At first glance, the personal computer (PC) market has had a string of good news.

Following a steady score in 2018, customer satisfaction in PCs – including desktops, laptops, and tablets – rises 1.3% to an ACSI score of 78 (on a scale of 0 to 100), per our latest Household Appliance and Electronics Report.

While U.S. PC sales remain mostly flat, there was a slight gain in global demand for PCs in the second quarter in 2019, and the majority of PC customer experience benchmarks improved over the last year, with device design (82) and graphics and sound quality (81) leading the way.

Yet, the big picture doesn’t tell the whole story – not as far as customer value is concerned.

To truly understand what’s driving satisfaction in the PC industry, we need to look a little closer. We have to examine what customers say is important to them and which brands are actually listening. As you’ll see, to succeed in the personal computer market, you have to get, well, personal.

Not always by ‘design’

Consistent with previous reports, customers continue to be most satisfied with device design. And just like last year, Apple holds the highest mark for design and the highest score overall at 83.

Given the importance of device design, this may lead you to believe that manufacturers with the top design marks are also making the biggest gains. That’s not exactly the case.

Toshiba had the lowest ACSI score in 2018. It also places in the bottom of the industry in device design this year. Yet, in 2019, Toshiba experienced the greatest jump in customer satisfaction among manufacturers, climbing 8% to 77. How is this possible? Toshiba listened to its consumers.

Last year, according to users, Toshiba’s models struggled with processor speed reliability, failing to keep crashes to a minimum. This year, it’s the exact opposite. Toshiba’s devices are faster and have had fewer crashes. And it’s not the only manufacturer to make necessary changes.

Dell fell 4% in 2018, with customers complaining about its unimpressive design. This year, Dell added a new top-mounted webcam and a new frost color option to its XPS 13 model. Its design score rose, as did its reliability marks. In turn, Dell’s overall ACSI score increased 5% to 77 this year.

Acer has been working to turn things around for the last few years. In 2019, customers took notice. The manufacturer improved in nearly every customer satisfaction benchmark and ultimately climbed 3% to an ACSI score of 77.

Step in the wrong direction

Despite a 3% drop in customer satisfaction 2018, ASUS still rested among the industry leaders. A year later, that’s no longer the case.

According to last year’s report, ASUS was targeting the higher end of the market, yet its main users – gamers – weren’t thrilled about the higher price point. Whatever ASUS did in the last year, it didn’t quell the concern of its customers.

Customer satisfaction in audio and visual quality and processor speed is also down, according to ASUS customers, and its overall score is down another 3% to 76 – ranking it second to last in the industry.

Meanwhile, things are even worse for Lenovo. Following a 1% bump last year, the manufacturer fell to the bottom of the industry at 74. Lenovo customers’ two biggest complaints center around processor speed and features like operating system and preloaded software. In 2018, the company was in the middle of the pack in each of those benchmarks. One year later, Lenovo is now at the bottom of the industry in both.

Stay true to your customers

Customer satisfaction in the PC market took a step in the right direction in 2019. But there’s still plenty of room for improvement – especially for certain manufacturers.

While features like design, graphics and sound quality, availability of software or apps, ease of operation, and website satisfaction score the highest marks among satisfaction benchmarks, scoring high in these categories doesn’t necessarily reflect high satisfaction marks overall.

The key to customer value is recognizing what matters most to your customers and working to improve those areas. Design quality is great if you’re Apple – it’s what your users expect. But for companies like Toshiba, Dell, and Acer, addressing concerns like reliability, speed, and frequent crashes is more relevant to their customer base.

Companies may hear the concerns of their customers but fail to listen and act upon those concerns. As we’ve seen, that can quickly sever any “personal” connection they once had.

You know things are bad when “stalling out” would be an improvement on your current predicament.

After climbing 1.2% in 2018, customer satisfaction in the automobile industry reversed course this year, sliding 3.7% to an ACSI score of 79 (on a scale of 0 to 100), per our latest Automobile Report.

Customers agree that automobiles don’t have the same quality and value they once had.

Rising prices and the constant risk of new tariffs make buying new vehicles less appealing. When you consider that Millennials are strapped with debt, more people are turning to used cars, and ride-sharing apps continue to disrupt the market, it’s not surprising that 21 of the 27 automakers in this report experience declining customer satisfaction, as does nearly every driver experience benchmark.

