Customer service has always been difficult to measure. First, you must rely on the customer’s honesty and hope that they are not too harsh nor too generous in their feedback, if they should give any at all. Often, if a customer is perfectly satisfied with their service experience, they will make no contact whatsoever which throws another wrench in the gears. Even so, there are a few methods that you can utilize to help create a metric that will help you analyze your efforts.
Customer Surveys
The tried and true method to receive feedback is through a customer survey. When a customer is presented with a short survey in an email or at the end of a call, it gives you a greater return opportunity. If the customer is aware that any information they provide is valuable to your company, most of the time they will take a few minutes out of their day to express their opinion. You can also offer incentives such as discounts or a free gift of some sort for taking the survey.
Average Resolution Time
Create a rubric for how long a problem should take to be resolved. Every problem is different but they can be sorted into categories that have a certain speed and response time. Record the time it takes for each problem to be resolved by your staff and watch for trends in particular categories that could need work. There will be anomalies as some problems may be a bit more complex than others, but the overall time it takes should be near the average on your rubric. For example, if you have calls that are being resolved too slowly, then you may have a problem with your customer experience.
Complaint/Compliment Numbers
It’s very important that your customers have a way to submit a complaint or a compliment for your company. If an issue was not resolved or if they had a negative experience, you should have a place for them to have their issue addressed directly. A good practice is to keep track of which staff member handled the case to see if there are any productivity problems that should be looked at as well. Using these numbers, you can see where any pitfalls in the customer experience may be.
Return Business and Customer Turnover
Your customer base is one of your biggest indicators that there may be a problem with your customer experience. If the numbers for return customers drop or your profits start to decline, more than likely you have a customer service experience problem. The number one reason that customer decides whether to leave a company or stay with them is their customer service satisfaction. In fact, most people would rather pay a little more for a product if it means that they receive better service. People vote with their feet and if they are not satisfied with how your company handles operations, then they will go to a competitor who better suits their needs. Review your numbers as often as you can to observe any trends. Keep the methods that do work and get rid of the ones that don’t.
To maintain a good customer base relies on observing how your company pleases the customer. It may sound difficult at first to take something as abstract as satisfaction and convert it into real numbers, but it is absolutely possible. By using these methods you can view trends and decide with reliable figures if your company should maintain the status quo or move in a different direction. When you have reliable facts and figures that can be measured and observed, your company will be positioned for success. Contact us today for shipping solutions!
