Service Experience Essay Example

results is frequently a result of customer actions. Any business without a focus on customer satisfaction is at the mercy of the market.  Without loyal customers eventually a competitor will satisfy those desires and your customer retention rate will decrease.

To understand Customer satisfaction in detail, it is essential to know some of its key terms that are needed within this paper, based on my personal experiences:CustomerAccording to my personal experience, a customer is a person, an organisation or group of people (having interest in the product) who purchase or buy a product or a service. These can also be termed as a buyer, client, patient and consumer etc.Customer PerceptionCustomer perception means an idea, reading, observation or just an expectation a customer have about the product or organisation. Customer’s perception about the organisation and its products is also of great significance.

Customer CareCustomer care is the term that defines the deeds of care and concern that an organisation shows to the customer benefiting them by buying their product or taking their service. Basically it is customer care that leads to customer satisfaction and customer loyalty (Gitomer, 1998).Customer care servicesCustomer care services are the services that involve the collaboration with the customer, solving problems they encounter or provide them with the required information. It is of great importance as it is a way for a business to approach customer for customer care.

To keep the service in the best practise it is better for organisation to maintain a list of the goods and services their organisation provides to the internal and external customers (Cochran, 2003).The impact of good and bad service should be considered, which leads to a

perceived image of an organisation by its customers. The categories of organisation should be reviewed, and participants rate their own and other sections in the organisation against the customer feedback (Cochran, 2003).Customer Satisfaction BenchmarkingIf a person owes or manages a relatively large business, then he may have already put into place a customer satisfaction tracking mechanism. If not, there are chances that he has at least thought about such investigation. Even if he has a customer satisfaction tracking program, it will not give him the full picture of satisfaction in the marketplace and he could end up having wrong conclusions.

For customer satisfaction benchmarking it is one of the frequently asked questions that ‘how much a customer satisfied with us?’ which is wrong, because asking just this is not enough. You should also know that how much our customers satisfied with our product and services relative to our competitor’s customers with their product and their services, or the companies who are best in the industry though out of reach of our competition. This way you would collect the correct knowledge of your strength and weaknesses when it comes to customer satisfaction and you will be well well-positioned to avoid any exploitation of knowledge (Katcher, 2003).Another way to benchmark customer satisfaction is to periodically touch base with the competitor’s customers. If you are in a high-penetration industry, a random survey of the market often will be sufficient to reach these consumers.

If your industry touches just a small percentage of the population, you will have to be a bit more creative in reaching competitor’s customers, but it can still be done. Yet another way to benchmark is

to ask current customers to think of the best company in the industry, and to rate that company on the same attributes that you use for internal measurement (Smith 2003).Reputation risk comes whenever there is though management of human resources or a poorer value is delivered to customers. If the organisation will not keep a balance between the stakeholders, it might encounter customers distrust and loss of credibility of its brand (Fombrun & Shanley, 1990; Smith 2003).

Reputational risk can be very severe to misrepresent your brand especially with advent of new technologies and cheap telecommunication means (Friedman, 2005).Quality ControlIf you are aiming to establish a world-class quality control system, you require an ISO 9001 certification from the British Standards Institution (BSI). In addition, excellent management techniques need to introduce to improve your business process. You should also demonstrate your willingness to translate your management philosophy of ‘putting customer satisfaction first’ into action. You should innovate your performance assessment into a functioning system based on a Key Performance Indicator (KPI), which caters to individual project characteristics and which utilizes the Balanced Score Card (BSC) model (Grant and Leavenworth, 1996).

Through these efforts in management innovation, along with the determination of all your executives and staff members to put these innovations into practice, you can contribute to encouraging public education while playing a leading role in the globalization of e-learning (Friedman, 2005).Customer Relationship ManagementCustomer Relationship Management (CRM) has sustained success through its ability to help companies sell but, only focuses on a portion of the customer relationship, not taking into account pervasive business processes that can affect customers. Yet nearly all facets of the organization are driven

and affected by the customer relationship. Incorporating all organizational procedures across the enterprise will serve to advance these relationships and make companies more profitable.CRM systems can be very effective solutions for managing sales cycles.

However, using current CRM point solutions will not build and manage an entire customer experience, merely the components of the sales and marketing cycles. There is promise, however. While traditional CRM systems have lacked the ability to encompass the full realm of business processes, new technologies are emerging that empower businesses to realize the full potential of customer relationships (Hall, 2006).CRM point solutions achieve what they state: a focus on selling to customers.