Lowering prices would seem to be an obvious answer, but that’s at best a short-term fix that doesn’t address customers’ core complaints. The industry has work to do across the board.

But one area in particular is low-hanging fruit, benchmarks with significant room for improvement based on 2019 ACSI scores, and also something consumers are asking for: technology.

Demand is rising for car tech

The desirability of car technology has been building in recent years.

According to the 2017 Autotrader Car Tech Impact Study, 56% of customers research in-vehicle technology and know exactly what they want before even stepping foot in a dealership, while 48% place a higher premium on in-vehicle technology than they do on car brand or body style.

“Technology has become the deciding factor for car buyers selecting a vehicle,” said Michelle Krebs, Autotrader senior analyst. “Automakers must deliver innovative features or risk consumers looking elsewhere.”

According to this year’s Automobile Report, automakers are taking that risk.

Customer satisfaction with technology – controls, displays, audio, navigation, and video systems – in mass-market vehicles is down 2.5% to an ACSI score of 78. Mobile app marks are slightly better, with quality and reliability scoring 81 and 80, respectively, though still in the middle to bottom of all benchmarks measured.

Even luxury vehicle owners weren’t over the moon with the tech in their vehicles, though they were more satisfied than their mass-market counterparts. Technology as a whole decreased 1.1% to 83. Mobile app quality came in at 84, barely inching out mobile reliability, which scored an 83.

Technology and technology-related features like mobile app and website satisfaction are among the fourth-worst scoring customer experience benchmarks for both mass-market and luxury vehicles. But those features, including in-car displays, audio, navigation, and video systems as well as mobile options such as the ability to use remote commands, search for dealerships, schedule service, request roadside assistance, locate vehicles, use navigation, access the owner manual, or view how-to videos, are appealing to drivers.

Where automakers stand in technology satisfaction

Fortunately, some individual nameplates do better with technology than others.

Subaru and Toyota lead all mass-market vehicles for in-car technology satisfaction, while GM’s Chevrolet and GMC have the highest customer satisfaction for mobile quality. GMC, Subaru, Toyota, and Chevrolet score the highest marks for mobile reliability.

Chrysler, Mitsubishi, and Dodge (also part of Fiat Chrysler), on the other hand, are the worst among mass-market vehicles for technology. Kia is the bottom of the segment in both mobile quality and mobile reliability, while Dodge, Jeep, Chrysler, and Ford also score low marks.

Among luxury vehicles, Lexus and Cadillac customers were the most satisfied with their cars’ tech features. Infiniti was the most improved over the last year. Lexus, Cadillac, and Volvo led the way in mobile quality, and Lincoln joined Lexus as the category leaders in mobile reliability.

On the flipside, customers were most dissatisfied in Volvo’s technology offerings. Infiniti, Mercedes-Benz, and Audi struggled with mobile quality; the latter two also lacked sufficient mobile reliability.

Automakers taking technology seriously

Digital transformation continues to have a major effect on the lives of consumers. Some automakers are taking advantage.

Ford launched its “one-stop mobility app” FordPass back in 2016, which lets customers find and pay for parking, locate gas stations, unlock and start their cars, and remotely access information about their vehicle.

Hyundai used a program called Shopper Assurance to make the car-buying process more transparent, allowing customers to handle the majority of the purchase process before they go to the dealership. Hyundai also lets customers schedule test drives at home or at the office. This adds extra convenience and improves the customer experience.

The truth is, customer satisfaction in the automobile industry isn’t going to suddenly turn around because automakers make technology a high priority. But it is a golden opportunity to give customers what they want and improve customer satisfaction in the process. In a competitive industry, failing to make these changes could mean automakers are left in the dust.

Keep your employees happy. The customer is always right.

You’ve heard these phrases before. They’re among the “golden rules” of customer satisfaction. Organizations that live by these words will always stay in the good graces of their customers, or so they say.

But times, they are a-changin’.

While these golden rules still hold true today, the means by which companies achieve them have evolved alongside customer expectations. If you hope to remain on your customers’ good side, you need to keep up with the times.

