customer satisfaction

(noun)

a measure of how products and services supplied by a company meet or surpass customer expectation

Related Terms

Examples of customer satisfaction in the following topics:

  • Long-Term Relationships: Satisfaction and Loyalty

    • Customer satisfaction is defined as "the number of customers, or percentage of total customers, whose reported experience with a firm, its products, or its services (ratings) exceeds specified satisfaction goals. " In a survey of nearly 200 senior marketing managers, 71% responded that they found a customer satisfaction metric very useful in managing and monitoring their businesses.
    • It is essential for businesses to effectively manage customer satisfaction.
    • Much research has focused on the relationship between customer satisfaction and retention.
    • Willingness to recommend is a key metric relating to customer satisfaction.
    • Example of a scale used to gauge customer satisfaction in a survey.

  • Customer Excellence

    • Obtaining customer feedback to ensure customer satisfaction and loyalty is essential to any marketing plan or strategic planning process.
    • One of the key inputs to achieving sustainable competitive advantage is long-term customer satisfaction excellence (i.e., being excellent in the eyes of your customers).
    • Indirectly tracking customer satisfaction can indicate the organization's long-term marketing performance.
    • Kiosks are often placed in stores to easily track customer satisfaction.
    • Other useful, but not so simple, measures of tracking customer attitudes and satisfaction are:

  • TQM

    • TQM is aimed at customer satisfaction via continuous improvement of the quality of business products and processes.
    • TQM ultimately aims for long term success through customer satisfaction.
    • TQM includes management, workforce, suppliers, and customers to improve the quality of the product or service.
    • The aim of this philosophy is to achieve full customer satisfaction.

  • Customer Concerns

    • B2B companies typically implement client services or customer care processes to address customer concerns and enhance customer satisfaction.
    • Nearly every brand must have a client service or customer care process in place to address customer concerns and enhance customer satisfaction.
    • Reassuring customers that their needs and concerns are the company's top priority is reflective of B2B brands that use a customer-driven approach to ascertaining customer demands.
    • It also allows customer care professionals to properly escalate customer issues to appropriate channels such as the sales or research and development team.
    • B2B companies usually have customer service programs in place to quickly and adequately address customer concerns.

  • Following Up

    • Following-up will build customer satisfaction, maximize long-term sales volume, and if a sale has not been made, it may lead to a sale.
    • The post-sale follow-up ensures customer satisfaction and maximizes future and long-term sales volume.
    • Regular follow up is an integral part of good customer service.
    • The level of follow differs according to the product or service sold and the type of customer involved.
    • Some customers prefer more follow up while others require little or no follow-up.

  • Customer Experience Management

    • Customer experience management focuses the operations and processes of a business around the need of the individual customer.
    • The goal of customer experience management is to move customers from satisfied to loyal and then from loyal to advocate.
    • Traditionally, managing the customer relationship has been the domain of customer relationship management (CRM).
    • The In-N-Out restaurant chain has developed a highly loyal customer base and has been rated as one of the top fast food restaurants in several customer satisfaction surveys.
    • Explain the difference between Customer Experience Management (CEM) and Customer Relationship Management (CRM)

  • Modern Trends in Marketing

    • Relationship marketing was first developed through direct response marketing campaigns emphasizing customer retention and satisfaction, rather than a dominant focus on sales transactions.
    • Companies are customizing marketing programs to individual accounts.
    • The main focus of societal marketing is on customer satisfaction and the welfare of society at large, which can be attained through providing eco-friendly products--for example, those that remove social and environmental ills like drugs and pollution.
    • In terms of societal marketing, products can be classified in terms of long-term benefits and immediate satisfaction:
    • Pleasing products bring a high level of immediate satisfaction, but can cause harm to society;

  • Customer Service as a Supplement to Products

    • Customer service is provided before, during, and after the purchase of a product, and is meant to supplement and enhance customer experience.
    • Customer service is the provision of service to customers before, during and after a purchase.
    • If a person buys a product that they are happy with, however, then good customer service can supplement this satisfaction.
    • The importance of customer service varies by product, industry and customer.
    • This is a form of customer service.

  • How Job Satisfaction Influences Behavior

    • Job satisfaction can affect a person's level of commitment to the organization, absenteeism, and job turnover.
    • Job satisfaction can affect a person's level of commitment to the organization, absenteeism, and job turnover rate.
    • Job satisfaction also reduces stress, which can affect job performance, mental well-being, and physical health.
    • In some ways, a manager's customers are their subordinates.
    • Discuss the way in which job satisfaction reflects upon work behaviors in an organization

  • Factors Influencing Experience, Involvement, and Satisfaction

    • The main factors that influence experience, involvement, and satisfaction with a product are personal, social, object and situational.
    • In general, four main factors influence a consumers's experience, involvement, and satisfaction with a product:
    • Other examples of cultural influences include language, myths, customs, rituals, and laws.
    • Object Factors: The degree of information that a consumers have about a product, including how well they can distinguish its characteristics, can also effect their experience, involvement, and satisfaction.