Just How Personal Can We Get?

“Are your customer relationships committed partnerships, flings or marriages of convenience?” asked Simon Atkinson, MD, Loyalty for Ipsos MORI, speaking at The Logic Group’s inaugural Solution Showcase seminar programme at Retail Solutions 2008. Exploring the metaphor of personal relationships in an organizational context, Atkinson revealed that customers really want honesty and delivery from organizations. Ipsos MORI research shows that providing the service promised was important to 53% of customers, followed closely by honesty at 51%. Taking responsibility when things go wrong was also considered important in good customer service, said 41%. 

“Customer expectations are increasing,” confirmed Atkinson. “You have to deliver good customer service, and we are getting a strong sense of how things should be. Companies have so much information about their products and services, but not the most sophisticated view of their customers. The customer experience can be difficult to measure, but it is an area of growing importance for many organizations.” Atkinson also touched on the important role that employees play in the customer relationship. “Our research shows that employees feel more loyal towards their customers than the organization, but lack confidence in the service offered to customers.  Only two fifths of employees rated the customer service provided by their organization as being extremely good or very good, for example. Yet, customer loyalty can improve as a result of a well-handled complaint, with nearly a quarter of adults being more likely to use the company again. People want to feel valued,” said Atkinson.

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