Emerging Trends in Customer Service

1. Emerging Trends in Customer Service Insight into new directions and new expectations for customer service

2. Areas of change in Customer Service • Personalization • Customers want customer service that is tailored to their individual needs. Customers want personalized service and products. • Technology • Technology is the engine that will allow much of the customization (personalization) • Globalization • Changing demographics (characteristics such as age, income, sex, occupation) will also account for changes in customer service. • With ageing baby boomers and young people becoming active consumers…companies will have to respond.

3. Personalization • What does Personalization mean to you? How do you experience personalization as a customer or client? • TECHNOLOGY has made one-to-one customer relationships possible • Today,computers and point of sale electronic data gathering devices make customer service easy. • Companies now track individual preferences, poll customers about their needs, and customize services and products to meet those needs.

4. A Shift in Marketing • There has been a shift in marketing approaches from sending mass marketing (the same message to many individuals) to individual marketing, one-to-one marketing (customized messages for an individual). Examples • Letter from your healthcare provider personalized to you • E-newsletter from your doctor/dentist personalized for you • Personalized appointment reminder • Individualized sweepstakes letters (Publishers Clearinghouse)

5. A Shift in Marketing continued… • Online retailers give customers a personal experience by keeping previous customer information in a database so that when customer’s return their buying preferences will be known and companies can suggest complimentary products. What does one-to-one marketing do? • One-to-one marketing serves to create important ongoing relationships with customers. • The marketing approach provides for a wide range of customer needs. • Companies now try to gather as much information about their customers as possible so that they can respond to their needs.

6. Emerging Trends in Personalization for Healthcare • Healthcare facilities are increasingly focusing on changing and improving the client experience. • Technology has also been a driving force in the Personalization for Healthcare.

7. E-Health—Electronic Medical Records, the ultimate in patient care (client customization) • Electronic Medical Record Systems (EMR systems) will enable physicians and nurse practitioners to securely access vital patient information including diagnostic images, blood test results, drug histories and clinical reports. • EMRs will provide physicians and nurse practitioners with a better picture of their patients' overall health resulting in better informed care decisions. • Source: http://www.infoway-inforoute.ca/about-infoway/news/news-releases/637

8. A look into the future of healthcare

9. Drug Vending Machines • Drug Vending machines are ATM style machines that dispense prescription drugs. • These machines have an automated drug delivery system with an audio-visual link to a pharmacist. • Source: http://www.cbc.ca/health/story/2010/06/22/con-medicine-machine.html

10. Drug Vending Machines—the way of the future?

11. Robots replacing nurses? • No this is not a Sci-Fi film, these robots would provide direct care, such as bathing and walking patients, as well as assessing patients and handing out medications. • Source: http://torontoemerg.wordpress.com/2010/04/01/robots-to-replace-nurses-in-ontario-hospitals/

12. Robotic Nurses

13. Mobile Phone Ehealth • A Mobile Phone Based Remote Patient Monitoring System For Chronic Disease Management allows for the use of mobile phones and newly introduced Bluetooth-enabled medical devices to transmit patient physiological information , (blood pressure, glucose, weight etc…) from the patients home to a central repository where alerts and reports can be generated and delivered to both patient and healthcare provider. • Source: http://www.ehealthinnovation.org/dh /

14. Mobile Phone Ehealth

15. Virtual Reality Healthcare • Virtually Reality Healthcare provides doctors an opportunity to perform tasks in a risk-free environment. • VR Technologies make training accessible for a large number of students and somewhat eliminates the necessity of having an experienced doctor on hand to assist with new doctor training. • VR Technologies combine virtual reality simulation, video and voice recognition • Sources: http://www.jabfm.org/cgi/content/full/22/4/387, http://www.kaloramainformation.com/Virtual-Reality-Applications-1514009/

16. Virtual Reality Healthcare • http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/7947192.stm

17. Interactive Medicine • Curious about medical/dental procedures. How are they performed? How long do they take? What are the risks? What about interactive training for various procedures? • Step into the world of Interactive medicine where symptoms, diagnosis and treatments, procedures and training are all available the click of a mouse.

18. Interactive Medicine • http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smOW97d2ia0

19. One-to-One opportunities with Internal customers • Managers who keep in tune with their EMPLOYEES WANTS, NEEDS, DESIRES, PREFERENCES and TALENTS and strive to build long-term relationships with employees..can create long lasting benefits for the employee and the company. • The best managers get to know their employees and understand their needs and wants, they ask for input and suggestions therefore opening the channels of communication. • One way companies can strive to satisfy their employees needs is through the use of employee benefits. • Day-care assistance • Health club membership • College tuition assistance • Flex-time working options • Employees should be viewed by companies as unique individuals with individual wants and needs.

20. Organizations must recognize changing demographics and rethink customer service approaches • Tomorrow’s customers will be more diverse. Customers will come from a wider range of cultures, belief systems, races and ages. • Many demographic factors will affect organizational approaches to customer service; • People are increasingly mobile • Changing jobs is more commonplace—employees expectations are different from a generation ago • Employees don’t usually stay with the same company for their lifetime—when an employer does not provide meaningful work, employees are quick to change jobs • More women in the full-time workforce • More single parent households—busy parents who require more consumer services and conveniences • Females account for 85% of all buying decisions • The ageing population—many new services are being offered to this older generation—active engaged seniors have caused businesses to rethink their service strategies • Which one of these demographic factor do you think will most influence healthcare settings?

21. Understanding that some things remain constant • Psychological and behavioural factors will remain the same with the customer experience. • The basic things, caring, competence and concern will continue to be important when building customer satisfaction and loyalty • With so much technology…some customers are now beginning to crave the human touch again as they are becoming frustrated with technology • For some the human touch will never be replaced

22. Apply relationship marketing • Companies must focus on building exceptional customer service and building a one-to-one relationship with their customer to foster and strengthen customer loyalty. • Organizations need to think of the present value of future business… • this means that each customer than enters an organization has a dollar value (example: a medical client may be worth $5000 annually, an ageing medical client may be worth $25,000 annually). If this customer becomes a loyal return customer over the period of five years those same customers are now worth $25,000 and $125,000. This is the definition and what is meant by the term, PRESENT VALUE OF FUTURE BUSINESS.

23. So what’s next? • Changes are usually brought about technology but some companies choose to still use low tech customer service to build their customer relationships • Companies have to give thought to their value proposition. What exactly do they want to offer customers • SOME CUSTOMERS ARE CONCERNED ABOUT THE IMPACT OF TECHNOLOGY ON THEIR PRIVACY AND INTRUSION INTO THEIR PERSONAL LIVES, which makes customer service through technology not always an option • One-to-one customer service and relationship building must stand as its cornerstone for all types of organizations.