However, by concentrating exclusively on pre-sales, marketing programs and customer support instead of building long term relationships, companies are not realizing the full return on investment with existing CRM technologies (Hall, 2006).The problem lies in capturing the entire customer experience as it relates to the enterprise and its integrated components or business processes. Managing customers involves more than storing, updating and managing customer information. It requires both internal and external knowledge sources to have the inherent data necessary to continuously cultivate the customer relationship (Temkin, 2005).The key features of a successful all-encompassing CRM solution must include:Accessibility: One central knowledge point for all participants, including employees, customers, partners and vendors, who are interfacing with one another.

This includes providing access to specific information not typically accessible to customers, such as their own financial information, workflow steps involved in their pending orders or marketing projects, and role-based access to documents associated with the client.Inclusion: All business processes, including financial, workflow, documents, and projects are a part of the CRM environment,

providing a complete view of the customer experience available to anyone, including the customer.Visibility: The customer as a part of the CRM cycle whereby they can view themselves through the eyes of the provider and manage facets of their own account. Empower customers to have a direct line of communication into interactions that are affecting them (Temkin, 2005).How to make your customer Love you!Regardless of what business you are in. It is your job to know are you really in the business of satisfying customers? The degree of customer satisfaction you deliver determines the level of long-term success you will achieve in business.

So, form today instead of using customer satisfaction to earn business, Make ‘Customer Satisfaction’ Your Business!Make Customer Satisfaction Your Top PriorityDon't just make sales. Create customers, rather satisfied customers. Satisfied customers not only provide immediate profit on the exposure of the product, they help a business to be built up in two important ways:1. They become a reservoir of repeat buyers.

For some businesses that means repeat buyers for more of the same product or service. For every business, it means buyers for additional products and services.2. They automatically refer more business to you from their friends and business contacts. This is highly profitable business for you because it doesn't cost you any time or money to get it (Gitomer, 1998).Never Promise More Than You DeliverNever make any promises you can't (or won't) keep.

Nothing set against customers faster than getting something less than they already expect from a business transaction. If you won’t provide them with what they want they will never do business with you, and worse they will tell

everybody they know about their unhappy experience, causing you to lose future customers but also ruining you image, your benchmark.Dissatisfied customers are an interesting group. For every one that complains there are at least 25 who do not. Dissatisfied customers by word of mouth will tell eight to sixteen others about their dissatisfaction.

  With the web some are now telling thousands. 91% of dissatisfied customers never purchase goods or services from the company again. A prompt effort to resolve a dissatisfied customer's issue will result in about 85% of them as repeat customers. Depending upon the business, new customer sales may cost 4 to 100 times that of a sale to an existing customer.

To avoid these angry customers with your important business and reputation, you must handle customer complaints quickly and with a positive attitude. Strive to preserve your relationship with the complaining customer instead of your immediate profit from them. They will reward you later with more sales and referrals.Always Give Customers More Than They ExpectIf you wish to make business a real success, Over deliver on quality and service. Always exceed your customer’s expectations.

You will win their long term loyalty. It also makes it difficult for competitors to steal customers from you - even if they have lower prices. Customers will not risk an uncertain experience with a competitor when they know they will get more than they expect from you (Coachran, 2003).In order to surprise your customers with unexpected value, sell products that includes an unadvertised bonus with every order. If you sell services, get into the habit of doing something extra for every customer or client without charging for it.

Let

Customers Know How Much You Value ThemAs I mentioned earlier, customers are the asset for a business. Let your customers know you are always thinking about betterment of them. Communicate with them regularly. For example, create some special deals just for your regular or existing customers. Announce new products or services to them before you announce them to the general market. Always value them as if you are really very concerned with them.

There is excellent idea to convert your customers into publicity agents. Develop an incentive for them to tell associates and friends about the value of your products or services. An endorsement from them is more effective than any amount of advertising and it is much cheaper. For example, reward them each time they refer someone who becomes a customer. Your reward can be as simple as a credit toward their next order from you.

You are in the business of satisfying customers regardless of what products or services you provide. The satisfied customers you create will help you build your business by becoming repeat buyers and by referring new business to you from their friends and associates.The Diamond RuleImagine that you are a person who likes to be best serviced (every one thinks the same way). And you are least attended.

