New research from Accenture indicates that the majority (79%) of Irish consumers prefer dealing with human beings over digital channels to solve customer services issues.
The Accenture Strategy report, ‘Digital Disconnect in Customer Engagement’, is based on the company’s eleventh annual Global Consumer Pulse Research, which gauges the experiences and attitudes of 24,489 consumers around the world about marketing, sales and customer services. There were 350 Irish consumers included in the sample.
The survey shows that human interaction remains a vital component of customer satisfaction even in the ‘digital age’. Almost half (48%) of consumers say they are even willing to pay a higher price for goods and services if it ensures a better level of service.
Physical or in-store experiences are also highly valued amongst consumers. Two-thirds (66%) agree that in-store service is the best channel for getting a tailored experience and nearly half (49%) say they are more willing to be sold new or upgraded products when receiving a face-to-face service compared to online.
Nearly half (42%) say they would rather go to a store first than use digital channels to get advice on the best products and services.
The report also found that 69% of consumers have switched provider in the past year due to poor customer service with retailers, internet service providers and home telephone service providers being the worst offenders. In Ireland, the estimated cost of customers switching due to poor service is $23 billion.
Advanced Customer Strategy Lead at Accenture Strategy Ireland, Jim McGowan says, "Companies wrongly assume that their digital-only customers are their most profitable, and that customer service is a cost. Consequently they over-invest in digital technologies and channels and lose their most profitable customers – multi-channel customers – who want experiences that cover both digital and traditional channels."
He added, "A high proportion of Irish customers who had a negative customer service experience wrote about it on social media and they are more likely to seek information about a potential provider on online comparison sites, from people they know or from online discussion forums than they are from traditional marketing sources. So when forming a marketing or engagement strategy, it might be worth prioritising how to use customer experience to generate positive word of mouth over more traditional forms of marketing."
Source: www.businessworld.ie
