Board Chairperson, West Africa Association of Customer Service Professionals (WAACSP), Yvonne McCarthy has said that, the primary purpose of the Nigeria Customer Service Index report is to help brand handlers to enhance customer service in a comprehensive manner, thereby positively influence the economy, and foster a culture of excellent service where customers are viewed as strategic priorities rather than mere transactional necessities.
McCarthy, who disclosed this yesterday in Lagos while presenting the Nigeria Customer Service Index Report, 2023 disclosed that, the survey report is to motivate brands and organizations to improve service delivery and help citizens to understand their rights, adding that, with the annual report in place they would be able track progress year in, year out.
In her analysis of the result of the data that was collected for 2023, she noted that the result would help businesses to know the gaps and where they need to improve and what they need to do.
According to her, “the NCSI has come to stay, hope to get better and do its part to make sure we help customer service better in Nigeria. This is the first index report that was put together by a team of people in academia, people in industry and people who understand how Nigeria’s system work.”
“So, this rating system has been put together to suits the purpose of what we are trying to do. Because we have to make sure that we are aligning the rating system to the vision that we have. Otherwise, we might use a rating system that does not allow people to do their best. They might just want to be mediocre so this is what the rating system like.” she added.
Speaking further, she disclosed that 63% of the respondents who answered questions while working on the report were female, 37% were men and 100% were Nigerians.
Also speaking at the event, member, Competition and Consumer Protection Tribunal, Mrs. Sola Salako-Ajulo commended the initiative and pointed out that having reviewed the data and insights provided by the Index, the country has thus been presented with a wealth of information that sheds light on the current state of customer service in our country.
She said, “The Index, in spite of all expected limitations, being the first effort, reflects the true state of customer service in Nigeria; which is at best, only fair and at worst, sadly dismal. As the Giant of Africa, we must aspire to do better than this.”
According to her, “the data showcases the challenges consumers face in the marketplace, but it also highlights the enormous opportunities for growth that businesses and service providers can explore to improve their bottom-line.”
“Customer Service plays a pivotal role in shaping consumer perceptions and loyalty, so Nigerian businesses and service providers now have a tool to benchmark their performance, identify areas of improvement and ultimately deliver exceptional experiences to their customers.” She noted.
A major stakeholder and convener of Consumer Value Award, Akonte Ekine, in his short contribution at the event commended the organisers for the initiative while also saying sample population should be improved upon among many other things.
Earlier, the organizers had pointed out that it is important to get people from diasporas to also answer questions because their opinion are very important in the survey.
The Nigeria Consumer Service Index (NCSI) is a multi sector platform that measures customer satisfaction across diverse sectors in Nigeria. The initiative which aimed at changing the dynamics of how citizens are served by brands and service providers, was a partnership between NCSI and West Africa Association of Customer Service Professionals (WAACSP).
