4 ways to ensure positive customer experiences in spite of self-service failures

Source: © 123rf 123rf Estelle van Tonder, professor of marketing at the University of South Africa, says that while self-service options can further augment the customer experience, in practice, things can (and often will) go wrong in the self-service delivery process

Self-service failures may include a variety of things, such as malfunction of the self-service app, products purchased but never delivered or miscommunications.

If these issues are not sufficiently addressed, they could have a profound impact on customers’ perceptions of their service experiences and may lead to unwanted consequences, such as customer defection and a reduction in brand value.

Positive customer experiences in spite of self-service failures

Subsequently, the question that comes to mind is how can service providers ensure positive customer experiences in spite of self-service failures.

Perhaps, the answer lies in modifying current service failure strategies to be more effective and to ensure customers’ needs are met in a more proficient manner.

Four ways to modify service failure strategies include:

Not to use chatbots as the first point of contact

Service providers often employ service robots (chatbots) to listen and attend to customer complaints. However, service robots tend to misinterpret customer complaints and direct customers to the wrong department. These events may cause further chaos, anger and frustration to the already confused and agitated customer.

Perhaps a more efficient approach would be for service providers not to use chatbots as the first point of contact after service failures, but rather in follow-up customer interactions, where satisfaction levels can be assessed, useful tips can be provided and further appointments with service staff can automatically be scheduled, if required.

Restructuring call centres and ensuring dialling options

Some service providers direct their customers to call centres to solve self-service issues.

Subsequently customers often have to wait in long lines, only to be transferred to another department, before being advised to visit the physical branch for further assistance.

These types of frustrations can easily be avoided by restructuring call centres and ensuring dialling options not only cater for “new” versus “existing” business queries but also for different service problems often experienced.

Staff empowerment

Customers visiting physical branches may be frustrated, having to wait a long time to be assisted, mostly because the branch is run on skeleton staff, who do not have the required authority to solve the problem themselves.

Staff empowerment is essential and may result in service issues being addressed in a quick and efficient manner.

Include customers in service failure strategies

Customers are also expected to call upon fellow customers for assistance in solving self-service issues. However, fellow customers may lack the necessary knowledge and skills to provide the required assistance.

Subsequently, service providers may benefit from including customers in their service failure strategies and designing interventions that may enable them to be of greater assistance to other customers seeking help.

Besides leading to greater cost-efficiency, self-service options are helpful in standardising service delivery and in producing service quality.

Self-service options are also beneficial as they allow for greater customer empowerment and customers being less reliant on service employees to attend to their individual needs.