Author: Bill Wilson
In this six-part series, we're going to explore how technology can and should be used to enhance your ability to provide high levels of quality customer service. We'll look at two areas: traditional technologies such as the telephone, voice mail and fax, then emerging technologies such as email and internet web sites. This article is an introduction to the topic.
A 1992 IBM study asked 215 insurance company executives what were the most significant business challenges they faced. Ranked by frequency of response were: (1) customer service, (2) productivity (responsiveness), (3) use of technology, and (4) cost containment.
Seven years later, these same challenges exist. In this series of articles, we'll explore how you can use today's technology to provide high quality customer service and not only reduce costs, but increase revenues. But, first, let's take a quick look at the evolution of the customer over the past 70 years.
In his book, "Customer Service on the Internet," Jim Sterne identified a primary "customer focus" during each of the most recent seven decades, though each focus is cumulative from one decade to the next.
In the 1930's, Price was the principal customer focus of the Great Depression era consumer.
In the 1940's, Value emerged as a motivator…more prosperous customers were willing to spend three times as much on a pair of shoes that would last seven times longer.
In the 1950's, Status, or "keeping up with the Jones," became the goal in post-war America as families became more and more prosperous.
In the 1960's, Quality was the watchword. Keep in mind, though, that these "customer focuses" are cumulative…in each succeeding decade, they each play a role in the buying decision, though the focus of that decade was the driving force. So, in the '60's, while quality dominated, the product or service must also have been reasonably priced and perceived to provide great value.
In the 1970's, Convenience became more and more critical (and continues to be to this day) as consumers perceived that time was a limited resource. Thus, the introduction of drive-thru restaurants, banks and cleaners.
In the 1980's, Value-added was coined as a new phrase reflecting products or services that added unique value for the individual purchaser.
In the 1990's, Mass customization began to emerge as products (e.g., a Dell computer) could be built to order and services could be tailored to meet individual needs and tastes.
What will be the "customer focus" in the coming millennium? Sterne believes that sales and service must provide options and choices that can be mass customized according to individual preferences.
So, how does all of this apply to providing customer service? The customer of today (and tomorrow) wants choices and options in how customer service is provided. No longer does it suffice to provide a mailing address and phone number…increasingly, customers want to be able to make an inquiry 24 hours a day in a manner that bests suits their needs or preferences…telephone, fax-back, 800 service, voice response, email, web site…whatever it takes.
Why must agencies provide these options? Competition is raising the customer service bar higher and higher. If your agency does not provide options, another will. It's as simple as that.
The emerging philosophy of customer service is to make it as easy and convenient as possible to respond to the needs of customers. Making your agency easier to do business with is today's competitive edge.
Customer service is essential to agency success. It is the key to retention, referrals and profitability. Customer service is mission critical. So, it is critical that an agency use every means at its disposal to provide optional methods of delivering high quality customer service.
According to a survey conducted by The National Alliance in Austin, Texas, CSR's spend at least 54% of their time on activities not directly related to customer service…technology can also be used to facilitate customer interaction and free up time for more direct customer interaction. How much time do you spend directly helping and interacting with customers?
Customer service has been traditionally looked upon as a cost in an agency. However, it can become a profit center if properly trained CSR's use technology and time-tested customer service skills to retain, sell, and cross-sell business. Studies have shown that investments in greater memory and larger display screens in PC's yield productivity gains that pay for the hardware within weeks. So, just as customer service itself can become a profit center for the agency, so can technology. Technology, viewed in this context, is an investment, not an expense.
In this series, we're going to explore how technology can and should be used to enhance your ability to provide high levels of quality customer service. We'll look at two areas: (1) traditional technologies such as the telephone, voice mail and fax, then (2) emerging technologies such as email and internet web sites. Let's take an introductory look at each of these areas....
Traditional Technology - Introduction
Keep in mind that quality customer service is independent of technology…technology is a means to an end, not an end in and of itself. According to one consumer in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, "In 19 years, my agents have never once contacted me by phone, letter or any other means to thank me for my business, announce that a renewal was coming up, to ask if I needed to make any changes, or to offer to write additional coverages."
Technology won't help in this situation. Before technology can be of benefit, the agency must develop a customer-focused culture and implement practices and procedures that mandate a proactive approach to providing world class customer service. Once CSR's have been properly trained in customer service techniques, technology can be implemented to make the delivery of customer service much more cost effective.
In bridging this gap, in Part 2 of this series, we'll take a look at some traditional telephone "Do's and "Don't's," followed by the customer service impact of voice mail in Part 3 and faxing in Part 4.
Emerging Technology - Introduction
The internet represents a fundamental shift in the way businesses and people communicate. According to a recent study by the consulting firm of Booz-Allen & Hamilton, 92% of the 525 business executives polled indicated that the internet will reshape the world marketplace by 2001.
Too many agents have prematurely viewed the internet/web site as a means of direct selling, overlooking its role as a pre-sale marketing medium and a post-sale vehicle for customer service and client communications. The web site can move prospects toward a purchasing decision and be used to retain existing customers and generate referrals.
IIABA's Future One Policyholder Retention Study (conducted by Parker's Marketing Research, Inc. of Cincinnati, OH) indicated that the #1 reason why both personal and commercial lines customers switch agents is that they want an agent more interested in their needs. Internet technology enables CSR's to improve the frequency of communications, and often the quality of information, more cost effectively than traditional means.
Therefore, expect the internet to become an increasingly important medium for answering customer questions, solving problems and selling additional products. The two most common means of communicating and providing customer service over the internet are email and the agency's web site. In Parts 5 and 6 of this series, we'll take a look at these two areas.
Introduction Conclusion (an oxymoron if ever there was one)
Quality customer service starts with a commitment by ownership and management to foster a customer service culture in their agency. Once that commitment is in place, and it is shared and internalized by every agency staff member, and once your customer support staff has been properly trained in effective customer service techniques, you can use today's (and tomorrow's) technology to deliver world class customer service.
Customer service is mission critical…it is essential to growth and prosperity. Use all available tools and technology to set yourself apart from the competition. Remember that competition is raising the customer service bar higher and higher. If your agency does not provide technology options, another will. It's as simple as that.