The Dollars and Sense of Customer Loyalty

As the fourth quarter of one of the most challenging years in the U.S. economy’s history draws to a close, business consultant Eva Jenkins urges companies that want to stay in business to focus on turning buyer satisfaction into buyer loyalty.
By: Eva Jenkins, VIP Innovations, LLC
 
Oct. 20, 2010 - PRLog -- In an alarming number of companies, massive lay-offs have decimated workforces and left those that remain feeling over-worked, stressed out, and devoid of clear expectations about their futures.  “This toxic environment causes employees to become disengaged, apathetic...and unable or unwilling to provide the exceptional customer service which will affect overall customer loyalty for the company,” says Eva Jenkins.  “And that can spell disaster for any business that hopes to weather the current economic storm.”

Jenkins, a leading consultant on business and staffing topics, and the driving force at VIP Innovations in Washington, D.C., is on a mission to alert companies to the dangers of disengaged workers and the benefits of turning one-time buyers into loyal, long-term customers with levels of customer service.  “Customer loyalty is the fuel that drives financial success, but a vast majority of companies are literally running on empty,” says Jenkins.  “That can spell disaster in today’s volatile, high-speed economy where customers will quickly abandon any business relationship that doesn’t deliver on its promise of satisfaction.”

The Dollars and Sense of Customer Loyalty

“It is impossible to overstate the bottom-line benefits of creating loyal customers with whom a company can continue to do business rather than constantly trying to acquire new customers,” she says.  She points to two key statistics that underscore this point:

•  A 5% increase in retention increases profits by 25-125%
• Acquiring new customers can cost five times more than satisfying and  training current customers

Research shows that 80% of people who do not receive good customer service do not complain.  They simply take their business elsewhere.  According to Jenkins, “An engaged worker who is enthusiastic about the company he/she represents can provide the ‘first line of defense’ against customer bail-out by delivering a quality customers service experience.

Jenkins urges businesses to “get the facts” rather than simply assuming that employees are committed to an organization and its goals and hoping that customers feel well-served.  A gaping disconect between perception and reality was revealed in a recent analysis of 362 firms by a professional consulting firm.  “80% of the owners surveyed believed that they were providing a ‘superior experience’ to their customers,” Jenkins reports.  “But when customers of those firms were surveyed about their perceptions, it was revealed that they rated only 8% as superior in their customer service efforts.

The lingering question then is what sets the elite 8% apart? Jenkins believes it is “an engaged workforce that demonstrates through words and actions that customer satisfaction is their number one priority.”  

The challenge, she says, is measuring the level of engagement.

Taking Guesswork Out of the Equation

“You can’t manage what you can’t measure,” she says.  “I strongly encourage companies to take advantage of the Workplace Engagement Survey created by Profiles International to measure the degree to which employees are connected to the work they do.”  In a process that takes about 15 minutes per respondent, the Workplace Engagement Survey provides a clear picture of an employees’ level of engagement, satisfaction with the company, and satisfaction with their supervisors and managers.  

“The data from the survey gives management teams a detailed snapshot of what influences engagement across all workforce segments and how an organization’s employees compare statistically to the overall working population,” explains Jenkins.  “But perhaps most importantly, it provides tangible recommendations for ways in which an organization can improve.

The Impact of Engagement on Customer Satisfaction and Loyalty

The qualitative difference between work done by engaged versus disengaged employees is enormous.  Quoting from materials created by Profiles International, the world leader in selecting and developing high-performance workforces through innovative human resource management solutions, Jenkins points to some of the customer-centric qualities that engaged employees exhibit:

•   Excited and enthusiastic
•   More focused on their work than “watching the clock”
•   Give high levels of discretionary effort

It is this last attribute that Jenkins feels is so critical.  “How you deliver can be as important as what you deliver, so don’t underestimate the impact emotions play in customer satisfaction scores, says Jenkins.   “An engaged employee will take the time to learn what a customer values on a personal level and then go beyond their expectations to demonstrate how important that customer’s satisfaction is to the employee as well as the company he/she represents.”

In a bottom-line economy, everyone is looking for maximum return on their financial investment, and “a company whose engaged employees make it clear that it is an organizational imperative to give more than what is asked for is going to turn a one-time buyer into a customer for life,” observes Jenkins.  “And in addition to created loyal customers, engaged workers are, themselves, more loyal to their organization.  This reduces employee turnover and saves money by reducing the high cost of hiring and training.”

As well as writing about the importance of employee engagement and its relationship to customer loyalty and business success, Jenkins has developed webinar presentations on this critical subject.  She is offering her expertise to D.C.-area groups and organizations at no charge in an effort to “spread the gospel of customer satisfaction,” she says.

For more information about this topic and to book Jenkins as a speaker, please visit www.vipinnovations.com or call (888) 801-8885.

About Eva Jenkins

Eva Jenkins is a leading consultant on business and staffing topics, and the driving force at VIP Innovations in Washington, D.C.  Her goal is to position clients so that they may respond to, and more importantly anticipate, the precedent-setting ‘human capital’ challenges that face businesses as they evolve.  She is also co-author of Conversations on Success, a collection of powerful interviews with accomplished entrepreneurs in a variety of industries.

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VIP Innovations provides critical information to enable executives and business owners make better decisions regarding their people issues. This understanding leads to better allocation of human capital and maximizes the effectiveness of every employee.
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