mini-survey: customer service and technical support for life science products
DESCRIPTION
In this special study, we explore a few of customers' experiences with solving non-technical and technical problems, and their preferences when contacting life science suppliers' support departments. This report is based on the responses of 278 life science researchers from around the globe who have had a customer service and/or technical support related problem in the last 6 months, completed this survey between March 8 and March 15, 2013. Customer Service and Technical Support were defined in this study the following ways: Customer Service: assistance provided after a purchase decision has been made related to order fulfillment, delivery and billing of products (e.g., a non-technical problem) Technical Support: advice and assistance provided related to the use of a product/instrument and identifying the correct product for a particular application/experiment based on your technical needs Readers of this report are encouraged to contact us with any questions or requests to explore this issue further and its implications for your current customer service and technical support offerings in 2013.TRANSCRIPT
Mini Survey: Customer Service and Technical Support for Life Science Products
Courtesy of BioInformatics, LLC
June 2013
BioInformatics, LLC 2111 Wilson Boulevard Suite 250 Arlington, VA 22201 703.778.3080 703.778.3081 fax www.gene2drug.com Market Insights From Gene to Drug
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Study Overview
In Customer Service and Technical Support for Life Science Products, we explore a few of the customers’ experiences with solving non-technical and technical problems and their preferences when contacting life science suppliers’ support departments. 278 scientists from around the globe who have had a customer service and/or technical support related problem in the last 6 months completed this survey between March 8 and March 15, 2013. Customer Service and Technical Support were defined in this study the following ways: Customer Service: assistance provided after a purchase decision has been made related to order fulfillment, delivery and billing of products (e.g., a non-technical problem). Technical Support: advice and assistance provided related to the use and performance of a product/instrument and identifying the correct product for a particular application/experiment based on your technical needs.
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Customer Service
Customer Service
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Frequently22%
Rarely35%
Constantly4%
Never3%
Occasionally36%
Customer Service
Answer choice definitions: Constantly: several time a week Frequently: more than once a month Occasionally: once a month Rarely: once or twice a year *Customer Service and Technical Support for Life Science Products: Customer Preferences, Report #11-002, April 2011, BioInformatics, LLC
Overall, compared to 2011 results*, respondents report an increase in the frequency with which they contact customer service. Specifically, there was a 20% increase from 2011 to 2013 in the number of respondents who contacted customer service “frequently” or “occasionally”.
Question 1 — Customer Service In the last 6 months, approximately how often have you contacted customer service for your research products and/or instrumentation? (choose only one)
Respondents=278
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43%
36%
36%
33%
24%
24%
23%
18%
17%
12%
1%
Biologicals
Accessories/replacementparts
Equipment/instrumentationcosting >$5,000 USD
Chemicals
Research/specialty kits
Equipment/instrumentationcosting !$5,000 USD
Custom products
Data analysis software
Apparatus
Glassware/plastics
OtherCustomer Service
Respondents more often cite needing customer service for their equipment/instrumentation over $5,000 USD (+11%), and $5,000 USD or less (+8%) and their data analysis software (+9%) than they did in 2011.
Question 2 For which type(s) of products have you most often needed to contact/obtain customer service for a non-technical problem in the last 6 months? (check all that apply)
Respondents=269
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Customer Service
Respondents overwhelmingly prefer contacting customer service via email and phone for their non-technical problems.
Question 3 Assuming all of the following channels were available from each life science supplier, which THREE would you most prefer to use when interacting with the customer service department about a non-technical problem? (check up to THREE)
Respondents=268
84%
80%
37%
16%
10%
6%
6%
3%
2%
1%
Phone
"Live"/"Real-time" chatw/ representative
Web self-service
Website FAQ section
Phone/voice self-service
Website complaint form
Supplier-sponsored customer/peer community
Social media/Public platform
Other
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48%
21%
30%
27%
28%
18%
37%
6%
34%
32%
16%
39%
12%
28%
23%
31%
28%
26%
22%
29%
8%
26%
30%
20%
31%
22%
18%
19%
16%
16%
9%
17%
20%
17%
5%
16%
9%
14%
11%
19%
8%
18%
14%
11%
14%
6%
10%
5%
9%
10%
7%
5%
6%
8%
14%
10%
6%
18%
15%
19%
26%
18%
13%
8%
9%
5%
5%
6%
6%
7%
6%
6% 12%
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
24/7 availability
Ability to help fix a problem quickly
Access to troubleshooting help
Customer-focused attitude
Diagnosing order-relatedproblems efficiently
Immediate access to "live" help
Immediate access to "live" help
Managing customer complaintspromptly and efficiently
Mobile customer servicesolutions
On-time delivery
Patience and politenesswhen dealing with customers
"Personal" service
Responding to customerrequests promptly
10. Extremely Important 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0. Not At All Important
Customer Service
*Highly important is defined as the percentage of respondents who selected 8, 9 and 10 on the 11-point scale.
