Buyology – Where to get help to improve your customer service
Great service is not something one is born with. It’s not something you inherit. It’s not something you make up along the way. Its something you learn, nurture and practice continuously. If you try to fake it, we will spot you a mile away from your plastic smile that vanishes immediately we turn our heads.
I love what I do. Customer experience is my thing and I pride myself at being very observant after many years of practicing and managing people who give great service. I really appreciate great service because I believe I give it too when I am in the role.
My experience…
Last week, I went to a popular restaurant chain. Maybe the most popular in the country but the service was just a notch higher than budget take away joint. I wasn’t surprised that things hadn’t changed much since a nasty experience a couple of months ago when i had food poisoning; this time, I was faced with a waitress who was not in the mood to take orders or give service. Maybe it was that time of the month but who cares when all you want is a mocha with low fat milk!
Not only did she get my order wrong but she had that “furad mandazi” look that made me wonder if she thought I was her partner. All I wanted at the time was a hot drink, reasonable service and some peace to attend to my meeting. So I ended up with the wrong drink, a sulking waitress and no peace since I had to complain and explain-twice. I eventually asked for the manager who was amazing. He listened, took note of what I needed and brought exactly what I asked for. I wondered how he would deal with the situation once I left.
I am sure you too have many examples of poor or great service, less than mediocre food, unreliable internet providers and an endless list of experiences that leave you with memories. I invested into a business whose business objective is to improve service delivery in Kenya by ensuring business owners do not find out how bad the service was from social media, bad reviews and churn but from mystery shopping where we simulate customer visits and give feedback on what the customer experience was.
Buyology
As part of the job, our mystery shoppers visit restaurants, malls, gas stations, clubs, supermarkets, retail stores, banks, government institutions and other customer facing businesses and parastatals to experience the customer journey and end to end customer experience.
And we have plenty of stories to tell. Good and bad. Really bad sometimes. We “accidentally” walk into kitchens and gag at what we see. We’ve walked into toilets of reputable establishments only to lower our opinion of them. Driven into empty basement parking lots yet the guards had insisted the parking was full until you gave “kitu kidogo”. Sim cards have been registered by just saying spelling out a name and ID number with no ID evidence. All these are serious offences as they could mean steep penalties from regulatory bodies, a retweet that spreads like bushfire and customers finding other competitors who offer a better experience.
80% of CEOs believe they deliver superior customer experience
But only 8% of their customers agree
Years back, I read an article on how Kenyan banks are rated the worst in the world in terms of service. I thought this was stretched even if I was having issues with my bank at the time. After a number of years, I realized this reality is with us and may be here to stay if we don’t do something about it. I chose to do something about it and I did. Our business works at helping companies improve their service standards by understanding what their customers experience when they interact with their products, services and staff. We find the disease and the cause and come up with ways to eradicate it and ensure it does not return.
Would you like to be a mystery shopper? Register to make money while shopping on www.buyology.co.ke/register
Article by: Jacqui Mwangi
Director – Buyology Company Limited
