrically opposed answers on email, Twitter and web chat.

Many companies that were strong on one channel were weak on others – for example electronics manufacturers answered an average of 70% of questions asked on the web, but just 30% of emails or tweets. In contrast telecoms companies responded successfully to 60% of tweets, but just 10% of emails.

There is also a real world value that can be lost through poor customer service delivered over the leading social media networks. According to NewVoiceMedia an estimated $41 billion is lost by US companies each year following a bad customer experience. The figure is £12 billion in the UK. Also, UK consumers are more likely to switch brands after a poor customer services experience than their US counterparts.

A NewVoiceMedia study concluded that: “53% of switchers left because of a lack of appreciation, in favour of a company that will value their business. Nearly half (49%) were put off by having to repeat themselves to multiple agents and one in ten ditched a company for being kept on hold for too long. However, our research proves that organizations can significantly increase their business if they invest in providing a positive customer experience. Following a good service, 70% of respondents would be more loyal and almost half (49%) would use the company more frequently.

“The findings around social media were particularly interesting, as nearly a third of 25-34 year-olds will post an online review or complain via social media following poor service. With consumers increasingly turning online to read about others’ experiences before choosing a product or supplier, this can cause considerable damage to a company’s reputation.

“There’s a reason why Gen Y are dubbed ‘digital natives’, and their use of social media is a major part of that reason. While 64% of those surveyed stated that traditional forms of communication such as email and phone were their preferred means of complaining for a fast response, more than a quarter of Gen Y and millennials (those aged 16 to 34) believe social media is the most effective means of issue resolution, with Facebook proving to be the favoured social network for interacting with businesses. Over the next few years we expect to see these statistics soar as the younger generation matures.”

In a bid to reduce costs many companies have adopted email as their primary means of managing their customer services activity. However even here corporations are performing poorly taking on average a massive three days to respond. Social media has changed the customer service landscape out of all recognition. Businesses understand the need to embrace social media, but clearly need to do much more to ensure their use of these networks for customer service responses are massively improved.

SimplyMeasured in their latest survey of customer services usage across twitter concluded: “Understanding the rules of engagement for customer service on Twitter is a crucial step to managing your overall customer service strategy. As more and more users turn to Twitter to ask questions, give feedback, praise or complain about a brand, brands need to be proactive in managing their brand image – by showing customers that they’re listening, and that they care. Since Twitter is a word-of-mouth platform, these steps are essential for any company looking to increase their business in the digital world.”

For brands leveraging customer services across multiple channels is a must. Where email was all pervasive, social media is rapidly replacing this primary consumer touch point to accelerate customer service query resolution. Increasingly those brands that can utilise the social media networks for customer service support will gain advocacy and positive sentiment that will influence every other component of their business’ operations.

[Image Source: Freedigitalphotos.net]