MELVILLE, N.Y.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Verint® Systems Inc. (NASDAQ: VRNT) today announced results from a new customer satisfaction survey of more than 7,000 consumers throughout the United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany, Poland and Russia. The research explores consumers’ attitudes on services provided by organizations in five sectors (phone, TV and broadband services, financial services, retail, utilities and public services) worldwide. Key findings paint a picture of consumers that increasingly value service, are less responsive to conventional marketing approaches and are ready to share their views on social media.
Service as Important as Price by a Two-to-One Margin
Of consumers polled, 48 percent disagreed with the statement “price is the only thing that matters to me—service is secondary.” However, 22 percent agreed with the statement, indicating by more than a 2-to-1 margin that service is as important as price. Geographies that had the highest responses to service being as important as price, in order, were: Germany, France, Russia, United States, United Kingdom and Poland.
Less than Half Feel Satisfied with the Customer Service Experience
In totaling all scores, a mere 49 percent agree that they feel satisfied with the customer experience they receive, while 26 percent remain indifferent. Net satisfaction scores were highest in retail (67%), followed by phone/TV/broadband (53%), utilities (49%), financial services (47%) and public services (28%).
Forty Percent Likely to Voice Experiences via Social Media
Forty percent of respondents indicated they’d share either a positive or negative experience via social media. Overall, Facebook, with 19 percent, remained the main social media vehicle for sharing opinions, followed in order by blogs and websites (11%), Twitter (5%), YouTube (4%) and LinkedIn (1%).
“This study clearly shows that there is much more to customers’ actions than merely price sensitivity, even in the current economic climate. As pricing and marketing efforts have declined in importance and effectiveness, customer service has risen,” shares Nancy Treaster, senior vice president and general manager, strategic operations, Verint Enterprise Intelligence Solutions™. “Verint believes this reinforces a need for organizations globally to adopt a customer-centric management strategy through which customers’ wants and needs drive a company’s business processes. Customer service needs to gain further adoption as a key strategic initiative in moving the needle for satisfaction which, according to this survey, still has significant room for growth. It’s clear in industries where consumers have more choice that service is seen as a competitive differentiator.”
Additional Research Findings:
Retail Provides Best Holistic View of the Customer
The retail sector seems to have the greatest view into the customer, and overall, most organizations rated fairly positively in response to the question, “I felt the representative I spoke to didn’t have access to all the information they needed at the time that I contacted them.” Retail had the lowest negative score (10%), followed by utilities (14%), financial services (15%), public services (19%) and phone/TV/ broadband (20%).
Wait Times Mirror Availability of Market Options
The typical wait time across all industries was just under four minutes. Markets with greater choices and ease of changing providers (i.e., retail and financial services) were better at providing shorter contact times. The average wait times across industries were: retail (2.5 minutes), financial services (3.2 minutes), utilities (3.7 minutes), phone/TV/broadband (4.6 minutes) and public services (5 minutes).
The number of responders that indicated they waited 10 minutes or longer before speaking to someone who could resolve their questions were: retail (5%), financial services (9%), utilities (11%), phone/TV/broadband (19%) and public services (19%).
One in Seven Consumers Willing to “Act” for Service
Overall, consumers were not willing to alter behavior for the desired outcome, with only 15 percent agreeing with the statement, “I use emotions (anger, becoming tearful, flirting, etc.) on calls with service providers to get what I want.” Geographical responses indicated the region’s most likely to “act,” in order, were: Russia, United States, Poland, Germany, France and the United Kingdom.
Consumers Angered By Routine Mistakes
Worldwide, consumers are quick to anger over routine mistakes (e.g., billing errors, taking too long to handle simple requests, etc.). Survey results show that 56 percent agree they are likely to anger and only 16 percent disagree. However, 44 percent of respondents agreed they would allow companies to make a few mistakes before looking for another provider, compared to 24 percent who would not.
About Verint Enterprise Intelligence Solutions
Verint® Enterprise Intelligence Solutions™ help organizations of all sizes capture and analyze customer interactions, sentiments and trends across multiple channels, improve performance and optimize the customer experience. The solution portfolio includes the Impact 360® Workforce Optimization™ suite and Voice of the Customer software, which serve as strategic enterprise assets for increasing customer satisfaction and loyalty, enhancing products and services, reducing operating costs and driving revenue.
About Verint Systems Inc.
Verint® (NASDAQ: VRNT) is the global leader in Actionable Intelligence® solutions and value-added services. Its extensive portfolio of Enterprise Intelligence Solutions™ and Security Intelligence Solutions™ helps worldwide organizations capture and analyze complex, underused information sources—such as voice, video and unstructured text—to enable more timely, effective decisions. More than 10,000 organizations in 150 countries, including over 85 percent of the Fortune 100, use Verint solutions to improve enterprise performance and make the world a safer place. Headquartered in N.Y. and a member of the Russell 3000 Index, Verint has offices worldwide and an extensive global partner network. Learn more at www.verint.com.
This press release contains forward-looking statements, including statements regarding expectations, predictions, views, opportunities, plans, strategies, beliefs, and statements of similar effect relating to Verint Systems Inc. These forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and they are based on management's expectations that involve a number of risks and uncertainties, any of which could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by the forward-looking statements. For a detailed discussion of these risk factors, see our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended January 31, 2012 and our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended October 31, 2012 and other filings we make with the SEC. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are made as of the date of this press release and, except as required by law, the Company assumes no obligation to update or revise them or to provide reasons why actual results may differ.
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