Customers wait to be served by retailers

There is unlikely to be any change in low customer satisfaction in the UAE, if the indicative figures of first two quarters are anything to go by.

Last December, the report titled "Are you being served in the UAE?" produced by Grass Roots, a business improvement consultancy firm, had said that retailers in the UAE were losing 30 per cent of their customers the moment they walk out of the door.

Jason De Winne, General Manager of Grass Roots, doubts the figures released last December, would change adding that this could potentially affect Dubai as a destination for tourism and business.

De Winne said: "I will not say it would affect Dubai right now, but if we look at the way Dubai is growing, tourism is a key market. The various attractions being constructed in Dubai will draw traffic and people will probably come out of curiosity, however, based on the experience they will have, will they come again? Will they recommend it to their friends?" The next report is expected to come out in the last quarter of this year.

The 2007 report also said 40 per cent of customers would not recommend the retail store or outlet to friends and family. According to the report, which was based on mystery shoppers' feedback, UAE ranked second last in terms of satisfaction rating by 67.21 per cent compared to the United States, Germany, the Netherlands, Ireland, Spain and France, which came last.

De Winnie said that the issues raised in the December report last year had not been resolved.

"We are about to launch our next report, which will cover the UAE and other GCC markets, including Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Oman, Bahrain and Kuwait, but I doubt that the report will be any different."

"The problem with Dubai is that demand outweighs supply in so many different sectors right now that there is an element of complacency among retailers", he said.

"Retailers believe they don't need to hard sell, or invest in training their staff because they are selling huge amounts of products.

"But do they measure how many products they are not selling, and how many people walk into a showroom or into a bank and then leave without purchasing anything or doing a transaction?", De Winne asked.

"However, when the number of skilled staff diminishes and supply overweighs demand, customer service is going to be a key element."

Mobile phones ranked worst in terms of satisfaction. The other sectors measured by the consultancy firm were banks – ranked last in waiting time – fast-food outlets and car showrooms.

"There is a time to change and there is big room for improvement in all those sectors. Those who want to make a difference will have a competitive advantage in the future when there is a downturn, if ever. But at least they will be geared for change," added De Winne.

Why do the UAE retailers lose customers? De Winne said there are three main areas of concern. These are lack of customer service skills, total lack of product knowledge and motivation.

"For most people, Dubai is a transient market. They are here temporarily and are constantly looking for a better opportunity. Employers on the other hand believe that the jobs they have are easily replaceable," he added.

De Winne said: "In the past two years, Dubai's rapid growth has caused many people to shift, which has resulted in a skill gap. Few people are prepared to come to the UAE because of rising costs of living and better opportunities elsewhere".

Consequently, there is a bigger need to focus on employee engagement and retention. De Winne said things are changing. "During the past year, I have noticed a few events that focus on employee engagement."

Retail loyalty programmes serve the need to track transactions and behaviours, learn who the customers are and try to or increase their spending, said De Winne.

"The number of members in a loyalty programme means very little. The main question is how many of those members are active, and increasing value. Based on this we would be looking into a small number, taking into consideration the numbers of people who would have walked away or left the country." In terms of loyalty, if a customer walks away satisfied, he or she would definitely return, added De Winne. Based on the data about a customers' spending and preferences, he added, we can create communications and triggers to invite the customer to spend more.

"However, at the very basic level a customer still requires a satisfactory service. Get the basics right at a grass roots level and customers will return, otherwise the investment in loyalty programmes is devalued."

Loyalty programmes help identify who the better customers are. A business can then establish direct contact with those customers.


Statistics

Elements used to measure performance and satisfaction include: 
- Waiting time
- Greeting
- Product knowledge 
- Basic customer service
- Shop appearance 
- Parking

The numbers

67.2%: Happy with service
66.2%: Happy with banks
72.4%: Were satisfied with fast-food outlets
60%: Satisfied with mobile phone retailers
68.9%: Happy with car showrooms