This will probably be the last time you went to this place, bought this product or used this service. Similar happens when people forget the simple rule while doing the business. If your business fails to give what customers wants, it not their fault, it is clearly yours. So, there is a simple rule for such people, “If you wouldn’t want it done

to you, don’t do it to someone else!” (Gitomer, 1998).Try Emotions to Customer ServiceSuppose there is a bank that offers free candy and coffee, you went there enjoyed the devour, you went out spend the rest of the time as a good time till you counter the new tension.

So, you can’t call it a memorable experience because it has nothing noticeable to keep you remembering about this experience after some time. Besides you can’t tell your friend that this bank is great because it offers free treat because when recommend something to someone you, you place your reputation at the stake of your recommendation. You should be fairly certain that the organization you are recommending offers consistently good products and servicesThese booties may score high when you survey customer satisfaction but generally this is not what you want – a mere boost. You should make some long lasting, positive impression on the customer. It is your job to find out that when you actually “Give” something to customer, you must do it in the right context i.e.

, strike when iron is hot; emote customers feeling. Make them feel as if you are really with them.Suppose there is a wedding of a customer, he wished to buy some liquor for it. This is your time celebrate with him as though you are happy with him on his wedding and it is not just his special occasion. Throw a bottle of champagne and give him a good discount.

Now you haven’t just won a customer, you have just opened a channel for free publicity and developed a lot of good will for a small act.In emotional

state most of the time, customer does not understand the policies of your organization which might be a little negative for you. Perhaps he needs to order food for his wife, who is very hungry and tired after 10 hours of traveling, perhaps this is one of the most important function of his life and he want his suit to be altered in one day. It is in circumstances such as these when a business has the opportunity to stand up to the plate and hit a home run.  Policies are meaningless to someone in an emotional state.

  Anything you can do to set aside a "policy" and make an exception for a customer in such a state will generate strong, positive feelings about your business and he would be loyal and would keep coming back to you (Smith, 2005).ConclusionCustomer satisfaction is the key to success. Tell your customers what's good about you, your products or services. Improve and help you to ensure that your business measures are up to their expectations.

To survive in the constantly excelling competitive world, it is better to learn than to loose; therefore, it is your time to understand exactly how.Nurturing the client base involves giving customers every opportunity to improve the way that they interact with you. No longer are customers sideline participants. Organizations are empowering their customers with a wealth of knowledge to engage in meaningful conversations, with more informed decision-making. In the end, I would like to add:“Customer Satisfaction Is Worthless, Customer Loyalty Is Priceless, Let your Customers Love You, Keep Them Coming Back and Tell Everyone They Know” (Jeffery Gitomer).ReferencesCochran, Craig (2003).

Customer Satisfaction: Tools,

Techniques and Formulas for Success. Paton Pr Publishers. Fombrun, C and Shanley, M. (1990) What’s in a name? Reputation building and Corporate Strategy. Academy of Management Journal, Vol 33, No.

2, p.233-258. Friedman, Thomas, L. (2005) The World is flat: A Brief History of Twenty-first century. New York: Farrar, Straus and Giroux.

P. 48-172. Gitomer, Jeffery (1998) Customer Satisfaction Is Worthless, Customer Loyalty Is Priceless : How to Make Customers Love You, Keep Them Coming Back and Tell Everyone They Know. Brad Press Grant, Eugene and Leavenworth, Richard (1996).

Statistical Quality Control. McGraw-Hill series. 7th edition. Hall, Rich (2006). How can you guarantee ROI on your CRM Investment? White papers.

 Katcher, Bruce L. (2003). Make more strategic use of customer satisfaction surveys. Journal of Business Strategy. January/February 2003.

p.38 - 44. Smith, C. (2003) Corporate Social Responsibility: Weather or how? California Management Review, 45.4, 11-24.

 Smith, Benson (2005). Customer Satisfaction Is the Wrong Measure. Retrieved from: http://gmj.gallup.com/content/default.

asp?ci=15850 Retrieved on: January 12, 2006. Temkin, Bruce D., Bob Chatham and Michelle Amato, “The Customer Experience Value Chain: An Enterprise wide Approach for Meeting Customer Needs.” Forrester Research. March 15, 2005.