Respondents consider the customer service department’s ability to help fix a problem quickly (91%), prompt response to customer requests (87%) and prompt and efficient management of customer complaints (82%) to be highly important*.
Question 4 How IMPORTANT are the following qualities of a life science supplier’s customer service department to you? (choose only one for each)
Respondents=269
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49%
26%
14%
9%
2%
Completeness insolving my problem
Speed of solving myproblem
Solving my problemwith one channel
Online tools that allowme to solve a problem
myself
Linking me with othercustomers for adviceand problem solving
tips
Customer Service
Slightly more respondents (+3%) than in 2011 believe that online tools that allow them to solve problems themselves should be a priority of a supplier’s customer service department.
Question 5 What do you believe should be the MOST important priority of a life science supplier’s customer service department to address your non-technical problems? (choose only one)
Respondents=268
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32%
20%
19%
19%
3%
3%
2%
1%
<1%
<1%
Competent/capable personnel
Ability to understand my problem quickly
Ability to access to a "live"representative quickly
Accurate problem recognition
Follow-up after an incident toensure issue(s) are resolved
Fast response to my inquiry
Multiple sources of assistance available
Social media responsiveness
Comprehensive FAQ sectionon the website
User-friendly, helpful website
Customer Service
One-third of respondents indicate that competent and capable personnel are the key to a responsive customer service department. This is different than the 2011 results where the ability to access a rep quickly defined “responsive” customer service.
Question 6 What do you believe makes the most responsive customer service? (choose only one)
Respondents=269
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Technical Support
Technical Support
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Constantly4%
Frequently23%
Rarely32%
Never3%
Occasionally38%
Technical Support
Overall, compared to 2011 results*, respondents report an increase in the frequency with which they contact technical support. Specifically, from 2011 to 2013, there was a 22% increase in the number of respondents who contacted technical support “frequently” or “occasionally”.
Question 1 — Technical Support In the last 6 months, approximately how often have you contacted technical support for your research products and/or instrumentation? (choose only one)
Respondents=278
Answer choice definitions: Constantly: several time a week Frequently: more than once a month Occasionally: once a month Rarely: once or twice a year *Customer Service and Technical Support for Life Science Products: Customer Preferences, Report #11-002, April 2011, BioInformatics, LLC
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Technical Support
Respondents more often cite needing technical support for their equipment/instrumentation costing $5,000 USD or less (+10%) and their accessories/replacement parts (+5%) but less often cite needing technical support for their equipment/instrumentation costing more than $5,000 USD (-7%) and their research/specialty kits (-7%) than they did in 2011.
Question 7 For which type(s) of products have you most often required technical support for a technical problem in the last 6 months? (check all that apply)
Respondents=271
41%
33%
27%
25%
18%
17%
17%
16%
14%
5%
<1%
Equipment/instrumentationcosting >$5,000 USD
Biologicals
Equipment/instrumentationcosting !$5,000 USD
Accessories/replacementparts
Custom products
Research/specialty kits
Data analysis software
Chemicals
Apparatus
Glassware/plastics
Other
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Technical Service
Respondents overwhelmingly prefer contacting technical support via phone and email for their technical problems.
Question 8 Assuming all of the following methods were available from each life science supplier, which THREE would you most prefer to use when interacting with the technical service department about a technical problem? (check up to THREE)
Respondents=270
79%
77%
43%
10%
10%
9%
7%
6%
6%
3%
1%
1%
1%
Phone
"Live"/"Real-time" chatw/ representative
Web self-service
Support documentation
Phone/voice self-service
Software downloads
Trainingcourses/webinars/tutorial
Website FAQ section
Website complaint form
Social media/Publicplatform
Supplier-sponsoredcustomer/
Other
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Technical Support
*Highly important is defined as the percentage of respondents who selected 8, 9 and 10 on the 11-point scale.
