Importance of Customer Service Reinforced in Study
Washington, DC, November 24--Whether they shop at retail stores or on the web, customer service is important to nearly all consumers, according to a comprehensive national survey on customer service conducted by the NRF Foundation and the American Express Company.
In fact, according to the survey, 99 percent of shoppers said that customer service was at least somewhat important when deciding to make a purchase.
Though many retailers have continued to focus on customer service in their stores, most shoppers have been only lukewarm about their most recent customer service experiences.
According to the survey, just 16 percent of traditional shoppers were extremely satisfied with their most recent customer service experience while an additional 51 percent were very satisfied. In contrast, online shoppers were almost three times as likely to be extremely satisfied with their customer service experience (44%) and an additional 45 percent were very satisfied.
"Many retailers are putting renewed emphasis on customer service, but shoppers are telling them that even more needs to be done," said John Theiss, vice president, retail industries, American Express Establishment Services. "This study identifies a wide range of service improvement opportunities that can have a meaningful impact on shoppers."
Personnel Most Important to Traditional Shoppers
The most important elements of good customer service to traditional shoppers revolve around retail employees and the store environment, according to the survey.
In fact, nearly two thirds of shoppers feel that it is extremely important for retail employees to be courteous (67%) and treat shoppers like valued customers (65%). Consumers also dislike being pressured to buy merchandise (69%) and find it extremely important that employees are available to ask for help (61%).
Though also asked about hours, shopping atmosphere, and parking, customers said that the most important environmental factor for them is a neat and clean store, which 60 percent of shoppers said is extremely important.
Online Shoppers Value On-Time Delivery and Security
Customer service expectations of online shoppers vary greatly from those who shop in stores. According to the survey, the majority of online shoppers (88%) find a safe and secure website an extremely important component of good customer service. In addition, online shoppers want merchandise to be delivered on time (73%) and want the retailer to quickly handle questions and requests (74%).
Shoppers Main Concerns Include Information Sharing, Accurate Pricing
While generally focused on very different elements of the customer service experience, traditional and online shoppers had a few factors in common. First, both traditional and online shoppers find it extremely important that the retailer they do business with does not share their information with other companies (73% of traditional shoppers, 78% of online shoppers).
Additionally, both groups felt that accurate item pricing was an essential component of customer service (71% traditional, 75% online) and they value retailers that promptly deal with merchandise problems after the sale (63% traditional, 74% online).
Return policies were also important to both groups. Not only do most customers want returns to be accepted without problems (59% traditional, 70% online), they want return policies to be clear (60% traditional, 70% online) and fair (60% traditional, 69% online).
The NRF Foundation is an arm of the National Retail Federation that offers National Certification in Professional Customer Service and Sales.
