Singapore - 2 in 3 S'pore residents experienced bad service in past 6 months: Survey

Telecommunications, retail and F&B companies were most often cited as the culprits, according to the survey by market research firm Ipsos Singapore.

SINGAPORE: Two out of three Singaporean residents experienced at least one occasion of dissatisfactory service in the past six months, with telecommunications companies most often cited as the culprits, according to a survey by market research firm Ipsos Singapore.

Services offered by telecommunications companies elicited the most negative experiences at 32 per cent, while retail and food and beverage (F&B) companies came in second at 30 per cent and insurance and banking services was third with 18 per cent, according to a report on the survey released on Monday (July 7).

As a result, 42 per cent of dissatisfied customers are likely to use less of the brand, or not at all. About 31 per cent will also share their bad experiences with others, according to the survey.

Ipsos Singapore and Survey Sampling International (SSI) conducted the survey between March 3 and 12, polling 1,043 respondents aged 18 to 65 years old and currently residing in Singapore.

DISSATISFIED CUSTOMERS "FALLING THROUGH CRACKS"

Of those who faced negative service experiences, 40 per cent gave feedback to the organisation. "It is fair to assume that at least half of all negative experiences go unnoticed by organisations,"the statement said.

Of those who gave feedback, 75 per cent expected a response and the acceptable time-frame for the response was within 1.5 days. But only 30 per cent received a response within that time-frame, while another 23 per cent received no response at all, according to the survey.

Those who did not offer feedback said the lack of access to a readily-available feedback channel (27 per cent) and lack of trust that the organisation would react to the feedback (21 per cent) were the main reasons they did not do so.

"The study revealed that there are a significant number of dissatisfied customers who fall through the cracks," said Ms Melanie Ng, Director of Ipsos Loyalty Singapore.

She suggested that every organisation needs to equip itself with the capability to respond almost instantaneously, ensuring customers' voices are heard and acted upon in the most genuine and prompt manner.

- CNA/kk

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