Customer service jobs – saving UK business billions

Better investment in customer service job roles could prevent UK businesses losing  billions. According to a recent survey, 73 per cent of UK consumers cited poor customer service as the reason they have ended a relationship with a company. The average value of each lost relationship is £248, which adds up to UK business losing an astonishing £15.3 billion a year.
 
For those doing a customer service job, it’s probably no surprise to hear that the factors that caused most consumer frustration were having to repeat information, being forced to wait too long, or dealing with unhelpful or under qualified staff. Automated self-service, especially voice self-service, was a particular source of dissatisfaction. This was partly due to its impersonal nature but mainly because so many consumers questioned had become ‘trapped’ in systems, and had to wait, on average, more than ten minutes to speak to a real live human being.
 
A customer service job well done makes all the difference to customer retention. Competence was identified as one of the major sources of customer satisfaction, as was personalisation and convenience of service. “Turning the customer experience into an emotional engagement adds value and results in consumers who are more loyal and satisfied,” said Keith Pearce of Genesys, the company that carried out the survey.
 
Proactive engagement was another key need that emerged, with 83 per cent of consumers saying they’d welcome such help when ‘trapped’ in the various forms of self-service. With a view on this Daniel Hong, Lead Analyst of Customer Interaction at Ovum says, “We're advising enterprise businesses in the UK to develop cohesive strategies that straddle all channels of customer communication. The difference between delivering exceptional customer service and merely providing acceptable service is pronounced.”
 
If you’re applying for customer service jobs, the main thing to bear in mind is that your positive and decisive action could stop a customer leaving – and that could be worth £248 every time you turn a situation around.