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Relational marketing is what modern companies thrive on unlike the transactional marketing where, companies focus on one-off purchases, of which everything ends when a transaction is made successful.
Customers repeat transactions when they feel satisfied, and would thus rate service quality as delightful whenever their expectation and perception are overly met. Winning more orders is agreeably occasioned by companies maintaining good customer relations.
The above preamble is in dissonance with the local market because some local companies are grappling with the philosophy of relational marketing. Their understanding of customer satisfaction, customer retention, customer loyalty, and lifetime customer value is murkier. Reason they toss their consumers and customers up and down.
Such service providers deny their customers the services they (customers) had paid for, and they do it without conscience, forgetting that ‘electricity’, like ‘water’, too, is an essential service. Customers would opt for premium service, but in return they’re treated as if they opted for a low service quality.
Service providers in that category aren’t blameworthy — they’re enjoying the spoils of monopoly. Most monopolistic companies explore the use of “Failure Strategy” (i.e., they increase service charges, in the case of electricity and water tariffs and airtime packages, without marching it with service quality and customer satisfaction).
Whereas other parts of the world companies focus on Hybrid Strategy: achieving either focus differentiation or cost differentiation while maintaining a price cheaper than their competitors. Good customer relations is by far assured.
In those jurisdictions, companies are in business because of their customers, not otherwise. Valuing service quality and customer satisfaction are key performance indicators. Before there would even be a power cut, or road blockage for construction to take place, motorists are notified beforehand, in order to sway the inconvenience.
Good customer relations is sophisticated for a number of reasons. First is the growing tendency of irresponsibility of some potential employees. It’s innate of some youths to growl while not employed, but immediately they’re gainfully employed they grow inertia towards their duty and would treat customers with disdain. All they think about is when the next salary would be paid, and not what to be done for the next salary to be worthy of being earned.
Exhibition of pomposity by staff while working: they do this at the detriment of service quality — feeling too big to render their service — their ego first, service quality, whatever! A staff could beckon customers to be treated with some level of reverence just because at home he’s an elder. If a customer isn’t an elder, too, poor service quality is assured.
Relational marketing is scientific, however, there are many employees and employers who don’t know how to approach it today. Though their wish is to keep customers beyond a mere purchase, as to what to do to ensure it’s met, they are in amiss.
Some companies don’t regard service quality. Their main concern is to offer their service regardless of being responsive, reliable, competent, credible, accessible, and understanding their customers needs. Whatever happens they’d still be in business. Theirs is to exit, that’s all!
However the misapprehension, training helps in curtailing poor customer relations. Regular training renders staff to be abreast with newly developed standards of customer behaviors from time to time. Employers are to make the company’s philosophy glaring to the understanding of both internal and external customers so that a detour could easily be noticed.
The proliferation of incompetent persons in helm of affairs. Positions are given either on political or family card, not qualifications. A candidate with outstanding background in customer service quality would be sidelined for a family member whose background isn’t even known. And still expect good customer relations?
Maintaining good customer relations requires a collective approach from top management. Companies should practice quality assurance and be proactive. It can be attained through simulation exercises, constantly downsize variability, process streamlining, and measuring their performance.
The era of doing nothing and receiving something are over. Local companies need to internalize Philip Crosby’s approach of behavioral and Human Resource (HR) motivation aspects as a gateway to quality improvement rather than statistical approaches. When staff are treated well, customers, in return, receive good customer care.
Customers are like babies, they go where they’re pampered. That’s why customers are attached to brands, that even when they’re getting a substitute good somewhere they’d still maintain their brand. When the above is met, customer loyalty is left.
Research has shown that customers tell twice as many people about bad experiences as good experiences. A dissatisfied customer tells 8 to 10 people about the bad experience. Seventy percent of upset customers would remain customers if their complaint are resolved satisfactorily. It’s easier to get customers to repeat than it’s to find new business.
No serious business entity will adumbrate the voice of the customer; they rather encourage great customer intimacy.
