UK customers seeking assistance from customer service representatives are facing remarkably long wait times, according to a study conducted by Microsoft.
The study involved placing 140 calls to large UK organisations across various sectors, aiming to shed light on current wait times and the challenges faced by customers.
Findings from the study expose the energy sector as the most daunting, with customers enduring an average hold time of 35 minutes and 34 seconds. Microsoft said the staggering figure is 133 times slower than the industry’s optimal standard of 20 seconds, as reported by industry media. The study even documented an excruciatingly long wait time of 85 minutes.
Rob Smithson, Microsoft UK’s Business Applications Lead, emphasises that the pandemic can no longer be used as an excuse for poor service, claiming that cost-effective digital solutions are available to optimise and streamline customer calls and live chat interactions.
“Calling your energy provider and waiting over one hour 25 minutes to speak to a human is equivalent to reading 255 emails, watering 85 plants, or listening to Queen’s Bohemian Rhapsody 14 times,” he said.
“The pandemic can no longer be used as a scapegoat for delivering poor service.
“There are many cost-effective digital solutions to ensure that customer calls and live chat are optimised and efficient. There is a real gap emerging between where businesses see themselves as agents of customer excellence and the reality of their consumers’ experience.”
The study’s results indicate that the Telco sector has the shortest wait times, with an average wait time of 2 minutes and 3 seconds.
One concerning finding is that only around 53% of the organisations surveyed provide alternative communication options or call-back services, leaving customers stuck to their phones in a frustrating limbo.
Furthermore, approximately 18% of the organisations took advantage of the hold time to market new services to callers even before reaching the main menu. Microsoft said this practice was particularly noticeable in the Finance and Retail sectors.
A mere 13% of the organisations required callers to be existing customers to engage with an agent, slowing down the service for people needing urgent assistance.