Tackling Customer Dissatisfaction

Customer dissatisfaction may occur due to ambiguous (or discrepant) expectations, realisations or perception of quality. Ambiguous expectation situations could take place when 

• The consumer or customer is not familiar with the purchase of a new product (ipod say).

• The product or service purchase could be a trend untried by the consumer (e-ticketing say)

• The service may not be physically present, when the purchase decision is being taken. (home tele shopping say) 

• The quality of service may not always be the same (the same tailor may not perform the same way at different times.)

At times, expectations are built up due to making comparisons, which in turn could lead to dissatisfaction. For instance, customer expectations get built up due to an attractive leaflet display, positive word of mouth from personal sources (friends or neighbours), personal use of the company's other product. (which gave satisfaction) etc.

Dissatisfaction can Occur due to the Customer's Perception of Quality

Quality is a term frequently used in relation to a product or service. Though every one has an idea of what quality is, it is very hard to define the same. According to D.A. Garvin. (Garvin D. A., "Quality on the Line", Harvard Business Review 1983) The term 'quality' may be approached from various perspectives 

Transcendental quality 

This is a kind of innate excellence which is generally recognised. Skill and love for one's profession work as indicators for the quality of service provided.

Production design quality

Here the product or service has to conform to its design specifications as an assurance of quality.

Product character quality

This refers to an accurately measurable product characteristic. For example the proportion of fruit pulps and other ingredients in the Kissan Jam, the Cocoa content of chocolate etc.

Value directed quality

This is defined in terms of price or cost. A product has a high quality if it functions well at a reasonable price. This is in relation to the equity of the price-value ratio of the product. For instance: Hewlett Packard's Laptop could outscore over its competitor Lenova based on the customer's perception of better quality and reasonable prices.

Perceived quality

Perceived quality is associated with consumer's perception. Products and services have high quality if they meet the desires and expectations of consumers. For instance British Airways had made history when it came to be known as a 'World's Favourite' Airways on account of its exclusive customised qualitative services.

It can be seen that the definitions of perceived quality fits best with the consumer perspective. High perceived quality will include its utility or usefulness, durability, safety, comfort, reliability, low frequency of failure and good performance. For example, the quality of fruit juice will be judged on the basis of its freshness and fruit content. Whereas, the quality of a car will be determined by its failure frequency, its features and driving characteristics. If a product performs as expected, we consider it to have adequate quality. If the product performs beyond expectations we speak of high quality. Because consumer's associate to quality level, increasing quality levels can lead to demand for higher quality products. Moreover, people vary in their knowledge and expectations regarding products, this results in customers perceiving different qualities in the same products or services category. Similarly, in case of services also, measurable quality indicators will include warmth, care, time and accuracy and efficiency with which the service is offered.

Levels of Consumer Dissatisfaction

Discrepancies, consumer satisfaction and dissatisfaction can be measured at general, category and micro levels. Here we will discuss about four levels of dissatisfaction with increasing specificity.

Dissatisfaction at the general level

This type of dissatisfaction can be associated with the consumption system itself. For instance: dissatisfaction may be with the demand and supply or use of goods and services (consumption system), or it may occur due to the non-availability of the goods and services at all places (shopping system) or say dissatisfaction with the choice possibilities (purchase system).

Dissatisfaction may occur at the category levels

Here certain product classes itself may be the causes of dissatisfaction for the customer. For example, say washing machines, package tours etc.

Dissatisfaction at the brand level 

Here dissatisfaction can be directed towards certain specific brands, retailers or the organisation itself.

Dissatisfaction may occur at the specific level

This is with reference to certain services and offers affecting the consumer's satisfaction level. For example, the repair of the scooter, faulty service performed on the refrigerator and so on.

Dimensions of Satisfaction and Dissatisfaction

It is also important to make a note of the dimensions of satisfaction and dissatisfaction. Sometimes since satisfaction may have more than one dimension, a distinction between facilitations and inhibition is necessary. Too high a price may deter consumers (inhibition) whereas, a reasonable price may not stimulate them enough to purchase or accept the product. At times it may be an unfriendly salesman who may put off a prospective buyer, at the same time a friendly sales person may not act as a sufficient reason for buying. But manufacturers or producers have to remember to dispose off inhibition factors and create facilitating factors.

Likewise presence of inhibiting and facilitating factors can influence consumer satisfaction. Here also inhibiting factors cause dissatisfaction and removal of these though may prevent dissatisfaction but this may not create satisfaction. Facilitating factors cause satisfaction provided inhibition is absent.

In the words of Nelson Foote (The then manager of General Electric, 1961) "In case of durable goods we observe more and more that consumers find certain product characteristic obvious especially for functional performance and values, such as safety. However, if it is lacking, it is an inhibiting factor, but if it is present, the producer is not given credit for it."

A good example of dissatisfaction caused by inhibition can be illustrated with the public transport system at Bengaluru. All the daily commuters or travelers are dissatisfied if the bus is late or if no seats are available, but this is taken for granted if the bus arrives on time (or schedule) and if they are able to procure seats. So the priority of a public transport management is to avoid or remove inhibition and not the creation of facilitation. Another example can be of the inconvenience caused to air travelers when the staff of Jet Airways resorted to flash strikes and all the pilots went on mass leave. These inhibition factors are causes of dissatisfaction for the customers. Here a facilitating factor such as providing snacks or lunch at the airport cannot compensate the inhibition caused by the delay in departure of the flights. So the management in the above instances should make all attempts to remove inhibiting factors, then only will facilitating factors have a positive effect.

Attribution and Dissatisfaction

Dissatisfaction with a product or service offered will occur if in reality there is a mismatch between the consumers expectations regarding the same and also on the basis of the availability the of alternatives in the particular product/service category. Whenever dissatisfaction occurs, consumers try to attribute the cause of dissatisfaction.

