14,616 research outputs found
Recommended from our members
Measuring customer satisfaction and understanding customer effort in a B2B context
Our members asked us to investigate a number of aspects of Customer Satisfaction
measurement in a Business-to-Business (B2B) context. Specific questions were:- What are the different metrics of customer satisfaction that are measured in a BTB
relationship? Which are used the most? Which are the most effective? Do they vary by
type of company? Are there new ways to measure customer satisfaction that more closely reflects their
customer experience? What does customer effort mean in a B2B relationship? How do we identify where we
are not easy to do business with? What do we have to do differently?
Our approach to the subject was to review existing literature and previous research and then to
conduct an exploratory qualitative review into the subject by conducting interviews with a range
of B2B companies and a sample of their customers. The purpose behind the interviews was to try
to answer the above questions and to identify if there were opportunities for more in-depth
research in the future.
The project demonstrates that the B2B companies compile and use a customer satisfaction
rating for their business-to-business relationships but that there is little commonality between
companies in both the full range of questions asked and the scales used for the individual
questions. All of the companies use a mixture of global and dimensional measures (see literature
review in section 2).
There is some scope for manipulation of the customer satisfaction process in most companies so
the results have to be treated with a degree of caution. However, the companies believe that
they are getting good positive and negative feedback from the process so they see significant
value from it.
Where the customer satisfaction rating falls below an acceptable level, which differs by
company, responses are shared with the customer as part of the regular relationship meeting
and a monitored action plan is the normal result. In addition, in most cases, common issues are
identified at company level and considered for improvement programs.
The questions about customer effort showed that companies in general consider themselves
more difficult to do business with than their customers do. Analysis of both company and
customer views of what was âeasyâ and what was âdifficultâ about the relationship identified a
number of interactions that could potentially be the subject of process improvement initiatives.
It appears from this research that the inclusion of customer effort questions would benefit the
customer satisfaction process for B2B companies and a number of best practise approaches
were identified from this and previous research
Recommended from our members
B2B customer experience factors: understanding the relationship with SME customers â interim report
As part of the 2014 programme, our members asked us to extend the research done in 2013
(âMeasuring Customer Satisfaction And Understanding Customer Effort In A B2B Contextâ - Tony
Harrington and Andrew Bryan) to incorporate the SME customer sector.
This project was set up to explore customer experience factors in the SME segment and to
address a number of questions:- What are the most important factors that contribute to the customer experience from
both the supplierâs and the SME customerâs perspectives? From the customerâs perspective, what about the relationship with the supplier requires
the âmostâ or âleastâ effort and what changes do customers suggest? Where a customer has both a personal and a business relationship with the supplier,
how does this impact their views?
The approach was to develop an online survey for completion by SME customers and their
supplier. Initially, seven companies and the Henley SME Forum volunteered to participate in the
research. However, it proved to be extremely difficult to go from agreement to be involved to
actually getting survey responses and, in the event, the survey achieved the following result:- A good response was achieved from 2 companies with around 40 SME responses for
each company. A poor response was achieved from 1 company and from the SME Group so their data is
currently of limited value. There were other companies that would still like to participate and there are 3 offers to
participate at a later date.
Analysis of the responses showed that useful conclusions could be made from the data collected
so far but that it would be more valuable if more companies were persuaded to participate in
the future. As a result, this report has been prepared as an interim statement of what has been
learnt and to provide specific feedback to the participating companies. With memberâs
permission, further responses will be sought at a later date to refine the learning and provide
feedback to more companies.
This report presents the results of analysis from the survey on a company-by-company basis.
Most of the data is only relevant at company level but consolidated results are shown where
possible.
The results from the analysis of responses lead to a number of initial conclusions. SME companies look to their suppliers to deliver against their promises in a responsive,
consistent and proactive manner. Their priority is to have their problems solved in a
timely manner. Relationship factors are more important in the B2B relationships between large
companies than for SMEâs. The SME customer is much more interested in just having the service performed with a minimum of fuss and doesnât really want to develop a
relationship. Questions about customer effort (or the ease of doing business) are as valuable in the
SME segment as in any other in terms of identifying opportunities for improvement. Businesses should consider whether their SME customers might also be a customer in
their personal home life. If so, they should be aware that this will have an effect on their
satisfaction â and could be either positive or negative
Addition of a gamma ray spectrometer to the alpha scattering experiment as designed for the Surveyor mission
Gamma ray spectroscopy and alpha scattering techniques for compositional analysis of lunar and planetary surface
Contributions to workload of rotational optical transformations
An investigation of visuomotor adaptation to optical rotation and optical inversion was conducted. Experiment 1 examined the visuomotor adaptability of subjects to an optically rotating visual world with a univariate repeated measures design. Experiment 1A tested one major prediction of a model of adaptation put forth by Welch who predicted that the aversive drive state that triggers adaptation would be habituated to fairly rapidly. Experiment 2 was conducted to investigate the role of motor activity in adaptation to optical rotation. Specifically, this experiment contrasted the reafference hypothesis and the proprioceptive change hypothesis. Experiment 3 examined the role of cognition, error-corrective feedback, and proprioceptive and/or reafferent feedback in visuomotor adaptation to optical inversion. Implications for research and implications for practice were suggested for all experiments
Waveguide mode imaging and dispersion analysis with terahertz near-field microscopy
Propagation of terahertz waves in hollow metallic waveguides depends on the waveguide mode. Near-field scanning probe terahertz microscopy is applied to identify the mode structure and composition in dielectric-lined hollow metallic waveguides. Spatial profiles, relative amplitudes, and group velocities of three main waveguide modes are experimentally measured and matched to the HE11, HE12, and TE11 modes. The combination of near-field microscopy with terahertz time-resolved spectroscopy opens the possibility of waveguide mode characterization in the terahertz band
Lattice QCD at finite temperature: Evidence for calorons from the eigenvectors of the Dirac operator
We analyze the eigenvalues and eigenvectors of the staggered Dirac operator
in quenched lattice QCD in the vicinity of the deconfinement phase transition
using the L\"uscher-Weisz gauge action. The spectral and localization
properties of the low-lying eigenmodes show characteristic differences between
the Z_3 sectors above the critical temperature T_c. These findings can be
interpreted in terms of calorons.Comment: Lattice2001(hightemp), 3 pages, 2 figure
Teaching at a Distance with the Merging Technologies: An Instructional Systems Approach
A review of Teaching at a Distance with the Merging Technologies: An Instructional Systems Approach, by Thomas E. Cyrs with Eugenia D. Conway
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