So, what are these up-and-coming customer satisfaction drivers? Let’s take a look.

1. Embrace the power of mobile

Successful companies – at least from a customer satisfaction standpoint – make it easier for customers to engage with them. The latest and greatest mechanism for giving customers what they want is mobile.

Consumers rely on their mobile phones in nearly every aspect of their lives. That’s why the ACSI has begun measuring mobile app satisfaction.

Although outliers exist, organizations with higher mobile app scores oftentimes have higher customer satisfaction scores as well. This is no coincidence. Customers want instant gratification, they want innovation, and they want customization.

Mobile apps offer all this, and in doing so, make it that much easier for customers to connect to organizations and brands.

2. Look beyond the price

Customers love when companies lower their prices. This almost always has a positive effect on overall customer satisfaction. But don’t get things twisted; this is not a long-term solution.

You can only shrink your prices for so long. Eventually your profit margins will be too small to sustain this practice. Besides, there are other factors that matter outside of price – and these might be more beneficial to your bottom line.

For example, when we used a Customer Segment Value (CSV) model in our inaugural Wireless Service and Cellular Telephone report, we gained more insight into how customer satisfaction may impact revenue for wireless carriers.

In analyzing how much customers spend on their wireless bills per month alongside customer satisfaction and customer retention data, we learned that while the majority of customers fall in the “lower spend” segments, these individuals don’t contribute as much to a carrier’s overall revenue. If wireless providers want to increase revenue potential, they need to improve the customer satisfaction of those in the “higher spend” segments.

Lower prices get customers’ attention, but can only hold it for so long. ACSI data show quality plays a more important role in customer satisfaction. And if you’re only focusing on price, you’re likely missing out on other revenue-generating opportunities.

3. The ‘need for speed’

“I feel the need … the need for speed.” Tom Cruise’s character in “Top Gun” may as well be speaking for today’s consumer.

According to a study, 73% of shoppers surveyed favor retail self-service technologies over conversing with store workers. They also prefer retailers that use mobile technology in their stores, with 76% of respondents favoring the availability of self-service mobile tools or employees equipped with mobile devices.

Insurance and investment services that have enhanced their digital experience are also seeing upticks in customer satisfaction. Nationwide rolled out a new blockchain framework for its mobile app and earned a positive response from consumers.

The app lets customers start and process their claims from their mobile devices and offers real-time policy verification, eliminating the need for hard-copy verification. This app received high ACSI marks in 2018 and helped Nationwide improve overall customer satisfaction by 5%.

With mobile tools and different forms of automation, customers can enjoy a quick, easy, and (generally) painless brand experience. This is what consumers want. The organizations that recognize this will see better results.

You can’t afford to rest on your laurels

Companies used to have an informational advantage over their customers. No more.

Consumers have a plethora of information at their fingertips and no longer have to take an organization’s word for things. They can research companies and make educated decisions.

In fact, 76% of customers feel it’s much easier to “take their business elsewhere – switching from brand to brand to find an experience that matches their expectations.”

Companies can no longer make assumptions about their customers. They have to do the work, make the effort, listen to their consumers, and adapt to their ever-evolving needs to increase their chances of maintaining customer satisfaction. Those that don’t, well, best of luck to you.

The news these days can be polarizing. But one thing folks can agree on is that the way they’re receiving news is top notch.

In our most recent E-Business Report, which covers social media, search engines and information sites, and internet news, only the latter industry increases in overall customer satisfaction, climbing 2.7% to an industry-high ACSI score of 77, the sector’s best showing ever.

So why are more Americans happier with the news they receive online? Simple: the industry is doing a lot of things well.

Online news is mastering mobile

Television remains the most popular source of news for Americans. However, at least 90% of adults in the United States get some of their news from digital outlets like mobile.

That’s where the digital news industry is making a name for itself.

The industry earns its highest marks for mobile reliability and quality, both with an ACSI score of 82. Customers find mobile devices easier to use than last year. That benchmark climbs 8% to 80.

FOXNews.com, which tops all individually measured news sites with an overall score of 78, leads the competition in both mobile quality and mobile reliability. Meanwhile, USATODAY.com ranks near the top of the industry in both mobile benchmarks and also experiences the largest jump in customer satisfaction (up 4% to 74).

