Staying ahead of the curve (the advantages of benchmarking techniques in customer service management)

Article Type: Abstracts From: Strategic Direction, Volume 27, Issue 5

Petersen S. Quality World, November 2010, Vol. 36 No. 1, Start page: 34, No. of pages: 4

Reports the advantages to be gained through the application of quality management techniques in general, and benchmarking techniques in particular, to customer service management (CSM) and customer relationship management (CRM). Examines three potential ways of benchmarking customer service, each with their own respective strengths and weaknesses: mystery shopping; the net promoter loyalty metric and discipline; and the UK Customer Service Index, the UK’s largest survey of its kind and based on research carried out by the Institute of Customer Service (ICS). Argues that it is not a question of which benchmarking methodology is best, but rather one of how to use the different processes together effectively to gauge how the business’s customer service compares with that of the competition and where it can be improved. Illustrates the points made in the article with particular reference to a brief case study involving First Direct, the UK financial institution. Article type: Viewpoint ISSN: 1352-8769 Reference: 40AA034

Keywords: Benchmarking, Customer relations, Customer satisfaction, Customer services quality, Organizations, United Kingdom