Customers are every business’s greatest asset, and the best way to retain them is by providing superior service quality. Quality service not only turns customers into loyal customers but also creates an experience that competitors find difficult to match. Therefore, this article will discuss what service quality is, how to measure it, and why it’s so crucial for business growth. Read on!
What is Service Quality?
Service quality can be defined as a measure of the extent to which a company’s services meet customer expectations. According to
If the service received meets or even exceeds these standards, then the company is considered to have high quality service.
Meanwhile, for business owners, service quality isn’t just about creating immediate satisfaction, but rather a continuous evaluation. By assessing service quality, businesses can identify problems more quickly, improve customer satisfaction, and maintain competitiveness.
This is the reason why service quality is an important indicator in business growth, especially service-based ones.
How to Measure Service Quality?
If service quality is the measure, then the next question is how to measure it. Here are several methods you can use to suit your business needs.
1. SERVQUAL (RATER Model)
SERVQUAL was developed in 1977 by Zeithaml, Parasuraman, and Berry, and is still considered the most comprehensive method for helping companies understand the gap between customer expectations and the actual experience they receive.
Initially, SERVQUAL had ten assessment aspects, but in 1988 it was simplified into five main dimensions known as the RATER Model. Here are the five dimensions:
- Reliability: the company’s ability to provide consistent, accurate and trustworthy services.
- Tangibility (Physical Evidence): all visible aspects, such as the atmosphere of the service office, employee uniforms, and promotional materials that reflect the company’s professionalism.
- Empathy: the extent to which the company cares about the needs and interests of customers so that customers feel personally cared for.
- Responsiveness: the company’s readiness to provide services quickly and accurately, including responding to customer questions and complaints.
- Assurance: the level of trust and security felt by customers in the competence, knowledge and attitude of the company’s employees.
2. Follow-up Survey
A follow-up survey is a method of measuring service quality by contacting customers again after they receive service. This gives customers more space and time to provide more honest and in-depth feedback, allowing companies to gain a more holistic picture of the customer experience.
To be more optimal, there are several strategies that can be applied, such as:
- Create an interesting survey title to encourage customers to open it.
- Using an online survey platform that is intuitive and makes it easy for customers to answer questions.
- Provide incentives such as vouchers or reward points to encourage customers to take the time to provide feedback.
- Shows that customer opinions are truly valued.
3. In-app Survey
In-app surveys are conducted directly through an app or website while customers are actively using it. This method is considered one of the quickest and most convenient approaches to data collection, as customers don’t need to open emails or allocate specific time to complete the survey.
This method is also considered more relevant because it is done while the customer is interacting with the service, so the feedback provided is usually more “fresh” and contextual.
4. Customer Effort Score (CES)
The Customer Effort Score (CES) is one of the most reliable metrics for measuring service quality. This concept emphasizes that customers are more likely to punish bad experiences than they are to reward good ones.
This allows companies to shift their focus from “How satisfied are you with our service?” to “How much effort did it take for you to resolve your issue?” A low CES score indicates that customers found solutions quickly, simply, and without significant friction.
5. Monitoring Service Quality Metrics
When measuring service quality, sometimes relying on just one method isn’t enough. In this case, monitoring service quality metrics can help you obtain objective, quantitative analysis to assess service performance and identify areas for improvement.
Some key metrics that are commonly monitored include:
- Volume per channel: the number of customer inquiries or requests per service channel.
- Response time and first response time: the average speed of the service team in responding, especially on the first interaction.
- First contact resolution ratio: how many customer issues can be resolved in one interaction without having to go back and forth.
- Net Promoter Score (NPS): a measure of customer loyalty based on their willingness to recommend your brand.
- Replies per ticket: the average number of replies it takes the service team to resolve a ticket, reflecting efficiency and customer convenience.
- Backlog inflow/outflow: the ratio of incoming tickets to successfully closed tickets.
- Customer Success Ratio: the percentage of customers who are truly satisfied and find a solution from your service.
- Handovers per issue: the number of staff that must be involved to resolve one customer issue.
- Things Gone Wrong: the number of failures or complaints that arise from each customer interaction.
Why is Measuring Service Quality Important?
Measuring service quality helps companies understand whether the service they provide meets customer expectations or whether there are still gaps that need improvement. With clear data, businesses can make more informed strategic decisions and focus on improving the customer experience. Here are some key reasons why measuring service quality is so important:
- Increase sales – customers who rate high quality service are more likely to buy, even make repeat purchases.
- Save marketing costs – retaining existing customers through quality service is cheaper than finding new customers.
- Attracting quality talent – top professionals prefer to work for companies with a good reputation for service.
- Strengthening brand reputation – superior service can strengthen a company’s image in the eyes of customers and the market.
- Reducing barriers to purchase – customers are more confident about purchasing if they know there is a service ready to help if a problem occurs.
- Support better decision making – measurement results provide management with insights to improve training, processes and service strategies.
- Encourage outcome-based service models – essential for businesses that rely on ongoing revenue from services, not just product sales.
Measuring and improving service quality is no longer an option, but a necessity for any business that wants to survive and thrive. With the right understanding, you can increase customer satisfaction while strengthening your business’s market position.
Come on, download the Labamu app now and start managing your sales, finances, and customer service in one practical, easy-to-use, and measurable platform!
