Eight out of 10 American consumers agree that courteous service and a smile are more important than speedy technology-assisted services, according to a survey by DHL (Plantation, Fla.), an express delivery and logistics company.

In fact, most Americans believe that technology can actually hinder customer service: 75 percent of respondents believe technology has detracted from customer service.

“Given the emphasis consumers and businesses place on courteous service, their desire for the human touch instead of an automated response and the significant impact customer service experiences can have on their decision-making process, companies may need to take another look at how they approach their customers today,” said John Gilfeather, director of Roper Corporate Reputation Scorecard, which conducted the survey. “The results of this survey illustrate that technology isn’t a silver bullet when it comes to maintaining good relationships with customers, and the quality of interaction between service provider and customer is tremendously important.”

The most common consumer complaint is the inability to interact with humans on the phone (28 percent). Getting stuck in an automated voice system trails a close second (21 percent), followed by being put on hold for long periods of time (14 percent) and rude customer service representatives (13 percent).

Meanwhile, 22 percent of consumers believe that receiving accurate information from a service professional is a must. In fact, when deciding which factors constitute good customer service, about a third of consumers said the ability to interact with knowledgeable and competent representatives is paramount.

More than 80 percent of consumers said bad customer service experiences would cause them to switch to a different business or service provider. When choosing a new provider, 93 percent of consumers said the company with better customer service is the one they would choose.

• Adults older than 50 are significantly less likely to give the customer service they receive today a good or excellent rating than adults younger than 50 (57 percent versus 74 percent). Forty-four percent of people 18 to 24 believe customer service will improve in the next five years, versus only 28 percent of those 25 and older. Only 19 percent of people older than 65 believe customer service will get better in the next five years.
• While most consumers have had positive customer service experiences, customer service falls short of many Americans’ expectations. Only 25 percent of consumers agree that they’ve never had a customer service problem. Overall, 67 percent believe good customer service is hard to find in today’s marketplace.
• Among consumers who said customer service has worsened over the past five years, 82 percent believe the reason is that people can get away with being ruder now than in the past. Another 82 percent believe an unmotivated workforce is a top cause. Seventy-six percent blamed poor management. [January 2006 PET AGE]