Page 153 - Marketing Management

130 PART 3 CONNECTING WITH CUSTOMERS

situations where they are unknown and experience firsthand the treatment they receive, or they can
phone their own company with questions and complaints to see how employees handle the calls.

INFLUENCE OF CUSTOMER SATISFACTION For customer-centered companies,
customer satisfaction is both a goal and a marketing tool. Companies need to be especially
concerned with their customer satisfaction level today because the Internet provides a tool for
consumers to quickly spread both good and bad word of mouth to the rest of the world. Some
customers set up their own Web sites to air grievances and galvanize protest, targeting high-profile
brands such as United Airlines, Home Depot, and Mercedes-Benz. 31
The University of Michigan’s Claes Fornell has developed the American Customer Satisfaction
Index (ACSI) to measure consumers’ perceived satisfaction with different firms, industries, eco-
nomic sectors, and national economies. 32 Table 5.2 displays some of the 2009 leaders.
Companies that do achieve high customer satisfaction ratings make sure their target market
knows it. Once they achieved number one status in their category on J.D. Power’s customer satisfac-
tion ratings, Hyundai, American Express, Medicine Shoppe (a chain pharmacy), and Alaska
Airways have communicated that fact.

TABLE 5.2 2009 ACSI Scores by Industry

Industry Firm Score

Airlines Southwest Airlines 81
Apparel Jones Apparel 84
Automobiles & Light Vehicles Lexus & BMW 87
Banks Wachovia 76
Breweries Molson Coors Brewing 83
Cable & Satellite TV DIRECTV 71
Cellular Telephones Nokia 74
Cigarettes Philip Morris 79
Department & Discount Stores Nordstrom & Kohl’s 80
Energy Utilities Sempra Energy 80
Express Delivery FedEx 84
Fixed Line Telephone Service Cox Communications 74
Food Manufacturing H. J. Heinz 89
Health Insurance Blue Cross and Blue Shield 73
Hotels Hilton Hotels 79
Internet Brokerage Fidelity Investments 80
Internet News & Information MSNBC.com 76
Internet Portals & Search Engines Google 86
Internet Travel Expedia 77
Life Insurance Prudential Financial 79
Personal Care & Cleaning Products Clorox 87
Personal Computers Apple 85
Soft Drinks Dr Pepper Snapple 87
Supermarkets Publix 82
Wireless Telephone Service Verizon Wireless 74

Source: ACSI LLC, www.theacsi.org. Used with permission.