Question 9 How IMPORTANT are the following qualities of life science supplier’s technical support department to you? (choose only one for each)
Respondents=271
47%
23%
34%
38%
29%
18%
34%
11%
31%
18%
22%
18%
41%
14%
31%
22%
28%
34%
30%
26%
35%
10%
30%
25%
25%
21%
35%
22%
17%
17%
21%
16%
11%
20%
21%
18%
14%
13%
9%
6%
10%
13%
8%
14%
9%
13%
11%
15%
6%
9%
10%
8%
5%
5%
15%
23%
14%
23%
22%
20%
12%
11%
7%
9%
5%
7%
8%
10%
8%
8%
5% 5% 11%
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100%
24/7 availability
Ability to help fix a problem quickly
Access to troubleshooting help
Customer-focused attitude
Diagnosing product-relatedproblems efficiently
Immediate access to "live" help
Immediate access to "live" help
Managing customer complaintspromptly and efficiently
Mobile technical support solutions
Patience and politenesswhen dealing with customers
"Personal" service
Personnel with 2+ yearsof laboratory experience
Personnel with advancedscientific degrees
Responding to customerrequests promptly
10. Extremely Important 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0. Not At All Important
Respondents consider the technical support department’s ability to help fix a problem quickly (92%), prompt response to customer requests (90%) and efficient diagnosis of product-related problems (89%) to be highly important*.
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Technical Support
Question 10 What do you believe should be the MOST important priority of life science supplier’s technical support department to address your technical problems? (choose only one)
Respondents=269
56%
19%
14%
5%
4%
2%
Completeness insolving my problem
Personnel with "hands-on" knowledge of the
product line
Speed of solving myproblem
Solving my problemwith one channel
Online tools that allowme to solve a problem
myself
Linking me with othercustomers for adviceand problem solving
tips
Completeness in solving their problems was the highest priority for respondents in 2011 and even more so in 2013 (+8%).
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Technical Support
As they did in 2011, respondents indicate that competent or capable personnel make the most responsive technical support and they believe this even more so today (+4%).
Question 11 What do you believe makes the most responsive technical support? (choose only one)
Respondents=268
27%
20%
20%
19%
4%
3%
3%
2%
1%
<1%
<1%
Competent/capable personnel
Ability to access to a "live"representative quickly
Accurate problem recognition
Ability to understand my problem quickly
Technically qualified
Follow-up after an incident toensure issue(s) are resolved
Fast response to my inquiry
Multiple sources of assistance available
Comprehensive FAQ sectionon the website
Social media responsiveness
User-friendly, helpful website
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Demographics
Demographics
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Demographics
Geographic Region
Respondents=278
North America39%
Europe30%
Rest of World4%
Asia/Pacific27%
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Demographics
Market Segment
Respondents=278
Academic68%
Industrial32%
44%
8%
6%
5%
3%
1%
1%
13%
11%
2%
2%
2%
1%
<1%
<1%
Academic/University
Research Institute(non-profit)
Government
Hospital
University MedicalCenter
HealthcareNetwork/Facility
Research Foundation
BiopharmaceuticalCompany
PharmaceuticalCompany
Agriculture/AgriculturalBiotechnology
Contract ResearchOrganization
Research Institute(for profit)
Medical Devices
Commercial TestingLab
Diagnostics
Aca
dem
ic(n
=188
)In
dust
rial
(n=9
0)
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BioInformatics LLC is the premier research and advisory firm serving the life science tools industry. By leveraging our online professional network of tens of thousands of biomedical researchers, we have supported more than 400 companies and provided insights that lead to better business decisions. Our expertise includes assessing the size and attractiveness of markets, optimizing product configurations and pricing, validating corporate acquisitions, measuring customers’ brand loyalty, and evaluating brand strength and positioning. Since 1994, BioInformatics LLC has been providing off-the-shelf reports, custom-designed studies and market analysis that enable companies to understand their market and competitors through the eyes of the most important information source of all—the people who buy their products.
BioInformatics, LLC
CONTACT:
Bill Kelly President
703.778.3080 x15 [email protected]
Greg Thompson Director, Business Development
703.778.3080 x22 [email protected]
Mary Follin Marketing Manager 703.778.3080 x13