A satisfaction survey tool. (Customer Satisfaction).

In his terrific recent article, "Mickey Mouse Customer Service," (ABA Bank Marketing September 2002), Dennis Snow makes the point: "World-class service providers keep their employees constantly up-to-date on what customers are thinking about their service."

Dennis should know. He is a former Walt Disney World manager and employee trainer who now has his own consulting company dedicated to helping corporations implement customer service management initiatives.

The point of Dennis' article and his presentation at the annual ABA Marketing Conference is that managing customer satisfaction is not a "been there, done that," program-of-the-month concept. Success results from the development of a culture fostered by management and religiously practiced throughout the entire organization on a minute-to-minute basis. These daily behaviors must be reinforced and exemplified by managers up and down the ranks, and, in addition, must be reinforced by formal "feedback systems" that keep actual customer comments in front of employees every day.

Do-it-yourself survey

The ABA offers such a feedback program. It is called the ABA Client Satisfaction Index, and it is available to all ABA and ABA Marketing Network members at a discounted fee. The service is essentially a do-it-yourself customer satisfaction survey tool which enables banks of all sizes to obtain customer satisfaction data from their own clients on an ongoing basis--and at a very low cost. Moreover, the data can be uploaded into an ABA database of over 800 banks so that you can compare your bank to these other banks.

The survey itself, which can be downloaded from www.clientsatisfaction.com, is simple, short and easy to fill out. It is designed to be either a statement stuffer or a direct mail piece. It is organized into five basic areas of comparison.

First, the survey asks questions about 20 key factors, or "attributes," which drive customer satisfaction. Factors such as "hours of operation," "speed of service," and "rates on loans" are among the 20 attributes for which scores on "importance" and "satisfaction" are gathered, quantified and charted for easy comparisons. In addition, the measure of "overall satisfaction" is computed and put into a graphical format for easy trending over time (Dennis Snow's key objective).

A measure of future customer actions

Next, the survey measures "customer loyalty," not by identifying how long customers have had accounts with the bank in the past, but rather by the more important measure of what is their likelihood of buying loan, deposit and investment products in the future.

The survey also asks how likely it is that a client will recommend the bank to his or her friends. This is crucial. Not only is this sort of trended data an "early warning signal," it also is a measure of the persistent power of a bank's brand and marketing ROI.

In addition, the survey gathers critical information on how the banks' service level compares with other financial and nonfinancial companies the client may be doing business with. Again, as Dennis Snow points out, competition is everchanging and it is vital to keep your finger on the pulse of your clients and then share this information with your employees.

Finally, all of this data is presented in easy-to-read charts, graphs and trend-lines that are accessible from the www.clientsatisfaction.com website under secure, pass word protected access.

L. Biff Motley is president of Motley & Associates. New Orleans. He can be reached at [phone].