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Customer Service Week highlights the Importance of Customer Service for African businesses

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Customer Service Week highlights the Importance of Customer Service for African businesses:

A recent survey by research and analysis information technology company, Forrester has found that 39% of customers tell their friends and families about bad customer experience. This means that for every customer that has a bad experience with a company, the resulting business erosion that accompanies it can increase exponentially (1).

While there are no current statistics on the impact of poor customer service on businesses operating in Sub-Saharan Africa, it is safe to say that poor customer service can seriously impact a company’s bottom line. 

In light of International Customer Service Week, acknowledged from 3 to 7 October 2016, Fatima Sullivan, Vice President of Customer Service for DHL Sub Saharan Africa (www.dpDHL.com), says that in an increasingly competitive world, good customer service is key to attracting and retaining customers. “With a multitude of options now available to consumers when it comes to products and services in every sector, it is crucial for businesses to differentiate themselves through customer service excellence.”

Businesses must realize that customer service is the most important touch point between companies and customers, says Sullivan.

“When a customer’s satisfaction is increased by one point (out of 10), there is an average 10% increase in the possibility that they will remain a customer, according to the Institute of Customer Service. This statistic reveals that even small changes to improve customer service can have a positive impact on a company’s client retention”, says Sullivan.

“We strongly promote and advocate having an Insanely Customer Centric Culture at DHL Express – this means that the want and need to delight a customer is at the very core of each of our employee’s DNA. Ensuring that the voice of the customer resonates throughout the organization is essential to great service quality.  While you can measure Customer Service key performance indicators daily, the most value is derived from direct customer feedback. Initiatives such as the Net Promoter Approach (NPA) management tool, which measures promoters and detractors among your customer base and proactively sources feedback from them is extremely useful in identifying areas for improvement and enabling the company to make the necessary changes to enhance their offering and continually offer better ways to deliver excellence to customers.”

“At DHL Express, we take customer service very seriously and try to deliver great customer experiences that are full of surprising ‘wow’ moments. Proof of this lies in the fact that we have won over 20  external awards for customer service in SSA in 2016 so far,” adds Sullivan.

“Building great consumer experiences is a complex task, involving strategy, integration of technology, orchestrating business models, brand management, and commitment,” comments Hennie Heymans, CEO of DHL Express Sub Saharan Africa. “However, before all this can take place, it starts with having a great team and this year’s Customer Service Week provides us with an opportunity to reward our super star advisors, and recognize their passion for our business and for our customers.”

Customer Service Week was founded in 1991 and runs from 03-07 October this year. More information can be found on www.CSWeek.com

(1) According to research by Forrester 

http://apo.af/nZXUkJ

Distributed by APO on behalf of Deutsche Post DHL.

Media Contact: 
Megan Collinicos
Head of Marketing, Sub-Saharan Africa
DHL Express
Tel +27 21 409 3613 Mobile +27 76 411 8570
megan.collinicos@dhl.com

DHL – The logistics company for the world:
DHL (www.dpDHL.com) is the leading global brand in the logistics industry. Our DHL family of divisions offer an unrivalled portfolio of logistics services ranging from national and international parcel delivery, e-commerce shipping and fulfillment solutions, international express, road, air and ocean transport to industrial supply chain management. With about 340,000 employees in more than 220 countries and territories worldwide, DHL connects people and businesses securely and reliably, enabling global trade flows. With specialized solutions for growth markets and industries including technology, life sciences and healthcare, energy, automotive and retail, a proven commitment to corporate responsibility and an unrivalled presence in developing markets, DHL is decisively positioned as “The logistics company for the world”.
DHL is part of Deutsche Post DHL Group. The Group generated revenues of more than 59 billion euros in 2015.

For more information: www.dpDHL.com
Stock images available: http://www.dpDHL.com/en/media_relations/media_library.html

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Source: APO – Africa-Newsroom: latest news releases related to Africa.

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