Customer Experience Delivery Is Still Inconsistent In Kenya, But With Exceptions – mSurvey

Considering page-by-page information in the recently released report by mSurvery – an African integrated customer experience company – we have an insight into the state of the customer experience in Kenya. Baptised as Customer Loyalty Benchmark Report, the quarterly study has revealed the results across 10 Kenyan industries for the year 2018.

One of the highlights of the report was its showing of how the delivery of customer experience is yet inconsistent across the observed industries, with an exception for the Energy and Health industries which were found to maintain consistent performance throughout last year.

According to the report, there was a significant drop in the delivery of customer experience in 2018, which was made evident by an unfluctuating decrease in Net Promoter Scores (NPS) throughout eight industries. What triggered and led on the drop can be the increasing constraint on consumer budgets, a factor which the report says skyrocketed in Q4 2018 due to inflated consumer spend over the yuletide, as well creating a state of amplified competition.

“In quarter 4 KCB ranked the highest in customer experience in the Banking industry. KCB customers cited friendly rates and customer service as a key source of delight. Customer service remained the largest driver of customer experience in this industry”, a statement in the report revealed. There were reported cases of poor treatment of customer by cooperative banks. Facing staff was their primary source of poor experience, which made the bank witnessed a drop in its NPS.

Seeing Telkom Kenya being mention in the Telco industry is no surprise. What was even more of a formality was that the report said the company emerged as a leader in 2018, having closed with an average Net Promoter Score (NPS) of 22.5. Probably the same reason why Bharti Airtel took an interest in Telkom and is now merged with it, the telecoms’ success according to the report is significantly hinged on its fast internet and thrifty data bundle offerings.

One Telkom Kenya promoter said, “Consistent network and data speeds; also affordable rates.” Competitor Safaricom followed closely with an NPS of 16.75 in 2018. “According to subscribers, Safaricom excelled in overall customer service as well as efficiency and reliability. Airtel’s customers cited poor connectivity in some areas as a bad experience which led to a drop in the company’s NPS”, the report explained.

Per Kenya’s retail industry, Tuskys was discovered to front rank, delivering cutting-edge customer experience compared to Naivas. The report confessed that Tuskys’ performance in Q4 2018 was latched on by speed, efficiency, having a variety of products and excellent customer service according to patronisers.

“Consumers rewarded Naivas with good scores based on fair pricing and a better overall experience. However, speed and the level of efficiency continues to be a source of penalisation from shoppers in Q4”.

mSurvey in this recent study also noted that government facilities experienced a general drop in their customer experience performance, indicating that some organisations however notably beat the odds. Tasked with the highest responsibility one could guess, Huduma Center scored an NPS of 21 in Q4, reflecting an eclipse of the industry standard of 13 NPS. While 40 percent of Huduma’s promoters mentioned the customer service level and speed as areas of delight, the study notes that: These factors have continued to remain a significant source of detraction across other government facilities. Customers control the success of a business”.

mSurvey Co-founder and Chief Product Officer Louis Majanja in a statement said: “We live in the age of the customer. Customer loyalty is crucial for any business to thrive in a competitive market. Delivering a superior customer experience is no longer something nice to have, it is a key competitive differentiator”.

Over the years mSurvey has enabled businesses to understand the drivers of customer loyalty, allowing them to increase their operational efficiencies and enhance their competitive advantage through product innovation. With consistent use over time, leading brands have been able to strengthen their brand equity and grow their revenues.