Why Low-cost Shouldn’t Mean Poor Customer Service
The latest report by the Institute of Customer Satisfaction Index makes grim reading. The UK Customer Satisfaction Index (UKCSI) shows that the adverse impact on customer satisfaction of problems and bad experiences has increased since last year.
Furthermore, it revealed that organisations are taking longer to deal with complaints, and more issues are going unresolved. All 13 sectors covered by the UKCSI have lower customer satisfaction compared to last year, with the transport and utilities sectors seeing the biggest decline.
A First-hand Example
When considering poor customer service, I’m reminded of a recent incident on a Ryanair flight to Spain which left a particularly bitter taste in my mouth. I was travelling with three children, so I opted to pay extra for seats at the front of the aircraft. I thought this would make life easier – how wrong I was.
After boarding the plane, we found our seats had been taken by a couple. Rather than politely asking the couple to return to their correct seats, a member of the cabin crew told me that we would have to sit separately, which would have seen me sitting at the other end of the plane to the children, leaving them on their own.
My reaction, like that of many parents, was a hard no. I’ve been on many flights where I was happy to give up my seat when asked, so families could sit together. Imagine my shock when the cabin crew member told me that if I didn’t take the alternative seats being offered, I’d have to leave the plane. Worse still, a passenger who overheard the exchange and came to my defence was also threatened with removal from the flight.
I asked to speak to the supervisor, who luckily agreed with me and asked the couple to move. There was no apology from the member of the cabin crew who had threatened to turf us off the flight. The final nail in the coffin was when the cabin crew member refused to give me their name, claiming it was company policy.
Do Big Brands Even Care?
This experience got me wondering why big brands like Ryanair think they can get away with poor customer service. Sadly, the answer is that most of the time, they can. Big brands often control a large market share, and whatever they do has little impact on them financially. Brands with few competitors often prefer to distance themselves from dissatisfied customers to save on redress costs.
I also suspect that larger companies providing low-cost products, like cheap flights, may also think they offer something that their customers can’t get elsewhere. Investing in improving customer service might seem unnecessary if they think customers will continue using their products, regardless of how they’re treated.The Importance Of Customer Service
The Importance Of Customer Service
Big businesses may think they’re untouchable, but when it comes to poor customer service, they play a dangerous game. Recent research showed that over 70% of UK customers would stop using a brand if they broke their trust. If enough customers vote with their feet, the results for businesses could be disastrous.
Even the most low-budget service providers can benefit from improving customer service. A recent study found that the cost of attracting new customers is higher in companies that don’t properly invest in customer service. So, it’s more profitable to keep current customers happy than to attract new ones.
Final Thoughts
In a recent conversation, Jo Causon, CEO of the Institute of Customer Service, summed up the importance of customer service perfectly. “There is an economic and reputational cost to getting customer service wrong, but a huge opportunity to return that investment and more when you get it right.”
No-one is perfect and mistakes do happen. Most people will forgive an error made by a company if they feel that they have been listened to and understood. Despite our tech-heavy society, full of chatbots and AI, human values like empathy, understanding, trust and compassion go a long way when dealing with customer complaints.
