Quality of customer service plays key role for 94% Indians planning a buy

Over 90% of Indians feel that the quality of a customer service being provided by a firm plays a major role for them to decide on a purchase in the same platform, reveals a new Zendesk finding.

The study highlighted customer experience as a key potential for a business to drive in success. For 94% Indian consumers, they make purchasing decisions based on the quality of customer service.

It further said that majority of the Indian businesses agreed to a direct link between customer service and business performance.

Customer expectations grew over the past year as 88% of Indian consumers say their customer service standards have increased over the last 12 months. Customer experience is a determining factor for retention and loyalty as 85% of Indian customers are willing to switch brands after one bad experience. Indian businesses recognise the need for having a standout customer service team, with 61% saying that it has an impact on retention. It is perhaps why 65% of Indian companies expect funding for their customer service teams to rise by 25% in the next 12 months.

“Businesses cannot afford to take a transactional approach to their relationships with their customers. Customer service is now a key differentiator, but this year’s report reveals some gaps exist between expectation and delivery,” said Adrian McDermott, Chief Technology Officer, Zendesk. 

“Customers are noticing this gap and voting with their business - and that is perhaps the clearest signal to businesses that change needs to happen, and fast.”

“Businesses need an institution-wide shift where investments into tools and processes that enhance CX become a priority. The insights are clear on the competitive advantage and scalability that Indian businesses can achieve through these investments. All that’s required now is for businesses to take action on these insights to unlock the returns that positive customer experiences can deliver,” said Vasudeva Rao Munnaluri, Regional Vice President India & SAARC, Zendesk.

A majority of Indian businesses surveyed (88%) see a direct link between customer service and business performance compared to their counterparts in Korea (57.7%), Japan (59%), Singapore (66%) and Australia (76%). 

Most businesses in India (85%) estimate that customer service has a positive impact on business growth. The opportunity is not simply to deliver a single solution-based interaction with the consumer but to use that point of engagement as an opportunity to deepen the relationship.

Customer engagement is up 14% globally from the previous year, with 69% of Indian companies saying that it presented more opportunities for cross-selling.