Ocado, first direct, John Lewis: the best brands for customer service

Which businesses go the extra mile to keep their customers happy? We reveal the top firms for customer service.

When it comes to determining which business to spend money with, it’s not just the price that’s important to consider.

You also need to think about the customer service, how you’re going to be treated throughout the process.

But which firms are the best when it comes to delivering that customer service? 

A twice-yearly study from the Institute of Customer Service is a good place to start, since it pinpoints the businesses that stand out from the crowd when leaving their customers satisfied.

The best brands for customer service

The report is based on surveys with thousands of shoppers. 

Businesses are awarded an overall score, based on how customers rate them on a range of factors covering things like their experiences and interactions with the business, how it responded and handled problems and complaints, the extent to which they believe the firm genuinely cares about its customers, and the ethics of the business.

Let’s take a look at how the top 20 shape up, and how their overall scores compare to the study from a year ago.

But what is consistent is that many of these businesses have a long-standing reputation for quality customer service.

It’s not exactly breaking news, for example, that John Lewis delivers for its customers.

And first direct has long built its reputation on going above and beyond for its customers, to the point that it previously offered a cash bonus to customers if they wanted to leave, so confident were they that the customer service on offer would turn them into customers for life.

Service levels on the decline

However, when you look beyond the top performers, there are some concerns about the standards of customer service more generally.

The average score among the businesses included in the study was 76, down by 1.7 points on a year ago, and the lowest score registered since the 2015 study.

What’s more, every single element of customer service received a lower average score than 12 months ago.

Certain sectors have had a particularly poor time ‒ the score for the services sector has dropped by 2.9 points, while transport is down by 2.4 and utilities down by 2.2.

Indeed, utilities have the lowest score of all, at just 69.5.

What is customer service worth?

Delivering decent customer service is not just a ‘nice to have’, either.

The study makes clear that plenty of us actively opt to work with firms that we are confident will treat us well, to the point that we may even spend more as a result.

The report found that almost a third (31.3%) will prioritise customer service when determining where to spend money, even if the result is a higher cost overall.

That’s pretty striking at a time when costs are on the rise and budgets are being strained, that even then plenty of people will cough up even more than they have to, simply to use a firm that they trust.

That applies to the other side of things too, with around two-fifths (41%) saying that if they were dissatisfied with the customer service on offer, they would avoid using that business again.

Don’t just stand for it

Recent years have presented new challenges to businesses and organisations when it comes to delivering a decent service to their customers, and while some have raised their game it’s fair to say that others have struggled.

What’s more, too many firms have repeatedly used the pandemic as a convenient excuse to cover their customer service shortcomings.

But the reality is that we don’t have to just put up for it when firms fail to deliver.

Raising your complaint in a polite but firm way can be incredibly effective, and there are plenty of ways to do it ‒ we’ve even flagged up some of the best ways that you can put Twitter to use, for example. 

The key is to make sure the firm knows they have failed, and give them the opportunity to put things right.

Don’t accept it.