Luring customers' hearts with quality services

Rudijanto, Contributor, Jakarta

Developing excellent service that gives customers real peace of mind is a big challenge for a highly competitive businesses, as such a marketing approach can be counterproductive.

For example, when a company launches an innovative package of services -- the first reaction often comes from its competitors, which respond by providing a similar package -- rather than customers.

Look at what competitors DaimlerChrysler and BMW are doing to win the hearts of luxury car lovers in this country. Established here for over 20 years, DaimlerChrysler is offering an integrated service package to lure new customers and retain existing ones.

The package entitles owners of DaimlerChrysler cars to enjoy a free three-year service without a mileage limit.

Complemented by mechanical training programs and highly trained technicians, the program should provide customers with a sense of security.

Almost simultaneously, however, BMW announced a similar campaign called BMW Service Inclusive, promising a five-year or 100,000 kilometer service with each vehicle purchased.

"This program aims to give owners peace of mind. They can enjoy the pleasure of driving a BMW and we will do the rest. It is part of our commitment to provide excellent service to our premium customers," BMW Director of Corporate Communication Helena Abidin said.

In the banking sector, the abbreviation CRM, or Customer Relations Management, seems to be turning into a new management fad as top banks target highly affluent clients.

Nowadays, almost all banks provide each client with a dedicated customer relations manager whose job is to know their customers well and offer them the best customized services possible to suit their needs.

For instance, Centurion World is a priority banking service offered to premium customers of American Express (Amex). Under this program, members are entitled to exclusive lifestyle benefits, including invitations to exhibitions and investment seminars, luncheon and dinner events, golf tournaments and other events that match their lifestyle.

Amex also offers each of its Centurion World customers with a relationship manager, whose responsibilities include a broad range of services such as consulting and advising them on financial investment options that will provide higher returns.

Other banks have also followed suit. Bank Danamon is one of the most aggressive local banks in promoting its priority banking services. To support this service, Danamon tripled the number of Personalized Relationship Officers over a single year.

In addition, Bank Danamon provides a fund manager to clients, primarily its PrimaGold clients, who make a minimum deposit of Rp 1 billion -- more than US$100,000.

HSBC, which was awarded the title "The Best Foreign Commercial Bank in Indonesia" for the last five years by Finance Asia, also offers individual relationship managers to its mid- to high-end customers.

HSBC Indonesia deputy chief executive officer Rakesh Bhatia said HSBC Premier was the bank's flagship service for its most valuable customers. Under this service, the bank establishes a personal relationship with customers and anticipates their every need.

"HSBC Premier also enables us to recognize their value to HSBC wherever and whenever they choose to contact us, to harness the global reach and financial strength of the HSBC Group to reward and to deliver benefits that add value to their lives," Rakesh said.

In the dry-cleaning sector, Jeeves of Belgravia is known among the elite of Indonesia. Jeeves began its foray into the laundry business in 1967 in London's exclusive Belgravia district, and it has been operating in Jakarta since 1996.

With a vision for excellence, Jeeves is likely the sole dry cleaning company for the so-called A-class -- famous people, politicians, successful businesspeople and others who view their clothes as a form of investment.

To maintain a consistent quality of service, Jeeves has a central processing unit for its laundry service. Not only equipped with state-of-the-art machines and imported chemicals from Germany, Jeeves also has a special unit that mends and restores clothes.

"Pursuing excellence in service is one of our company's visions, because we believe that good service is an important company product. We are fully dedicated to our customers and always provide the best service by solving their problems quickly with Jeeves' services," said Anita Meliana of Jeeves.

In the serviced-office sector, the CEO Suite is proud of its comprehensive service to all clients. While other serviced office companies merely send their clients to recommended outsourcing companies, president Mee Kim said the CEO Suite provided significant consultations.

"I don't position CEO as a serviced-office company, but more as a service company, because we don't limit our services to offices. For a newly arrived U.S. company, we help secure work permits and help with head-hunting, travel arrangements and residential searches," she said.

In providing fully furnished offices with highly capable secretarial staff, the CEO Suite is one of the most logical choices for those who do not require a fully staffed office in Jakarta.

In a competitive business environment, companies always try hard to provide the best services to customers or clients. However, as competitors are always ready to narrow the gap, the disturbing question is whether they have not entered into a stalemate of competition.

Jo Owen warns in his best-selling book Hard-Core Management, published by Kogan Page, London & Sterling, VA, that believing we can beat the competition in a straight fight is not only a delusion, but also dangerous to corporate health.

For Owen, competition is better for economists than for businesses. For economists, he says that competition leads to innovation, efficiency and lower prices; for businesses, it means having to sweat to innovate, improve efficiency and lower prices with the full knowledge that their efforts will be matched, more or less, by the opposition.

DaimlerChrysler and BMW seem to be singing the same tune with their free after-sales services. The banks also seem to be playing by the same rules with their personalized relationship managers.

When all players of a sector are racing along the same path toward providing excellent service, Jo believes the challenge for those who want to win is to get off the treadmill and find another way.

At this point, the words of Chinese philosopher Sun Tzu -- who is widely known for his The Art of War and its applicability to business strategies -- is worth remembering: "He who knows when to enter into battle and when not to will win."