What Other Service Areas Should We Benchmark? (4 of 4)
by Service 800, Inc.

The four-week series includes the following articles:

• What Types of Benchmarks are Available?
  
• How is Customer Satisfaction Different from Customer Loyalty?
  
• Are There Unique Considerations When Measuring Service Satisfaction Abroad?
  
• What Are Some Ways to Overcome Cultural Issues When Measuring Service Satisfaction Abroad?

Overcome Cultural Issues When Measuring Service Satisfaction Abroad

Last week, we outlined a few considerations for performance benchmarking across the big pond. When measuring customer satisfaction for service locations in Europe and Asia, it’s important to remember:

• Define the regions of Europe and Asia in your terms
  
• Determine your benchmark needs
  
• Consider cultural and language differences in responses
  
• Report in English or native languages

This week we continue that discussion by focusing on tactics that can help you overcome cultural differences when measuring customer satisfaction overseas.

From last week’s discussion, you’ll remember that cultural differences between countries in Europe make data analysis more challenging. For example, the expectations around the quality of service in Spain might be lower than in the UK. Consequently, a customer in Spain might rank service performance higher than a UK customer who received the same level of service.

Fortunately, there are steps you can take to minimize the cultural differences.

Breakdown language barriers
Europe for example, is not a one-language-fits-all region. Any given company doing business in Europe (depending on your definition of the region) probably has a customer base that requires support for 10 to 12 different languages. For your service provider to choose the appropriate staff, you’ll need to work with the provider to break down your customer base by language rather than country. This way, the provider can staff native-language interviewers to survey your customers. For example, in Switzerland, customers might speak German, French, or Italian, so the interview staff needs to be prepared.

Use native-language interviewers
It’s important to use native-language interviewers who also have a very good understanding of the English language. This is imperative for accurate translations. For example, if a customer refers to service performance as “pretty good”, a skilled multi-lingual interviewer will know how to translate the statement properly. If the interviewer is not a native language speaker with good English, then “pretty good” might literally translate to “beautiful good.”

Native-language interviewers also understand county-specific slang and can translate customer responses more clearly. It’s extremely important that translations include the key details of what the person is saying.

Next Week - What Drives the SSPA Software Benchmark?

To Contact Us — To discuss this topic, any other Benchmark Benefits article, or to provide topic suggestions, please contact Jan DeMatteo at jan@service800.com.

For More Information — For additional information about the SSPA SoftwareMetric Customer Satisfaction Benchmark, SERVICE 800, or other benchmark programs, visit www.service800.com/benchmarkprograms.asp.

About SERVICE 800
Founded in 1989, SERVICE 800 designs and administrators real-time customer satisfaction measurement programs, helping service organizations follow up with their customers within hours or days of service events. The company utilizes a distinctive follow up telephone interview process along with e-mail, web, and other survey techniques to measure customer satisfaction. With offices in Minneapolis and London, SERVICE 800 has been measuring customer satisfaction for corporations throughout the world for over a decade.