Measuring client
satisfaction
Every
organisation is apt to believe that it is providing a good service
to customers/members within budget limitations.
However organisations
are unlikely to know whether their service delivery meets the expectation
of the customers unless steps are taken to measure
customer satisfaction.
This may be achieved by surveying customers.
There are three basic
issues that such a survey should address.
| Issue
1: |
Is
there a good match between the services provided by the organisation
and the services desired by the customer/ member? |
| Issue
2: |
Is
there a match between the quality or standard of service provided
by the organisation and that desired by the customer/ member? |
| Issue
3: |
Are
there mechanisms in place to allow the customer/members the
opportunity to influence the services provided by the organisation? |
It is important for
organisations to gauge as accurately as possible the needs of customers/members
for service. To provide too little service is to run the risk of dissatisfied
customers who will leave and go elsewhere, whereas to provide too
much service is to burden the organisation with unnecessary financial
costs. It would be prudent for organisations to implement a system
for continually evaluating the needs of the customer/member and to
gauge their level of satisfaction. A regular analysis of customer
opinions allows the organisation to make corrections to services provided.
Some facts about
customers
(Source: adapted
from Lovelock [1994], Gerson [19921, and Morgan [1989].)
|
|
Only
4 per cent of customers ever complain; some simply suffer
in silence, while most simply go elsewhere. |
|
|
People
who stop buying from or dealing with a particular business
do so because: |
| |
|
1%
|
Die |
|
3%
|
Move
away |
|
5%
|
Seek
alternatives or develop other business interests |
|
9%
|
Begin
doing business with the competition |
|
14%
|
Are
dissatisfied with the product or service |
|
68%
|
Are
upset with the treatment they have received |
|
|
|
It
is six times more expensive to acquire a new customer than
it is to retain an old one. |
|
|
Happy
customers, or customers who have their complaints satisfactorily
resolved, will tell three to five people. One study revealed
that one unhappy customer told eleven other people, who in
turn told five other people (a negative-word-of-chain of 1
+ 11 + 55 = 67 people). |
|
|
Between
54-70 per cent of customers who complain will nevertheless
continue to be customers if their complaint is resolved to
their satisfaction. |
|
|
Organisations
which provide superior customer service can charge more, create
greater profits and achieve greater market share, because
customers will generally pay a premium for superior customer
service. |
|
