TORONTO – SaskTel has once again ranked highest in wireless customer satisfaction for the fourth year in a row in a study by J.D. Power & Associates released Thursday.
According to the J.D. Power 2015 Canadian Wireless Customer Care Study, many Canadian wireless carriers are modifying their customer service strategies as they brace for a surge of two-year and three-year contract expirations in June. Canadians’ satisfaction with wireless providers’ customer service heavily influences customer loyalty and carrier retention, the company continued, with timeliness, accessibility and online self-service tools helping to differentiate carriers from their competitors.
The 2015 Canadian Wireless Customer Care Study is based on responses from more than 5,000 wireless customers collected in October-November 2014 and March 2015. It examines wireless customer perceptions of carriers’ performances across customer service-related activities. Satisfaction is measured across four factors (listed in order of importance): phone customer service representative (CSR); in-store service; online service; and phone automated response system (ARS). Overall wireless customer care satisfaction is 715 on a 1,000-point scale.
“Customer service needs to excel at every touch point,” said Adrian Chung, account director at J.D. Power, in the report’s news release. “Carriers need to focus on timeliness and accessibility with every customer interaction, which can help differentiate carriers from their competition, satisfy customers and ultimately drive loyalty and advocacy. While the online channel is not a complete solution, it should be a key component of a carrier’s overall customer service strategy as it can facilitate quicker problem resolution than other channels.”
Key findings include:
– A higher percentage of Gen Y (born 1977-1994) customers use the online customer care channel for service than industry average (35% vs. 28%, respectively). Additionally, satisfaction is higher among Gen Y customers who use the online service channel, compared with industry average (709 vs. 696, respectively), and online contacts related to billing are also higher among those customers than average (37 per cent vs. 30 per cent, respectively); and
– Overall satisfaction scores influence customer loyalty and advocacy. On average, 48% of delighted customers (overall satisfaction scores of 900 or higher) say they "definitely will not" switch to another carrier, while just 8% of displeased customers (scores of 549 or lower) say the same. Furthermore, 69% of delighted customers say they "definitely will" recommend their carrier, compared with just 7% of displeased customers.
The chart below ranks how wireless providers included in the J.D. Power study rated in terms of overall customer satisfaction:
Overall Customer Satisfaction Index Scores JDPower.com Power Circle Ratings
(Based on a 1,000-point scale) For Consumers
SaskTel 787 5
Virgin Mobile 773 4
Koodoo Mobile 764 4
Telus Mobility 745 4
Fido 731 4
Wind Mobile 716 3
Industry Average 715 3
Bell Mobility 690 2
Rogers Wireless 675 2
Note: Included in the study but not ranked due to market share are MTS Mobility and Videotron.
Power Circle ratings legend: 5 – among the best; 4 – better than most; 3 – about average; 2 – the rest.