According to V.S. Folkes (Consumer Behavior, L.G. Schiffman, L.L. Kanuk, 1997), Attribution theory is concerned with the causes to which individuals attribute certain events. Consumers behave as lay-scientists and try to work out or detect the cause of events. During this process, three causal dimensions have been identified namely: Locos of control, stability and controllability.

Locus of control 

Locus of control will indicate which party is considered to be the cause of the event: the consumer or the supplier, that is indicating internal or external attribution, respectively. For example, the motor bike repair service may have not been up to the mark. The reason for this could be probably the motor bike rider had not communicated the 'exact problem' to the after sales service provider (internal attributions) or the latter may have knowingly not provided the desired service (external attribution). Stability refers to the duration of the cause. The motor bike repair had been carried out incorrectly because the mechanic had a bad day (temporary cause or phase) or the mechanic was not good at the job (permanent cause).

Controllability

Controllability refers to the extent to which somebody has control over the cause. For instance, if the mechanic consciously and knowingly carries out a repair badly, boping that the customer will not detect it, he is said to be the controller of the cause in a negative manner. Whereas, if the mechanic unknowingly uses the incorrectly adjusted measuring equipment, and as a result is responsible for the bad repair service provided, he does not control the cause. Here the mechanic will be less responsible for the result of his work.

According to Folkes, the greatest dissatisfaction and most complaints occur in the case of external attribution and a stable controllable cause. When dissatisfaction is associated with an external attribution most consumers will demand a supplier's apology and compensation for the damage sustained.

If the cause of dissatisfaction is identified as stability, consumer will prefer repayment of the money as against a replacement of the product or another repair. This is because when stability acts as the cause of dissatisfaction, the consumer will presume the other products or services of the supplier to be equally bad, probably the customer may never return to this supplier. Conversely, if the consumer becomes aware that the supplier has intentionally deceived him or her then they may become angry and may even take action against the supplier.

As shown in figure above, we can see that the result of the attribution process influences the perception of quality and the degree of satisfaction. When customers are satisfied they are likely to make more purchases and be loyal to the brand. While in case of dissatisfaction, it is more probable that they may make complaints or take action against the supplier. Sometimes the consumer may undergo stress-feel anger, tension and frustration, when he realises that the cause of dissatisfaction is attributed to the supplier and also is perceived to be under his or her control. In such cases, the tension will reduce only if he or she resorts to taking private or public actions.

Consumer Actions Post Dissatisfaction

Studies have revealed that dissatisfaction may activate consumers differently. They may either take no action or take private action, or take public action. Typically, the consumer action is influenced by certain factors such as availability of time and other resources, experience with lodging complaints, expected benefits from complaining and the attitude towards complaining behaviour.

Private Action

Private actions may take the form of low communication, action and entry thresholds. Such actions will include a boycott of the retail outlet/brand or voicing negative opinions to friends, relatives and neighbours. Such moves by the customer may affect reputation of the retailer in the long run.

Public Action

The dissatisfied customer is free to adopt a public action in the form of lodging a complaint with the seller or approach the Consumers Forum or file a legal suit against the seller.

No Action 

There are many possible causes for consumers not taking any action over dissatisfied service provided. These may be :

Consumers may forget or refrain from taking action because of lack of time and they do not foresee a balance between benefits and success especially if the problem is very small and the damage is minor in nature. Sometimes, disability to communicate properly may come in the way of consumer lodging the complaint. If consumers are not confident about themselves and not assertive enough they may not take any action. At times the consumer forum may be overloaded with complaints or there is a long procedure to seek redressal or even social and personal norms may stop a consumer from taking the trouble of complaining.

Another tactic used by the consumer is to caution the seller of the possible threat of going to the press (print media) to voice their complaint. Fearing bad publicity, the seller more often is likely to apologies and see how best he can reduce the customer dissatisfaction. The process of complaining may ultimately end with either satisfaction or with further dissatisfaction and then complaint, depending on how the complaint was handled. But unless the firm listens to their customers complaints and suggestions, it will lose its image in the market.

Book retailing is one area, where the book stores have to constantly try out innovative ways to retain and increase the customer base. Below is an example of how book retailing can be used to provide customer focused service.

Oxford Book Store is an independent store with its virtual retail site www. oxfordbookstore.com, with the largest data base of books in India with links from websites like www.penguin.com and www.bazee.com. The store is able to satisfy consumers by offering large discount for purchases made online with an easy to order and secure gateway that accepts different modes of payment.

The above example shows that an organisation which uses its ingenuity, resources and consumer insights to offer functional value and differentiate itself from its competitors will go a long way in ensuring customer satisfaction, and then earn loyalty in the long run.

In this age of e-technology, organisations are looking for a long term relationship with their customers. The length of the relationship between them will be determined on the basis of opportunities for mutual gain. So organisations need to, on an ongoing basis, carry out research programmes and process this information to build up a reputation as 'the service provider model, for the industry. For this, the organisation will have to make significant investments in database management, specifically with demographic data, segment-wise profiles, and needs, satisfaction survey details, forward positioning surveys etc.

It's the kind of story that would be a clinch for Harvard's sales textbooks. Eager to bag a prestigious banking account, the sales team at I-flex had prepared detailed spreadsheets and glossy presentations, and were ready to talk business. So when the officials of a large American bank walked into the conference room and brushed aside those presentations and the sales team, it naturally created a flutter. Apparently, they'd done the rounds of many Indian companies and were tired of all the sales talk thrown at them. So at I-flex, they wanted to the prospective project manger meet just one person - - and

The process of complaining may ultimately end with either satisfaction or with further dissatisfaction and then complaint, depending on how the complaint was handled.