The digital news industry is embracing mobile and customers are as satisfied as they’ve ever been with this industry.

Sweeping improvements all around

Mobile is just the beginning. The digital news industry shows enhancements across the entire reader experience.

 

Readers enjoy the array of fresh content (up 4% to 81), with FOXNews.com, NYTimes.com, and ABCNews.com leading this category. Overall site performance improves 5% to an ACSI score of 80, with FOXNews.com and NYTimes.com customers once again feeling the most satisfied.

News sites offer better navigation and information variety than last year (both up 3% to 79). They also offer faster and more reliable videos (up 7% to 78), with NYTimes.com besting the other outlets in this industry.

Best of all, readers are more satisfied with the number of ads they’re seeing. This benchmark rises 7% over the past year to an ACSI score of 72.

The future is digital

Digital new sites appear to know what their consumers want, and they’re doing what it takes to fill those needs. The fact is, when your industry raises its game for even the lowest overall benchmark – the amount of ads on the site – you’re clearly doing something right.

Franchises allow entrepreneurs to try their hand at business ownership while gaining the huge advantage of working off a proven brand and operating model. But it’s not always smooth sailing. Sometimes the lines of business are blurred and miscommunication about who is responsible for what can lead to customer satisfaction issues.

Just like individual store locations are part of a bigger corporate entity, franchises are responsible for maintaining their own guidelines while adhering to a certain overarching standard by the franchisor.

In this post, we break down some of the most frequently asked questions and share high-level observations about how you can maintain — and improve — satisfaction in a franchise environment.

Q: In a franchise system, who is responsible for managing customer satisfaction? Is it the responsibility of the franchisee or the franchisor (or both)?

A: It’s both. Ultimately the franchisee needs to be successful, but guidance comes from above. Franchisees must adhere to corporate guidelines that can’t be changed, such as signage and regulations, but can still be thought of as individual storefronts within a larger system. While the franchise model is technically different than a store brand model, the customer satisfaction aspects are no different for a store that isn’t franchised. There’s still a manager for each location, and they’re still responsible for profits, services, employee training, etc.

The model isn’t influencing customer satisfaction — whether you’re in a corporate environment like Home Depot or a franchisee like McDonald’s, it’s the same kind of things that create a satisfying experience.  

Q: Should the franchisor assist franchisees with satisfaction, particularly in local markets? If so, how?  

A: The franchisor should provide standard best practices and procedures required of all franchisees to ensure an enjoyable experience. It’s also recommended that franchisors share guidelines that ensure uniformity in the quality of experiences. For example, Chick-fil-A is really controlling, right down to its waffle fries, which need to look and taste exactly the same to all customers.

While the franchise may be “local,” it still has to adhere to national standards.

Q: How can the franchisor incentivize franchisees to improve satisfaction?

A: Customer satisfaction should be incentive enough. As the ACSI has found across all industries, higher customer satisfaction leads to higher profits. However, there wouldn’t be anything wrong with incentivizing customer satisfaction even more.

Q: Could low satisfaction with individual franchises impact the brand’s reputation or satisfaction, and vice versa?

A: It’s likely the reputation of one franchise location would be too small to impact the overall brand. Isolated customer incidents, like food poisoning at one location, most likely won’t impact customer satisfaction on a larger scale — at least in terms of ACSI — because not enough customers would’ve directly experienced the issue.

Individual locations might influence satisfaction if the incident is substantial enough or spans across multiple locations. For example, numerous Chipotle locations served tainted pork that made their customers sick, and we did see this impact satisfaction across the board.

Q: How do franchises ensure uniform and consistent satisfaction? Do they need to cater to certain geographic preferences, or are there other ways to stand out while still ensuring brand standards are in place?

A: It makes business sense for a franchisor to look at the customer satisfaction of their franchisees. Corporate could perform detailed surveying based on objective measurement for every location to identify the top performers and then pull best practices out of that location as a model for all others. The same could be done for the bottom performers to identify harmful practices and share those within the system.

There are differences in customer satisfaction based on geography, so surveys could reveal even more about regional discrepancies and tastes.

