In the year of the customers, executives didn’t decide how customer-centric their companies should be – the customers did. Digital communication channels explode and mobile devices got smarter, customer expectations changed drastically. Customers expected consistent, proactive, personalized service across a growing number of channels, resulting in a positive, pain-free customer experience. The customers didn't have the time or patience to wait on hold or fumble through clunky IVR systems. Those were obstacles of the past. These are the top trends I noticed in the customer service domain in 2014.

1. CUSTOMER SERVICE
What has happened so fare in
2014

2. A customer is 4 times more likely to buy form a competitor
after experiencing a service related issue, as opposed to a
price or product related issue
X
4X
Price or product
related problems
Service related
problems
Competitors

3. It takes 12 positive experiences to make up
)
for one negative experience
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
=
POSITIVE EXPERIENCE
NEGATIVE EXPERIENCE

4. It costs 7 times more to attract a new
customer than to retain an existing customer
NEW CUSTOMER
EXISTING CUSTOMERS
$
7X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X
X is the cost to retain one customer

5. REASONS FOR IMPROVING
CUSTOMER SERVICE
Customer
demand
better
service
87%
Customer
loyalty
28%
Competitive
pressure
71%
CUSTOMERS EXPECT MORE FROM YOUR COMPANY. BAIN &
COMPANY FOUND THAT 80% OF COMPANIES BELIEVE THEIR
FIRM OFFERS A SUPERIOR SERVICE. HOWEVER, ONLY 8% OF
CUSTOMERS HELD THE SAME VIEW!

6. ENHANCED SERVICE METRICS
TRADITIONAL CUSTOMER
SERVICE METRICS
QUALITY CUSTOMER SERVICE
METRICS
Waiting time
+
Satisfaction ratings
First time resolutions
Average handling time
Cost to serve customer
Save / sales rates
Net Promoter Score
Customer Effort Score
Employee empathy
Likes, retweets etc.
Cross sell / up sell rates
Customer journey consistency
LEADING ORGANIZATIONS ARE NOT ONLY MEASURING THE
TIME AND COST IT TAKES TO SERVE A CUSTOMER, BUT ALSO
THEIR CUSTOMER’S ENGAGEMENT WITH THEIR BRAND

7. THE FRONTLINE
Those who handle incoming communication play a powerful role in providing
superior customer service.
Engaged, knowledgeable
employees deliver a better
customer service and close
33
%
more
deals
Customers will return
to a company with
excellent service and
56
%
would
recommend it to
family and friends
Customer Service top priorities 2014
3
%
56
%
Creating a consistent
customer experience
5
%
Data analytics
8
13
%
Metrics and
performance
%
Workforce management
and culture
Cost reduction

8. WHAT THE CUSTOMERS WANT
24 x 365 support
Informed Customer
Service reps.
Calls answered
quickly
Issue solved first
time
Option for call
back
If on hold .. Provide
an estimated waiting
time
AND
Consistent and personalized omni-channel
experience
Thank you .. 100 bonus points are added to your account
Omni-channel software enables reps to communicate and
help across all channels and devices
Contact Centers
71%
IRRITATED
Still need the human touch
71% of customers were irritated when
they couldn’t reach a human voice
when calling. 67% of those hung up.
67%
HUNG UP
Press #1 .., press #2 ..,
press #3 ..
IVR

9. THE CUSTOMERS DON’T LIKE
55% of customers are
willing to pay more for a better
experience, but they ..
get frustrated when a rep
does not have immediate
access to their info
do not like to be transferred
more than once on a call
think they are put on hold for
too long
think it takes too long to
reach live reps
84%
94%
69%
72%

10. WHEN THINGS GO WRONG
CUSTOMER SERVICE
EXPERIENCE
+
10%
BAD
GOOD
WILL LEAVE YOU
+
14%
GOOD
BAD
WILL LEAVE YOU
+
23%
BAD
BAD
WILL LEAVE YOU
+
VERY 31%
BAD
VERY BAD
WILL LEAVE YOU
78% OF BUSINESS COULD BE
LOST DUE TO POOR
CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE

11. POORLY HANDLED CUSTOMER
COMPLAINTS
the quickest way to destroy an otherwise perfect service reputation
70%
95%
Resolve a complaint in the customer’s favour and they
will do business with you again 70% of the time.
Up to 95% of customers will give you a second chance
if you handle their complaint successfully and in a timely
manner.

12. DISSATISFIED
CUSTOMERS
Watch the customers – they won’t always
contact you.
(
4%
complaints
(
96%
don’t complaint
A dissatisfied customer will tell
19 other people
19

13. DIGITAL CHANNELS ARE BEGINNING TO BE
JUST AS IMPORTAINT AS FACE-TO-FACE
62
57
53
39
27
Store
Personal
meeting
Web
Phone
Social
media
While digital channels increases,
creating an omni-channel experience
becomes a necessity to deliver a
superior customer service.
Customers want the opportunity to
start an interaction in one channel and
complete it in another, with consistent
and personalized information provided

14. THE SOCIAL AREA
Companies realized the importance of social media in the
area of customer service
27%
95%
Companies using social media for responding to customer
2014
service inquiries
2020
THESE COMPANIES DO MORE THAN
MARKETING; THEY ARE ACTIVELY LISTENING,
ENGAGING AND RESPONDING TO CUSTOMER
QUESTIONS
of Fortune 500’s 100 largest
companies engage with their
customers on Facebook
56 %
THESE COMPANIES DO MORE THAN
MARKETING; THEY ARE ACTIVELY LISTENING,
ENGAGING AND RESPONDING TO CUSTOMER
QUESTIONS
REFUSING TO COMMUNICATE WITH
CUSTOMERS VIA SOCIAL MEDIA IN 2014 IS AS
HARMFUL AS IGNORING EMAILS OR PHONE
CALLS
Social media grew 40 %
by more than

15. FAILURE TO RESPOND VIA
SOCIAL MEDIA
15% ì
INCREASE
Failure to respond via social media causes
a 15% increase to the churn rate for
existing customers, compared to other
channels
Negative post or tweets
can explode if not
answered within 2 hours
in day and evening time!

16. SKILLS FOR EXCELLENT
Customer
Service
Develop these skills to excel in any
customer service, regardless of
industry or type of customers
1
Be a great listener
Listen intensely, ask questions
and summarize the answers of
your customers. This shows
that you care and want to offer
the right solution
2
Great communication skills
Learn how to effectively communicate
with your customers. Know when to
listen, when to speak and how to speak
3
Keep your promises
Develop the ability to manage
expectations. Stay up-to-date
with company policies to
ensure that any promise you
make for a customer can be
delivered
4
Become an expert
Learn everything about each product and
services that you are selling. Spend time
on studying the product as well as the
various solutions you are offering for
various circumstances
5
Friendly and
compassionate
Your friendly and caring
attitude will surely help in
creating the right atmosphere
for coming to the best
solutions

17. THE KEY ELEMENTS IN 2014
LISTENING
TO THE
CUSTOMERS
OMNI-CHANNEL
SUPPORT
PERSONALIZED
CUSTOMER
EXPERIENCE
INCREASED
VISIBILITY WITH
SOCIAL MEDIA

18. Thank you
Contact information:
thorleif@hallund.com

19. Thanks to the following great companies for
providing statistics
Kevin
Gao
–
Comm100
IDC
Consumerreport
Gartner
Call
Center
Week
Survey
Customerthink
SAS
Mycustomer
Bajacallcenters
Bluewolf
AstutesoluDons
Helpscout
Robinhg
Customerserviceheroes