On Time and yet too Late … Customer Experience as a Solution to the Problem

In this article, we will use a short story to describe an example from the service sector. In the story, it becomes clear that meeting internal targets or key performance indicators does not necessarily lead to satisfied customers.

At the end of the story, we explain how Deep Dive CX Services can be used to learn how well services are valued externally and how service performance can be continuously improved.

Mr. Mueller, managing director of a medium-sized company, was not satisfied with the results of the year, as the ambitious targets were not achieved.

He felt that despite the Corona situation, business should have been better. He wanted to conduct a company evaluation from the customer’s point of view. He had heard about TEMA-Q GmbH’s CX solutions, which are used to optimize products, services and processes, and thus decided to conduct a Deep Dive CX study.

After TEMA-Q made a customized concept for the company, a survey was conducted with 500 B2B customers.

Mr. Mueller was excited about the insights they got from the study:

The main competitors were analyzed and evaluated. More than 700 original customer statements (the so-called Voice of Customer) about constructive criticism could be evaluated, which would help them to plan improvements in different areas. More than 800 records of praise were made, so they also knew what customers actually appreciated and which positive aspects should be retained. These positive aspects were included in the argumentation for new customer meetings.

All departments had access to the results using the ClaralytiX tool developed by TEMA-Q. Everyone could easily analyze the customer statements in detail and derive measures from them.

Mr. Müller was surprised by the results in the service area: The company was convinced that it had a very good delivery service, as over 90% of the promised delivery dates were met.

The survey revealed that customers were not satisfied. The promised delivery dates were generally met, but the delivery times were longer than desired and longer than for other suppliers. Customer wishes were not queried or taken into account.

So, by internal metrics, they were on time, but by customer expectations they were late.

Here, a change in approach took place: In addition to the previously measured value, another was recorded: The difference between the requested delivery date and the offered/confirmed date. Other measured values were also checked for their customer orientation.

What was special from Mr. Müller’s point of view was that each department in the company had to deal intensively with the results relating to its area. As a result, measures had to be presented and implemented, which were then evaluated in a repeat survey. In this way, the success of these activities could be concretely measured.

The “Happy End” of the story: Mr. Müller and his team recognized the added value of TEMA-Q GmbH’s CX solutions and the practice-oriented analyses with ClaralytiX.

From now on, Deep Dive CX studies will be conducted regularly in the company. During the presentation of the results, the measures of the individual departments are presented and the improvements in customer satisfaction are shown.

The TEMA-Q GmbH studies neutrally and unbiased measure the quality of all company performances from the customer’s point of view – that means the quality of products, services and all other customer-relevant processes.

The market orientation of the entire company is optimized, thereby strengthening its competitiveness.

In many companies, mainly 3 feedback systems are used:

• Product quality assurance monitors technical target values and tolerances of products during or after production.
• Customer problem cases are handled selectively as part of complaints processing.
• Service and Sales – also on a selective basis – records customers’ opinions and requirements and passes them on internally to the responsible employees.

These sources usually produce an incomplete overall picture of customer opinions that has been pre-filtered by the specialist departments and is statistically not very reliable. In addition, there is often insufficient information about the competition.

TEMA-Q’s CX studies close this information gap: The decision-makers in the company receive a comprehensive picture of their own company as well as the competitors from the customer’s point of view.

The customer is considered the “engine” for continuous improvements and further developments in all areas related to service, i.e., all “touchpoints” are analysed.

Aggregated key figures provide management with an overview of the quality of service performance from the customer’s point of view. The departments involved in delivery and service can precisely analyze problems with detailed and absolutely authentic customer statements in the original wording and thus initiate concrete improvement measures.

Criticism does not come from within the company, but neutrally from customers. As a result, improvement measures are more likely to be accepted, motivated and implemented quickly.

Data collection in Deep Dive CX Service is conducted via computer-assisted telephone interviews with a representative sample of existing customers.

Above all, this method of elicitation also enables the immediate deepening of ambiguities in the dialogue as well as the adaptation of the survey content to the specific case of the interviewee during the interview.

In terms of content, the data collection is based on a broad spectrum of supported and unsupported questions, which includes, among other things, ratings, positive and negative experience reports, and customer requirements and wishes.

The strengths and weaknesses are assigned to the various functional areas of the company and can thus be addressed without detours.

Conventional surveys often reach their limits, especially when it comes to more complex questions such as testimonials, as much of the content of the customer’s statements is often lost. Predefined answer options or a keyword-like transcript do not usually help here. Since these questions are particularly meaningful and informative, TEMA-Q has developed the DRCA method, which combines the advantages of a telephone interview with those of a qualitative in-depth interview.

In this process, the interviews are digitally recorded, recorded verbatim in a second step, and analyzed by experts in a third phase using specially developed coding and evaluation tools. In this way, none of the often complex customer statements are lost, and the results remain absolutely transparent and comprehensible for everyone involved. These are presented in ClaralytiX, the web-based tool that TEMA-Q developed to have the perfect link between quantitative superior key figures and qualitative details.

It has been shown time and again that the transparency and authenticity of customer statements in particular, evoke a kind of concern in the specialist departments that is otherwise far from being achieved and that makes it much easier to implement measures.

Who is Deep Dive CX Service for?

For companies that:

• Offer services exclusively or as a supplement
• have outsourced their services
• offer rather complex services
• are somewhat larger, so that not all of the customers’ wishes, problems and suggestions get through to the employees.

Depending on requirements, we conduct Deep Dive CX Service nationally and internationally. In international studies, data collection is carried out in all markets by native-speaking interviewers via a central system to ensure comparability of results.

If a company is faced with a particular problem situation or if major changes take place in the company itself, in the competitive environment or in the sales markets, an evaluation of the company’s own business from the customer’s point of view should take place, on the one hand to classify it in comparison with the competition and on the other hand, to optimize the company’s customer-relevant services.

In today’s world, companies must differentiate themselves from the competition through service. Customers who are satisfied in this area are among the long-term loyal customers.

The actual expectations of customers and their perception of the service they receive can be determined by Deep Dive CX Service. Repeat surveys are useful to control the improvement of the initiated measures and also to be able to guarantee continuous premium quality in service performance.

Are you interested in more examples that show what interesting and helpful insights companies gain from our services? Then also read our article “The Riddle’s Solution – A short story about inconclusive reverse sales“.

If you have questions about these or other topics, or would like a live demonstration of ClaralytiX via video conference, click here to schedule an appointment, or contact us.

Author:

Jacqueline Pirkelbauer – International Sales Director