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WHY SERVICE STINKS. By: Diane Brady. BEN RICHARDS. COMPANIES KNOW JUST HOW GOOD OF A CUSTOMER YOU ARE AND UNLESS YOU’RE A HIGH ROLLER THEY WOULD RATHER LOSE YOU THAN TAKE THE TIME TO FIX YOUR PROBLEM. Consumers have become commodities to pamper, squeeze, or toss away.
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WHY SERVICE STINKS By: Diane Brady BEN RICHARDS
COMPANIES KNOW JUST HOW GOOD OF A CUSTOMER YOU ARE AND UNLESS YOU’RE A HIGH ROLLER THEY WOULD RATHER LOSE YOU THAN TAKE THE TIME TO FIX YOUR PROBLEM.
Consumers have become commodities to pamper, squeeze, or toss away.
Technology is creating a whole new dynamic to customer service, called tiering. • Instead of providing premium service across the board; your personal information slots you into a certain category with in the company
The 80/20 Rule • 80% of your customers give you 20% of your profit. • The rest nag you, call you, and don’t add much revenue.
Technology is changing everything • Companies can track low margin customers. • Web offers self-service. • Marketers are making a push to get the least profitable customers to self-service
Example: Fidelity Investments • 550,000 website visits a day, and more than 700,000 daily phone calls. • About three-quarters went to automated system costing less than a dollar each. • The rest are handled by human beings which roughly costs around $13 per call.
“We’re sorry, all of our agents are busy with more valuable customers” • Coding: Some companies grade customers based on how profitable their business is. • Routing: Based on customer’s code call centers route customers to different queues. • Targeting: Choice customers have fees waived and get other hidden discounts based on the value of their business. • Sharing: Companies sell data about your transaction history to outsiders.
Entitled? • Consumers themselves have cast a vote against high-quality service by increasingly choosing price, choices, and convenience over all else. Results: • So costumer service has been slashed. • So while customers refuse to pay more for service…they’re pissed when it is taken away
Privacy? Redlining: • The practice of identifying and avoiding unprofitable neighborhoods or types of people.
You just don’t know when you are getting messed with!! • Directed to different telephone queue. • Don’t hear about benefits your missing. • Those who don’t make the top tier have no idea at how good it can be.
Tiering isn’t always good for marketers • The main drawback is the failure to measure potential spending or value of customer. • Spending habits may be determined by service.
How to improve your profile to get better service #1. Consolidate your activities. • Spend big in one place.
How to improve your profile to get better service #2. Protect your privacy • The less companies know the less they can slot you.
How to improve your profile to get better service #3. Jump the phone queue • Don’t push any buttons unless you have to.
How to improve your profile to get better service #4. Fight back • If you feel badly treated complain.