• Significance of Customer Services as Economic Factor is rising rapidly
• Stronger Differentiation of the Providers‘ Structure as well as Development of New Service Trends
• Customers’ Digital Access is Continuously Gaining in Importance as Purchase Criterion

Kaufbeuren, November 2009. — For producers and retailers of electronic products high service quality is a definite differentiation feature from competitors and thus has to be regarded and used as an auspicious business opportunity. It is the main task of providers of customer services benefits to enable producers and retailers to immediately respond to changes in (end) customers‘ requirements and to react with innovative service solutions. “Up-to-date service providers today design a complete chain of service comfort for users and consumers by far exceeding the `event of fault´. Thus additional benefit and more turnover as well as revenue are generated”, states Thomas Lünendonk, proprietor of the Lünendonk GmbH.

These are the results of the Lünendonk^® basic study “Customer Services as Factor of Success” which has been compiled by the Lünendonk GmbH, Kaufbeuren, in cooperation with Accenture GmbH, arvato services and B2X Care Solutions GmbH. It analyses the current market situation and describes service process structures and service trends. Significance of Customer Services as Economic Factor is rising rapidly

In the meantime, companies in many industries generate a considerable part of their turnover by services after the product has been sold. The costumer services market around consumer electronic products in Germany on its own with calculated service costs of 4 percent of the turnover is rated at about 990 million euros at the moment. Of this, about 80 percent of the service cases are assigned to external service providers. This results in an estimated outsourcing market volume of about 810 million euros.

Stronger Differentiation of the Providers‘ Structure as well as Development of New Service Trends

Costumer service providers on behalf of producer and retail companies offer comprehensive tailor-made customer services solutions to the end consumer. The providers’ structure ranges from full service providers to specialised providers focusing on repairs and logistics solutions. Service processes are designed anew and completely transferred. The business partnership between producer or retailer and customer services provider is based on a sustainable business model. The outsourced service is expected to gradually generate cost reduction, raise the quality, minimise risks and eventually to boost the producers’ and retailers’ revenue.

Due to strongly growing product segments like net books with mobile internet access and smart phones in turn new sophisticated after-sales services are generated. Additionally to the standard package the providers also offer extra services for the customer. The portfolio ranges from device protection and product insurance services to the transmission of customer-individual mobile content and the possibility to store one’s data externally on a secure server.

Customers’ Digital Access is continuously Gaining in Importance as Purchase Criterion

In order to boost a company’s success with help of products and customer services service processes thus have to even more efficiently be used as an instrument for brand strategy. Customers should early and continuously be integrated in the development process of service concepts. In the process digital customer access is of ever increasing importance. The use of customer-friendly and efficient self service applications and contact centres is accepted by the customer if these offers inspire by functionality and quality. Self service with rising acceptance and utilisation contributes to cost reduction and is the fastest-growing tool of modern Customer Relationship Management (CRM).

Bill Price, author of the book „The Best Service is No Service“, calls for a paradigm shift in companies’ customer communication. To avoid “dumb contact”, meaning bad consultation by a call centre, automation and self services have to comprise a clear process strategy. Adopting a customer’s view enables development of a script to guarantee smooth customer contact in the future.

From now on, the detailed Lünendonk^® basic study “Customer Services as Factor of Success” with over 70 pages is available for free from Lünendonk GmbH as well as Accenture, arvato services and B2X Care Solutions GmbH as a PDF file.

The Lünendonk^® studies and publications as part of the service portfolio of Lünendonk GmbH belong to “Strategic Data Research” (SDR). In connection with the services in the portfolio elements “Strategic Roadmap Requirements” (SRR) and “Strategic Transformation Services” (STS) Lünendonk is able to support its consulting customers from the development of strategic questions to the recovery and analysis of the necessary information to the implementation of the results in the operational day-to-day business.

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