It's no surprise to learn that consumers will ditch service providers over bad service nearly as much as they will on price. The new Coldwell Banker® "Customer Service Study," prepared in conjunction with Harris Interactive in August 2004, quantifies customer dissatisfaction via an online poll.

Nine out of 10 consumers surveyed declared that great customer service is "very or extremely" important in deciding whether to give a service provider repeat business. They change providers because of bad service (32 percent) nearly as often as they change businesses for lower prices (38 percent).

Customer service should be a priority, suggests the study, but U.S. companies don't give consumers much opportunity for feedback. One-quarter of surveyed consumers reported having frequent opportunities to voice their opinions on their service experiences, while one-third reported they had infrequent opportunities to do so.

The Coldwell Banker study surveyed 555 U.S. consumers who have bought or sold a home anytime in their lifetimes. The purpose of the study was to measure "consumer expectations and perceptions of overall customer service in a number of different industries."

The survey included a look at industries where customer satisfaction is particularly important with relationship to homeownership. Banking (73 percent), retail (59 percent), utility companies (57 percent) and insurance companies (57 percent) were ranked the highest. Banking scored particularly high because almost nine out of 10 respondents reported dealing with a bank at some point in their lives, more than any other business segment. Thirty-eight percent of consumers indicated that customer satisfaction is important when dealing with a real estate sales associate.

The survey also looked at real estate service and found that the top five most important customer service skills associated with buying or selling a home are:

• Listening (58 percent)

• Helping to select a home based on their requirements (48 percent)

• Helping consumers understand the buying/selling process (34 percent)

• Listing of the property/advertising (28 percent)

• Market analysis (26 percent)

Not surprisingly, the study found "a strong correlation between the quality of a company's customer service and its long-term success." According to the findings, the average U.S. consumer switched businesses they dealt with twice in the past three years due to "bad service."

When asked to define the differences between great and bad service, consumers said the top characteristics of companies with "great service" were:

• Resolving questions and problems (66 percent)

• Knowledge of the product or service (49 percent)

• Being easy to reach (35 percent)

• Understanding requirements (35 percent)

Conversely, top characteristics associated with "bad service" were:

• Inability to resolve questions or problems (46 percent)

• Being unavailable/difficult to reach (38 percent)

• Needing to deal with multiple people/departments to resolve problems (37 percent)

• Lack of product knowledge (34 percent)

• Unprofessional demeanor (33 percent)

"Service is king, and it can make or break a company," said Jim Gillespie, president and chief executive officer for Coldwell Banker Real Estate Corporation. "Nothing beats knowledge, experience, problem-solving and responsiveness. Combining that with good manners usually wins a customer for life. It is one thing to talk about excellent customer service, but it is another to demand it and maintain it as a key element of an organization's culture."

In general, the Coldwell Banker study found that the quality of customer service in the residential real estate segment has remained about the same (69 percent) as in the past, while 16 percent believe service levels have increased and 15 percent said they have declined.

Published: December 14, 2004

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Blanche is a renowned author of five real estate books. Her newest, Bubbles, Booms and Busts: Make Money In Any Real Estate Market, McGraw-Hill, was rave-reviewed by The New York Times. She was also selected from hundreds of real estate experts to contribute to Donald Trump's book, Trump: The Best Real Estate Advice I Ever Received: 100 Top Experts Share Their Strategies, Rutledge Hill Press, and is featured on page 68. Order Now Review - Honors In 2006, Blanche was selected among scores of candidates to author two consumer real estate guidebooks for the National Association of Realtors: The NAR Guide to Home Buying, and The NAR Guide to Home Selling, Wiley & Sons. She is currently planning two new books for the NAR and its members.       Known for her keen insight into real estate industry issues and for her ability to make complex subjects easy to understand, Blanche is a sought-after keynote and continuing education speaker. Real estate organizations from MLSs, to brokerages, to franchisors, to associations hire her to provide up-to-the-minute analysis of real estate industry news and advice on how to improve revenues. Her passionate delivery, peppered with stinging wit, is a huge hit with audiences and fans. Don Klein, CEO Greater Nashville Association of Realtors, Blanche Evans, Richard Courtney, president 2007, GRAR "The GNAR membership meeting last week featured Blanche Evans as the keynote speaker. Her comments and insights resonated extremely well with those in attendance and we have had many requests for copies of her PowerPoint Presentation. She was a terrific part of the membership meeting and convention program!" - Don Klein, CEO Greater Nashville Association of Realtors Coverage from WSMV, Nashville - 8-14-2007 That Interview Guy - Get Inside The Head Of Today's Generation 2007 AE Institute Session - To purchase 2006 AE Institute Session - Parts 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 HouseValues Mastermind call - Parts 1 2 Blanche's fireside chat with Jeremy Conaway, HAR - Click here. For more articles by Blanche, click here.