| We all love to be welcomed warmly, attentively | | | | The mid zone of customer experience scores range |
| waited on with polite and enthusiastic anticipation of | | | | from 4.2 to 7.9. This is known as the Zone of |
| and fulfillment of our needs by a professional looking | | | | Customer Indifference. With these scores, customer |
| worker with a subservient attitude. This is customer | | | | service could be excellent, but additional areas of |
| service. | | | | value, environment, quality, ease of access or other |
| Customer Service can be a great attractor for a | | | | factors could be pulling the scores down. |
| customer to return to buy that product or service | | | | Suppliers who score in the 'Zone of Indifference' have |
| again, but it is not the only factor. What if you are in a | | | | customers who are not loyal, and who may use the |
| restaurant and the service is great, but the food is | | | | supplier solely out of convenience or are perhaps |
| bad? What if the environment is not clean or | | | | 'value shoppers' who might be there for a sale, but will |
| attractive? What if you can't find a place to park or | | | | not otherwise frequent the establishment. Mediocre is |
| have to wait in line? | | | | the way to describe these suppliers, who are |
| These and a host of other satisfaction factors will | | | | vulnerable to competitors who can push their overall |
| ultimately influence your decision to return to that | | | | customer satisfaction scores higher. |
| establishment or recommend it to others. The | | | | To achieve genuine customer preference or loyalty |
| combination of all these factors in the mind of the | | | | the research says that a supplier of a product or |
| customer is what is meant by customer satisfaction. | | | | service must score 7.9 or higher overall with a |
| In his recent book, "What Customers Want!", Bart Allen | | | | combination of good performance in each of the ten |
| Berry presents the results of years of customer | | | | domains of customer satisfaction. At this level |
| satisfaction research, and reveals the ten domains of | | | | customers will progressively demonstrate more and |
| satisfaction customers are influenced by in any | | | | more loyalty and preference, and increasingly |
| product or service delivery. Berry's research finds that | | | | recommend others, as satisfaction scores get higher. |
| customers change their selection, return and | | | | Of course front line customer service behaviors are |
| recommend behavior based upon their overall | | | | scoring well at these companies as well as areas of |
| satisfaction experience. | | | | value, quality, timeliness, ease of access, |
| If we rate the overall customer satisfaction experience | | | | interdepartmental teamwork, environment, and even |
| on a scale of 1 to 10, (one being the lowest or worst | | | | innovation. 9.24 is the score defined by customers that |
| and 10 being the absolute best) what we find is that | | | | suppliers must achieve if they are to be termed |
| customer behavior falls into three distinct categories. | | | | 'world-class'. Suppliers with scores this high are known |
| The lowest category, or what is termed the 'Zone of | | | | as the best and enjoy great word of mouth |
| Dissatisfaction' ranges from a 4.1 down to a 1.0. | | | | advertising and the best reputation, making customer |
| The Zone of Dissatisfaction is characterized by | | | | acquisition nearly automatic. |
| customers who not only don't return to buy again, but | | | | Many organizations put their attention solely on front |
| who spread negative word of mouth, complain | | | | line customer service behaviors and neglect many |
| vigorously or take punitive actions against the supplier | | | | other customer satisfaction fundamentals. The |
| in the lowest end of the scale. Overall Satisfaction | | | | important point is that customer satisfaction and an |
| Experience scores this low means the supplier is | | | | ultimately satisfied customer is created by a |
| probably not only providing bad customer service, but | | | | combination of highly interrelated factors that influence |
| also is probably falling down on the job in many areas | | | | the customer. None can be overlooked or neglected if |
| simultaneously. | | | | the goal is to maintain and grow the customer base. |