Customer Care

Question 1

What are the methods of field research to ensure that an organisation is meeting customer expectations.

Answer 1

Customer focus groups
Face-to-face meetings with small groups of customers
Provides the organisation with feedback on their goods/services or opinions regarding proposed new products and services
The customers feel they are being listened to and taken account of, which will encourage brand loyalty

Mystery shopper
‘Mystery shoppers’ are employed to act as a normal customer and report back on the standard of service they received These are used by many companies to discreetly check on the standard of service being offered in their organisation
This information can then be fed back to staff – either to praise and reinforce good standards or remedy concerns regarding poor standards

Customer satisfaction surveys
These are used for feedback on a wide range of areas including staff attitudes and service, product and service, quality improvement etc

Internet Data Collection Form
Customers respond to a series of questions online – forms user friendly – customers can complete at their leisure – no need for postal time/costs –
volume of responses usually high

Written survey……
Face-to-face interviews……
Telephone survey ….
Freephone or video booth ……..
Comment cards ….
Direct email …

Question 2

What are good practice to ensure complaints are handled effectively? (11)

Answer 2

1. Have an established complaints procedure
2. The complaints procedure is transparent and available to all customers and is known to all staff
3. Any complaints received are logged
4. Those who handle complaints are given careful training eg time in which to reply and method of reply …
5. It is often effective to have the same person deal with the complaint from start to finish
6. The process of investigation is tracked internally
7. All complaints received are acknowledged immediately, usually in writing, along with details outlining the process the investigation will take
8. All complaints are given a high priority. Clear timelines should be established to ensure prompt investigation and any deviation from the
9. given timelines should be communicated to the customer
10. The result of the investigation is communicated to the customer and, if appropriate, compensation of some kind may be offered
11. All complaints are reviewed on a regular basis to identify any patterns or issues which the organisation should address

Question 3

Justify the need for a complaints procedure (8)

Answer 3

1. Staff know how to respond to complaints
2. Customers know who to contact/how to complain
3. Customers know the process -Timeline shared with customers
4. Customers are aware of their rights -next step if still unhappy
5. Compensation level is made clear to customer
6. Created feedback to be analysed and can be used to improve service
7. Can create a positive image of the organisation if effective complaints procedure
8. Customers will be retained if the process is effective

Question 4

What are the features of a customer care policy?

Answer 4

 Mission statement
An outline of the organisation’s main aims and focus - to ensure the customer understands the ethos and direction of the organisation.
 Customer service strategy
A written statement of principles relating to organisational customer service - sets out what level of service and the standards customers should expect. (Service level agreement/minimum standards).
 Loyalty schemes
Details of how the organisation aims to retain existing customers and the benefits the loyalty scheme offers to loyal customers.
 Complaints procedure
Will set out what customers can do if they are unhappy with the level of service they receive - and how the organisation will respond to customer complaints.
 Market Research
How customer’s views and opinions may be collected by the organisation and how they may use this information - eg customer focus groups and/or satisfaction surveys.
 Quality management systems
Details how the organisation seeks to ensure quality in its processes and procedures.

Question 5

Why would a company use other methods to Mystery Shopping to evaluate customer care

Answer 5

 Mystery shopper is only one viewpoint − could be biased
 Customer focus group − allows discussion from a range of viewpoints − can provide in-depth discussion on current/future products/ideas
 With customer focus group clarification can be sought if questions are misunderstood
 At a customer focus group, the customer can raise additional points for discussions
 Questionnaires can be sent out to large number of customers using a variety of different communication methods
 Text messages where only a number rating is required and customers more likely to respond
 Online questionnaires can be targeted to customers via an e-mail link - results can be analysed quickly through specialist software
 Loyalty cards give quantifiable data regarding customers’ spending and shopping habits
 Cost of paying an agency for mystery shopper/cost of holding focus groups
 Speed of gathering information from customers
 Opinions versus facts
 Suggestion scheme/comment cards can allow for immediate action

Question 6

What are the possible benefits to an organisation of providing good customer care? (8)

Answer 6

 Will promote customer loyalty as customers will return to the organisation.
 Returning customers will increase sales turnover.
 A good customer care policy will promote a good reputation as customers will think positively of the organisation.
 Creating a good reputation will attract more customers to the organisation - which could increase sales turnover.
 Good customer care will result in fewer complaints to employees from customers - this will mean employees can be happier at work.
 Increased morale amongst employees may result in a lower staff turnover - thus reducing recruitment costs for the organisation.
 A good reputation for the organisation may attract a higher quality of potential employees.
 Good customer care may give the organisation a competitive edge in the market - it may attract customers away from competition.

Question 7

What are the features of an effective complaints procedure? (14)

Answer 7

 States to whom the complaint should be made
 Should deal with the complaint as quickly as possible
 Complaints should be acknowledged immediately
 The customer should receive feedback on the amount of time it will take for their complaint to be handled eg 14/30/90 days etc
 The customer should receive feedback on what steps will be taken to deal with their problem
 The company must take the complaint of the customer seriously
 Face-to-face/verbal complaints should be logged by employees
 Details should be provided so an appeal/further action can be made eg to the Ombudsman
 The same person should deal with the complaint from start to finish
 The process should be monitored internally by management
 The company should follow-up the complaint after resolution
 Policy on compensation and refunds available
 Staff should be trained to effectively handle complaints
 Dedicated complaints contact, eg a phone number/e-mail address

Question 8

What are possible drawbacks for a customer of using social media for complaining?

Answer 8

 Social media is in the public domain so negative comments can be seen by others – leads to other negative comments on non-related matters
 May damage the reputation of the firm
 Volume of tweets may mean that the organisation miss the complaint – this can mean that there is a delay in response
 May require a dedicated member of staff to read tweets or software developed to scan social media for comments – cost implications
 Lacks privacy to deal with sensitive issues
 Unable to hear tone of voice/see facial expressions/body language which can result in misinterpretation of the complaint
 Difficult to build trust/rapport with customers online
 Difficulties for the organisation in retaining staff
 Recruiting/attracting quality staff is difficult
 The organisation may not take comments on Twitter seriously
 May result in a breach of legislation if employee does not respond appropriately/have the right training
 May be misused by online users leading to offensive/threatening/ irresponsible comments
 Restriction in characters - often requires an additional communication method ie telephone to resolve complex matters

Question 9

What are the methods of evaluating customer service.?

Answer 9

 Comment cards
 Questionnaires
 Surveys after purchase
 Focus groups
 Mystery shopper
 Phone calls

Question 10

Consequences of poor customer service

Answer 10

• Customers will tell other, with could
  1 - destroy reputation
  2 - decrease sales / revenue / profit
  3 - decrease market share
• Decrease staff morale
  1 - negative effect on recruitment
  2 - decreased productivity, sales etc
• Decrease in staff morale could lead to higher staff turnover
  1 - increasing stress levels for remaining staff
  2- increasing recruitment costs
  3 - difficult to attract quality staff
• More complaints from customers to employees
  1 - Unhappy workforce
  2 - demotivated workforce
• Decreases or destroys customer loyalty:
  1- customers take their business elsewhere
  2 - decreased sales / profit/ revenue