Tag: customer satisfaction

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Accenture reports that customers hate automated systems

It’s been a busy day… let’s just leave it at that.


But I had to post this link from a friend on the other coast about customer satisfaction, which is a hot topic these days. Interesting that Frank Hayes of Computerworld should report that Customers Hate Automated Systems, Vendors Don’t Get It.


Really? I love talking to and trying to interrupt an automated phone system. Not.



“We hate automated customer service  systems. That’s the key finding of a recent study by Accenture. Understand, the study didn’t look at how well we like acquiring, installing, integrating, operating and maintaining customer service automation. It was about how well we like being on the receiving end. Short answer: We don’t.


“Wait, it’s worse: We not only hate being subjected to automated customer service — we’re also irritated enough that we’re ready to change vendors in the hope that we’ll have better luck elsewhere.


“Worse still: Vendors are clueless about just how bad things are.”


Clueless? No, not clueless. Perhaps some are in denial.



“Accenture actually commissioned two separate surveys. In one, 1,200 customers of technology companies were asked what they thought of their suppliers’ customer service. In the other, executives at 35 technology vendors were asked how well they believed their customer service systems performed.


“Three-fourths of vendors believe their customer service is above average, and 54 percent say theirs is up there with the best in the industry.


“Meanwhile, 78 percent of customers say their vendors are only average or below average.


“Among vendors, 57 percent say they have higher customer satisfaction because of new technology they’re using for customer service, and 71 percent say customer problems are being resolved faster than before.


“Among customers, 61 percent say service has not improved — and 57 percent actually describe themselves as somewhat, very or extremely upset by lousy customer service.”



“According to the survey, when we go through a vendor’s customer service process, we want our problems resolved quickly and completely, preferably the first time through.


“Instead, 64 percent of us have had to go back more than once to get problems solved — and 58 percent of us are not at all satisfied with the telephone-based self-help customer service that lots of suppliers have foisted on us.”


Of interest: Accenture’s High Performance Business Blog


Tags: Microsoft, loyalty, Customer Satisfaction, Customer Service.

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Readers respond to InfoWeek’s question: “Does Customer Service Still Exist?”

Following up on my earlier post this week on InfoWeek’s question “Does Customer Service Still Exist?” I was not surprised to see the volume of comments added to the blog posting.


I also agree with several positive comments, in particular on HP, and this one on the etailer NewEgg.com:



“Newegg – ROCKS. rarely ever have an issue, but the one RMA I had with them was as easy as could be. Since I don’t use Dell or any other commodity box pusher for my systems (custom build them myself), I need a reliable source for my PC parts and one that takes returns. Newegg does that perfectly. And for less then anyone else I know.” 


Newegg recently accurately (and courteously) responded to a mail query I sent to them on a new product in less than a day.


In short, my favourite comment came from one comment on Customer Service: “It is work, but it is not Magic.” And I’ve found their fulfillment and delivery to be stellar.


(here’s the URL… http://www.informationweek.com/blog/main/archives/2007/06/does_customer_s.html)


Tags: Microsoft, loyalty, Customer Satisfaction, Customer Service.

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Annoyed by Vista’s User Account Control? Gartner’s advice on deploying UAC

In the mailbag this morning was this eweek article on how Vista’s User Account Control (UAC) Will Reform Developers, where a Gartner analyst says that developers should ship software apps that (in some cases) don’t require administrator rights. Speaking at Gartner’s IT Security Summit this week, analyst Neil MacDonald said UAC “has plenty of people confused regarding what, exactly, it is.”


In case you missed it, here’s a technet article on UAC that explains how “Windows Vista makes it possible for organizations to deploy a more manageable and secure desktop in which administrators can run as standard users (formerly users) and still perform administrative tasks.”


Although gizmodo noted that UAC was “pretty much the most annoying OS feature I’ve ever dealt with” it does have benefits. As Peter Watson notes (Microsoft Australia’s chief security advisor)…



“There has been a lot of misunderstanding in the market around User Account Control (UAC). If you look at it from an architectural direction User Account Control is a great idea and strategically a direction that all operating systems and all technologies should be heading down.”


Of interest: this article on how to make User Account Control (UAC) less annoying.



“[Gartner’s] MacDonald had additional advice on deploying UAC:


  • Use the migration to Windows Vista as a catalyst to have more users run as “standard user.” This may not be appropriate for all users, but can be for many.

  • For administrators, require approval when an administrative task is attempted.

  • When critical vulnerabilities are announced by Microsoft, see if the malicious code is restricted to running in the context of the user.

  • Note that if the organization’s goal is to “lock down” the computing environment, UAC won’t be enough, and third-party tools will be required.”