Q: Should franchisors have uniform satisfaction measurement tools across locations? How else can they ensure consistency?

A: Franchisors should absolutely set the standard for satisfaction. The key is to establish criteria like courtesy of staff, food quality, cleanliness, accuracy of orders, etc. and then implement the metrics across all franchises. This will help franchisors benchmark, identify best-in-class performers to be emulated, and identify under-performers to target for specific improvement strategies. Measurement should ideally occur monthly, but at the very least quarterly.  

Furthermore, it’s advisable for franchisors to not only measure, but also enforce customer satisfaction best practices. There needs to be a way to ensure consistency of brand standards across all franchisees. One way to ensure consistency might be to revoke a franchise if they aren’t consistent with standards, or at least give them a warning and step in to evaluate what could be improved. There’s also the option to take additional disciplinary action, like a fine, if there are multiple infractions.

Q: Does customer satisfaction among franchises differ across industries? For example, retail franchises vs. restaurant franchises?

A: There are always nuances in satisfaction from industry to industry, but overall there are some key observations that ring true for most organizations. The major franchise industries are hotels and fast food restaurants, so that helps narrow down the demographics a bit.

Q: What’s the number one thing franchises need to keep in mind regarding customer satisfaction?

A: Like any company, franchises need to focus on employee satisfaction. Customers will have the same expectations at each franchise location, so franchisees need to be prepared to satisfy them — and employees are on the front lines, so they need to be adequately trained and supported. Happier employees tend to result in happier customers, which means better bottom lines.

Q: Can you give an example of a franchise system and how customer satisfaction is impacted across multiple locations?

A: Take Papa Johns, for example. One thing to consider is that any challenges with corporate or the brand don’t necessarily impact customer satisfaction ratings; that doesn’t change the pizza quality, and that’s what matters more to customers.

Ultimately, customers aren’t aware of whether they’re being served by a franchise or a corporate branch, nor do they really care. It’s important for any business to create a uniform, pleasing experience to meet the customer’s expectations.

 

Every location and person representing the brand — whether at the franchisor or the franchisee level — is responsible for maintaining a certain set of standards to ensure customers are happy with the service.

If you’re a franchise interested in understanding more about these satisfaction nuances or how you can improve customer service among your franchised locations, please reach out to Tina Dettloff at tdettloff(at)theacsi(dot)org.

For the first time, as we noted in our inaugural Wireless Service and Cellular Telephone report, we posed the following question to consumers: “How much do you spend, on average, each month for your wireless service?”

A simple question, really. However, when analyzed alongside customer satisfaction and customer retention data, we gain an entirely new perspective on just how much customer satisfaction can impact wireless carrier revenue. This new Customer Segment Value (CSV) model speaks volumes.

Our study breaks consumer spending on wireless phone services into nine different segments:

• $1-$25
• $26-$50
• $51-$75
• $76-$100
• $101-$150
• $151-$200
• $201-$250
• $251-$500
• $501 and above

The model used to analyze this data enables us to differentiate customer groups based on how much each spends on wireless services, as well as the differences in customer satisfaction and customer loyalty. This information, plus sample proportions for each group, gives carriers insight into which customer segments will likely generate (or save) the most revenue with increased customer satisfaction, and where service improvements will most move the needle for those customers.

Here’s what we discovered.

Which wireless customers are more satisfied and more loyal?

Data from the different CSV groups shouldn’t be expected to perfectly reflect actual spend segment proportions for a company, but it does give us a better understanding of what customers in this sample look like from a spending standpoint.

We discovered that, at the industry level, more than 25% of customers fall in the $26-$50 spend range and 55% spend between $1 and $75 on their wireless bill each month. However, under 10% of respondents spend between $201 and $500 monthly, and just 1% spend more than $500 per month (thereby limiting our ability to analyze this data completely).

The data also identifies the leaders and laggards in ACSI and retention across the CSV groups. The “lower spend” segments – $1 to $75 – are more satisfied, more loyal, and have lower churn rates than almost all other groups, with only the very highest spending customers – the tiny proportion of those spending more than $500 each month – experiencing higher churn. For customers spending more than $76 per month but less than $500, ACSI scores and retention rates drop considerably.

