Jo Causon, CEO of the Institute of Customer Service presents the business imperative for Customer Service in 2012 at the iCrossing Client Summit 2012

1. Institute of Customer Service
Jo Causon – chief executive
Customer Service: the business imperative?
iCrossing client summit 2012
Friday 18th of May 2012

2. introducing the Institute of
Customer Service
we are:
• independent, not-for-profit membership body
• over 370 organisational members
• 70% from private, 30% from public and third sectors
• more than 3,500 individual memberships
we aim:
• to lead customer performance and professionalism
• to be the first port of call for all issues around customer service
we provide:
• advice, research, professional networks, products and services, awards,
national occupational standards, continual professional development and
conferences

3. some of our members added in the
last year

4. the renaissance of customer service
• customer service a critical element of business performance
• increasingly recognised in the boardroom
• a key driver of profit and efficiency
• changing relationship between organisations and their customers
– customers now hold the power
• future of customer service
– changing attitudes of we, the consumer
– challenges and opportunities brought by technology
– changing business models
– changing employee engagement

5. we have all become more demanding
• customers/clients/people more willing to complain
- 2001 - 50% people were willing to complain about poor service
- 2006 - that figure had risen to 60%
- 2010 – now 75% consumers prepared to complain
• more disposed to tell others about bad experiences
- 81% - 2001
- 89 % - 2006
- 90% - 2010
• more able to do so
• growth of social media
- as consumers we can draw down information more easily
- seek tailored solutions both offline and online
- expect us to respond through multiple channels
source: ICS National complaints culture survey 2006

6. customer service and the bottom
line

7. what we found
• weight of evidence proving link between service and profit or efficiency
• 74% of the sample group agreed that ‘gathering and acting on customer
feedback’ is very likely to lead to ROI
• 81% believed that ‘gaining an understanding of the customer viewpoint’ will
also very likely lead to positive ROI
• calculating ROI is complex and is contextualised
• having the right staff increasingly crucial both now and in the future
• a step change in customer service quality may require undertaking a
significant change programme
• need to move from easy to measure to harder to measure activities: value of
relationship with the service provider, what kind of culture of service quality
has been established the whole customer experience.
• need to raise our game
• customer service is beginning to play an increasingly strategic role
principle source: return on customer service, the bottom line report: Institute of Customer service, February
2011

8. why retention is critical
• customer churn is seen by over a third of businesses as the biggest
challenge to their bottom line in the coming year
• threatening some £2.2billion of revenue
• The cost of replacing a lost customer is estimated at more than £6500
• 58 days on average to make that replacement
• 65% of business leaders agree that customer service will be a critical
market differentiator
• 71% single out service as a key loyalty driver, ranking it above product and
service quality, brand reputation and effective sales and marketing.
• Customers agree:
– 83% identify the quality of service they receive as an important driver
of loyalty.
Source: Institute of Customer Service The impact of Customer Churn November 2011

9. UK customer satisfaction levels
principal source: ICS UKCSI survey January 2012

10. UKCSI: the top performers
Amazon (92)
Marks & Spencer (food) (87)
Ambulance Service (87)
First Direct (86)
John Lewis (86)
Fire Service (86)
Virgin Holidays (85)
SAGA Holidays (85)
Boots (85)
Marks & Spencer (85)
principal source: ICS UKCSI survey January 2012

11. some channels deliver a better
experience than others
50.0 60.0 70.0 80.0 90.0 100.0
in person (e.g. visited a 80.0
store/branch)
79.0
on their website
Customer Satisfaction
Index (CSI)
over the phone (e.g. called 74.0
a contact centre)
68.0
in writing (letter or email)
principal source: ICS UKCSI survey January 2012

12. Customer priorities: what all customers
want B2B or B2C?
• professionalism: treated like a valued customer
• quality and efficiency
• ease of doing business with
• problem solving
• timeliness

13. building customer confidence
• understanding the customer and developing solutions around them
• commitment to staff – direct correlation between staff and customer
satisfaction
• building service cultures
• focus on maximising value of long-term relationship
• engaging and championing – co-creation
• considering business structures – easy to do business with
• focusing on multi-channel integration
• creating customer strategy, service delivery and the right culture

14. looking ahead: customer service
trends
• choice
• make it simple but valued
• easy to do business with
• effective use of technology
• co-creation
• experience
• anticipation

15. the challenge is to do more with less
• increased demands come against the backdrop of a recession
• greater stress among the public
• falling morale among staff
• important we encourage and build customer focus
– led from the top
– programmes built with a core focus on service
– each customer is an individual and needs to be treated as such
– innovate to reduce cost but improve experience
– key is to help staff make the right judgement each time

16. lessons learned
• customer management is fast becoming a strategic boardroom issue
• only sustainable competitive advantage
• customer feedback is immediate and highly visible
• multi-channel not one route
• consumers and customers have the power to shape image as never before
• strong service leadership is crucial
• greater empowerment and support for staff
• alignment of people, processes and strategy

17. Thank you
Jo Causon
Institute of Customer Service