Of interest…



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Good Customer Service is Sooooo Easy… Not

In William Herman’s post Good Customer Service is Sooooo Easy, he tells the story of how one United Airlines captain’s attitude and direction elevated the level of customer service and ultimately delighted his passengers (and crew, too).  All in the face of relative adversity, complete with (as the author describes) stinking lavatories and poor maintenance. 



“What he did to make this happen – at least the stuff I witnessed – was simple, cost virtually nothing and took little time.  While the passengers were waiting in the boarding area to get on the plane, the captain took the microphone (uh, oh, I thought, this is gonna be bad) and gave us the complete low-down of the flight plan, the plane’s status, the crew and what was happening at both the departure and arrival airports.  No bad news.  No delays.  It’s not like he had to be out there for bad news, he was essentially out there for no news – just for the customers.  He told us that it might get a little bumpy over the Midwest and that they’d try to skirt the storms that were creating the turbulence. 


“What made this different from the usual pre-flight blather was that he



1. covered a pretty complete list of the stuff a passenger would want to know,


2. showed empathy to those who might be concerned about turbulence and,


3. DID IT FACE-TO-FACE. 


“Instead of being the anonymous voice in the the speaker, he took the time to explain this stuff standing among us.  Simple, good, unique.”


“Then, as we boarded the plane, the captain stood at the door and handed out his business card (which had a phone number and email address) to every passenger that boarded.  I asked him if he should be spending his time doing his pre-flight checks and he told me they were already done.  He said: “I just show up a few minutes earlier so that it doesn’t hold up the passengers.”  I have to hire this guy.”


A quick note on this: Good customer is not easy… it’s hard. If it were easy, then everyone would do it, it would be commonplace. But the effort is not lost on repeat customers — in fact, it can help your loyal customers overlook your small flaws.



“Let me get right to the punch line . . . good customer service is so easy because customers’ expectations are so low.  It’s a relative thing.  Yeah, yeah, yeah, it shouldn’t be that way, but it is and aggressive companies should be taking advantage of the fact that their customer’s have been beaten down by suppliers for so long that a simple recognition of the fact that they paid money is enough to make them happy.  In a world with few initial differentiators and almost no sustainable differentiators, customer service can make all the difference in making sure you beat your competition, get repeat sales and have a customer base that is your best and biggest marketing department.”


BTW, my two most memorable flights (besides the always incredible service on Singapore Airlines and ANA) were two that I took on United several years ago, when I apparently was a passenger on a plance with this same cut of captain at the controls (or at least, two of his kind). We were all greeted by the captain at boarding, I received a business card thanking me for flying United, and he shook hands and thanked each passenger as they left.


Another interesting observation from my flights: the captains were both over 50, and one a year from retirement age (as I spoke to him for several minutes during the flight, sitting in coach). You don’t find that same level of service on many United flights today. Alaska Airlines and JetBlue flight crews also often thanks passegers upon departure and arrival, which is a nice touch, and one of the reasons I prefer to fly them regularly now.


Tags: Microsoft, loyalty, Customer Satisfaction, Customer Service.

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TBR Report: Gateway exceeds customer expectations, “higher perception of customer service”

Here’s something that may be a surprise: Gateway announced today that they are “the only PC maker fully meeting high expectations of its surveyed customer base,” as they are in the top position for the for corporate desktops in Technology Business Research’s Corporate IT Buying Behavior and Customer Satisfaction Study for Corporate Desktops.



“TBR identified three competitive strengths for Gateway in the marketplace — ease of doing business, phone support and parts availability. According to TBR, Gateway is the only PC maker with no urgent challenges in customer satisfaction.


“In addition, the report shows that Gateway has consistently earned high marks in hardware quality, desktop value and overall satisfaction. Recent gains are reflected in Gateway’s rising customer loyalty positions and a substantial increase in hardware quality.”


TBR went on to say that Gateway exceeds customer expectations and a higher perception of customer service through high-quality telephone support.


Interesting, as the field in the the ACSI scores, Gateway follows Apple, Dell, HP, and is trailed by Compaq and IBM.(Each quarter, ACSI measures the satisfaction in many different market segments, including personal computers.) And in PC Magazine’s annual Customer Satisfaction study last summer, Apple also came out on top, but noted last summer that Gateway was gaining ground…



“Once again, Apple and Sony are Readers’ Choices, receiving some of the highest ratings for desktops. Once again, HP/Compaq and Lenovo/IBM receive some of the lowest. Of course, the similarities shine a particularly bright spotlight on the few things that did change. Both eMachines and its parent brand, Gateway, show significant improvement from last year, while Dell, despite some impressive individual scores, takes a slight statistical dip overall (emphasis there on slight).”


Tags: Microsoft, loyalty, Customer Satisfaction, Customer Service.