The most valuable wireless customers

We then multiply the monthly annual per-customer spend by the number of customers in each CSV group to find the revenue and relative contribution to total revenue for each segment in the sample. If you’re familiar with the 80-20 rule, you won’t be surprised by the results.

The $1-$25 group accounts for nearly 15% of the total customers, yet only contribute 2% to overall revenue. Meanwhile, the $251-$500 group consists of under 5% of the respondents but contributes more than 17% to total revenue. Based on both its sample size and mean customer spend, the $101-$150 segment, which accounts for a little less than 14% of the total customers, contributes the most to the total annual revenue at a little under 19%.

The customer segment responsible for the biggest revenue losses

We then use our churn rate estimate and the per-customer spend estimate for each segment to estimate how much potential revenue carriers lose each year.

Due to its high spend, low ACSI score, and high churn rate, over 20% of potential revenue is being lost from the $251-$500 segment. The $101-$150 group is also losing almost 19% of potential revenue.

As it were, close to 70% of the total revenue lost each year is among customers spending $101 or more per month.

Targeting the top to save 25% of revenue

According to this study, companies can “save” the most revenue lost due to customer defection each year with a five-point improvement to ACSI for the $251-$500 segment – close to 25%. One idea to increase satisfaction: Carriers could provide these customers with a wider variety of plan options, something that’s clearly lacking based on our data.

The same five-point improvement for the $101-$150 spend segment would provide just under 23% in revenue saved, the second largest in annual savings.

There’s more where that came from…

This study focuses on the wireless industry as a whole. However, the CSV model can be used more specifically, and can provide the data for more complex types of Customer Lifetime Value (CLV) modeling.

With this information on spending, companies can better target not only which groups are more or less satisfied and loyal, but also understand which groups are most important to focus on to improve satisfaction and loyalty in a way that will most likely yield the biggest economic return.

Airlines are ascending.

Following a 2.7% drop in 2018, airlines rebounded in passenger satisfaction this year, climbing 1.4% to an ACSI score of 74 (out of 100), per our latest Travel Report.

Several airlines experienced improvements in customer satisfaction. Most notably, the newly minted leader, Alaska, up 1% to an ACSI score of 80. Delta, which finished first among legacy airlines, also climbed 1% to 75.

A majority of experience benchmarks remained unchanged and in good standing. Customers found solace in the check-in process (82), the ease of making reservations (81), the timeliness of arrival (80), and website satisfaction (80).

Customers were even more impressed with mobile apps, which debuted on the list at 82 for both quality and reliability.

Given these scores, you might think airlines would be much higher on the customer satisfaction scale. Unfortunately, the industry left much to be desired in arguably the most important part of travel: the flight itself.

The in-flight experience is a problem

This year, four new metrics were used to track some of the most problematic aspects of travel. The results were revealing.

The availability and size of overhead storage earned an ACSI score of 73, as did both the quality of complimentary and premium (purchased) food and beverage. The quality of in-flight entertainment received an even lower mark at 71.

Seat comfort – or lack thereof – remained the worst part of flying, with an ACSI score of 69.

It’s clear that passengers are yearning for a better flying experience. They don’t have much overhead space, their seats are cramped, and the food and entertainment could be better. Fortunately, some airlines are listening.

Airlines attempting to make flights more comfortable

Delta customers appreciate the in-flight amenities they receive on the bulk of mainline aircrafts. The airlines offer seatback screens, USB ports, and Wi-Fi. But Delta isn’t alone.

Although United, like American, is in the process of transitioning away from seatback screens, it’s making changes to accommodate its passengers in the short term.

In the past, only domestic business class passengers on United flights could access DirecTV for free. Economy passengers had to pay a small fee, but that’s no longer the case. As of January 30, 2019, all passengers will have free access to the service.

United is also looking to improve the in-flight experience through a new partnership with skincare brand Sunday Riley, as three cabin-specific amenity kits will be made available to United passengers.

“Sunday and her team really took the time to understand how travel and the aircraft environment affects our customers and formulated an in-flight remedy that complements their journey with United from beginning to end,” said Mark Krolick, United’s vice president of marketing, per the Airline Passenger Experience Association (APEX).

