Editor’s Note: This article is an excerpt from one of RetailWire’s recent online discussions. Each business morning on RetailWire.com, retail industry execs get plugged in to the latest news and issues with key insights from a panel of retail industry experts.
It’s understood that good customer service practices impact brand loyalty, word of mouth, and — with tech-savvy Millennial customers — coveted “word of mouse” online ratings shared through social media. But how do you decide which aspects of customer service to emphasize to satisfy Millennials?
Barkley, in partnership with SMG and The Boston Consulting Group, recently completed a study of more than 5,000 U.S. consumers with an eye toward the habits of the Millennial generation. When studying retail shopping, it was clear that there are certain aspects of customer service that are important to all shoppers, no matter their demographic. These included speed, efficiency and accuracy at checkout, and friendliness, “knowledge-ability” expertise and helpfulness of staff members.
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Things get interesting when the customer service desires of Millennials and older generations diverge. The younger generation has an expectation that sales associates will act as trusted advisors, wear a store’s products and offer opinions on purchasing options. This may mean that some retailers have to adjust their training and sales practices to accommodate the wants of younger customers.
It’s interesting to note that Millennial men are actually more interested in their sales associates’ fashionableness and advice than their female counterparts. Both have significantly more interest in these attributes than non-Millennials.
Another important Millennial trait is that they are constantly seeking information — 66% of them report a desire for more information on product origin to help them make purchase decisions.
Millennials do not limit themselves to in-person interactions in their desire for brand information. Majority like exploring brands on social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter, and 33% report liking a brand more because it has a social media presence. Any retailer who isn’t monitoring their brand terms online and actively responding to both complaints and praise from customers via social media is missing a vital opportunity to provide comprehensive customer service.
A key topic of discussion among industry personnel was whether customer service was a generational issue or simply a vital part of a high-quality in-store experience.
“I don’t see why expecting good customer service has been made a general issue,” said Ed Rosenbaum, CEO of The Customer Service Rainmaker for Rainmaker Solutions. “It isn’t. Good customer service should be expected and delivered to all, no matter where the personal fits in the generational curve.”
While Bob Phibbs, President and CEO of The Retail Doctors and Associates agreed that there are no generational trends for customer service, he also noted a key difference between older generations’ opinions of brands versus Millennnials’ views. “The findings above could be said of pretty much any generation,” explained Phibbs. “The key difference is that Millennials grew up where brands were not good, better, best — they were just brands. Amazon, Target, Macy’s and Walmart are just places to buy things.”
Overall, a majority of respondents believe that social media and Internet resources have increased Millennials’ expectations in-store. In turn, if they are not satisfied, shoppers within this age group are more prone to purchase from brands that have quality knowledge of products and can immediately address questions or concerns.
“Millennials are the most heavily parented and sheltered generation in history, so it makes sense that they would expect expert guidance anywhere they go,” noted Dan Berthiaume, Editor for MarketingCharts. “Combined with the instant gratification provided by the technology Millennials grew up with, this makes them have very high expectations to receive the information they want on demand. Tech-focused retailers like the Apple Store, where legitimate experts are readily available, do a great job of serving the wants and needs of this demographic.”
