Service Recovery

Question 1

What are the three common types of actions that customers may take in response to service failures?

Answer 1

1. Take some form of Public Action
2. Take some form of Private Action
3. Take No Action

Question 2

Why do customers complain?

Answer 2

1. Obtain restitution or compensation
2. Venting their anger
3. Help improve the service
4. Altruistic reasons (helping other customers)

Question 3

What is Service Recovery?

Answer 3

systematic efforts by a company to correct a problem following a service failure to retain a customer’s goodwill.

Question 4

What are the three types of Justice?

Answer 4

1. Procedural (policies and rules customers must follow to get a response)
2. Interactional (behavior of employees towards customers in the service recovery process)
3. Outcome (the restitution or compensation customers receives as a result of losses and inconveniences caused by a service failure)

Question 5

What are the five types of unfair customers?

Answer 5

1. Verbal abusers
2. Blamers
3. Rule breakers
4. Opportunist
5. Returnaholics

Question 6

What are the four elements of Effective Service Recovery?

Answer 6

1. Make it easy for customers to give feedback (directly)
2. Enable effective service recovery
3. Establish and communicate appropriate compensation levels
4. Deal with complaining customers

Question 7

What are the guidelines for the Frontline to deal with complaining customers?

Answer 7

1. Act fast
2. Acknowledge the customer’s feelings and apologize
3. Do not argue with customers
4. Show that you understand the problem from each customer’s point of view
5. Clarify the facts and sort out the cause
6. Give customers the benefit of the doubt
7. Propose the steps needed to solve the problem
8. Keep customers informed of progress
9. Consider compensation
10. Preserve to regain customer goodwill
11. Self-check the service delivery system and improve it.