In an attempt to improve in-flight entertainment, American Airlines is making it easier for passengers to listen to their Apple Music. Those with subscriptions can now use complimentary Wi-Fi on all American Airlines domestic flights to access their music.

Passengers might be part of the problem

It’s true that flights have become less comfortable over the years. However, airlines aren’t the only ones to blame. Consumers are also at fault to an extent.

According to an MSN poll, 51% of Americans noted price of the ticket as their top priority when selecting which airline to fly. Only 6% of the 209,000 people polled listed comfort as their No. 1 priority.

“The reality is that people have proven to the U.S. airline industry time and time again that, at volume, they prefer the lower advertised price regardless of how many add-ons they have to pay for,” said Vinay Bhaskara, a senior business analyst with industry publication Airway.

If customers are going to purchase tickets based on the price, they’re essentially saying they’re willing to forego comfort for cost-cutting. That’s part of the problem.

Voice your concerns

If passengers are looking for improvements to airlines’ in-flight experience, they have to speak up. Some customers do that more frequently than others, and it’s paying off.

Nearly a third of business travelers have filed a complaint with an airline as opposed to only 11% of leisure passengers. Yet, business travelers who complain are still far more satisfied than the average leisure traveler with a complaint, posting an ACSI score of 78 compared to 73.

You might be surprised by these numbers, but it makes sense.

Business travelers travel more frequently. They have more experience and a better level of expectations. They know the lay of the land, and they have a greater sense of how things are supposed to operate (which is while they’ll likely speak up if things are off).

Leisure travelers, on the other hand, may fly once a year and not be as comfortable with the process. They have different expectations, and while they might get frustrated when things don’t go according to plan, they’re less likely to voice a concern.

If customers really want more, they have to give airlines a greater reason to change. Given the current consumer spending habits, however, this trend will likely continue.

You might have an idea about customer satisfaction, but do you really know what goes into satisfying customers? Do you understand the difference between customer satisfaction, customer experience, and customer service? What about the correlation between employee satisfaction and customer satisfaction?

If you’re hesitant about any of the above answers or have a thirst for knowledge, have no fear: We’re going to answer all of the above and more in this blog post, including some commonly asked questions about our data. We are, after all, the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI).

What’s the difference between customer satisfaction, customer service, and customer experience?

Customer service is an element of the customer experience, and both can contribute to overall customer satisfaction.

To break it down, let’s say you’re a customer shopping in a grocery store. An employee helps you locate chips in aisle three, then a cashier helps you during the checkout process. Both interactions are customer service elements of the customer experience, but the overall satisfaction is more than that: It includes the cleanliness of the store, the price you paid for those chips, etc.

Sometimes, customer service doesn’t factor into customer satisfaction or customers provide their own services. For example, shoppers may use the self check-out option instead of speaking directly with a cashier.

Customer satisfaction can also occur with a specific product. For example, how did those chips you bought taste? Were there enough in the bag to justify the cost?

While nuanced and somewhat intertwined, satisfaction, service, and experience play different roles.

Does employee satisfaction impact customer satisfaction?

The correlation between employee and customer satisfaction is closer than you think. Both are part of the value chain. For companies, customer satisfaction starts with the company’s products or services. Drilling down further, there’s the quality of the employee’s service or quality of the manufacturing. And all of that flows back up to investors; good products/services mean more customers and more money.

The happier your employees are, the better service they’ll provide, which means you’ll have happier customers. If customers are happy, they’re more likely to be repeat shoppers and generate more revenue for the company. This leads to higher stock prices, bigger returns on investment, and happier shareholders. And (the smart companies) can turn that capital around to give employees bigger benefits, which in turn makes them, and their customers, even happier.

Basically, satisfied employees equal satisfied customers, which equals satisfied investors.

However, the opposite happens, too. If employees aren’t as happy, then they may not treat each other or customers as well (compared to competitors). Quality of products and services may go down, causing stock value to drop, then there’s less cash to utilize.

It’s the circle of life.

What are a few things any company can do to improve customer satisfaction?

The secret is: There’s no secret. Because every company and situation is different, there’s no “one thing” companies can do to improve customer satisfaction. However employee satisfaction is the keystone of any positive customer experience, as explained above.

A common denominator among companies with low customer satisfaction scores is they typically have unsatisfied employees. Mismanagement is another theme. If products or services were performing well and then changes to business strategy impacted the performance, that can influence customer satisfaction.

Greed is another pitfall. Specifically, profit-taking during mergers and acquisitions. Often the first step to please shareholders is to cut costs, which typically starts with labor costs and downsizing. That means there may not be enough employees to help, which means service can suffer. Even if staff provide high-quality service, there may not be enough bodies to handle requests, which then causes satisfaction to dive.

That’s the exact opposite of what should be done. Investing in employees can create happier customers, which means they’ll stick around and keep their money in your pockets.

Bottom line: Consider your employees as you consider your customers, and satisfaction is likely to follow.

Is customer satisfaction a bigger priority or focus for companies now?

In 25 years since the ACSI was founded there have been shifts in customer satisfaction; however, there haven’t been many changes in the last decade or so.

Customer experiences have a greater portion of businesses’ attention, particularly on the end-to-end experience. We’re starting to see a growing interest around metrics, which help companies determine where best to allocate resources to improve their operations or products. But just because a business collects customer satisfaction data, doesn’t mean they will make good decisions based on it.

What are some major changes in customer experience?

We’re living in a digital world. Now, companies need to be concerned about their online presence, creating mobile-friendly options, and the power of the internet. Companies need a good website and the ability to do business online, whatever that business may be. For retail, that means having clothing for sale; for travel, that means booking flight reservations efficiently; for banking, that means setting up automatic bill pay options.

Finding that balance between digital and brick and mortar is the latest obsession in satisfying customers. Companies can set themselves apart by customizing the experience to meet individual needs. That may mean having store pickup or a great website. Offering different incentives to keep customers coming back can help improve the overall experience.

The digital experience is the heart and soul of transformation: Companies need to understand different customers’ needs and interests and develop a range of options to accommodate.

While customers are more self-sufficient in this digital world and that tends to increase customer satisfaction — more service required, the lower the customer satisfaction — there is a caveat: If there’s a problem, all of this goes out the window.

If customers run into a snag on the website or have trouble getting answers in a live chat, it can negatively impact overall customer experience. In fact, call center satisfaction tends to rate at the bottom of most industry benchmarks.

What goes into the ACSI’s measurement and methodology?

 The ACSI’s process has been extensively tested for over 25 years. While we can’t reveal all the details, we use an econometric model developed at the University of Michigan’s Ross School of Business. It factors in customer expectations, perceived quality, perceived value, complaints, loyalty, retention, and more criteria.

There are also specific benchmarks relevant to each industry’s products and services, whether that’s website satisfaction, battery life for cell phones, seat comfort for airlines, or speed of service for restaurants.

For more on the science that goes into measuring customer satisfaction, check out this chart on our website.

 How are companies selected for the ACSI’s reports?

The ACSI conducts its syndicated research independent of any of the companies measured. Inclusion is based solely on market share, meaning the companies included are of sufficient size to meet sample size thresholds that create statistically reliable data.

No company is included or excluded based on the company’s request, though companies can hire the ACSI to do an in-depth customer satisfaction analysis.

What’s the sample size collected in your studies?

Based on our advanced Partial Least Squares (PLS) structural equation modeling methodology, the ACSI can achieve statistically reliable results from a range of 100 to 250 respondents per company each quarter. Sample sizes at the industry and company level are not defined arbitrarily; using a historical database of nearly 3 million interviews and a Bayesian statistical procedure, sample sizes are adjusted based on prior information about data variance and stability.

How do I obtain access to specific company scores?

Full confidential data sets for a particular company or industry are only available to ACSI clients. For more information on how to subscribe and what that entails, please contact Tina Dettloff.

I don’t see my company among the list of measured companies; can I get an ACSI score to compare among the industry and my competitors?

The ACSI offers proprietary solutions that allow any organization to obtain data via the same survey methodology the ACSI utilizes across all industries. Companies will be provided with metrics calculated for the corresponding industry with apples-to-apples benchmarking opportunities. That’s the beauty of our national, cross-industry measurement! For more details contact Tina.

 

If you have any other questions, leave a comment below and we’ll be sure to get back to you — and possibly include it in another FAQ post.