In this article, I’m going to analyze the factors affecting customer satisfaction. And in the previous posts, I covered customer satisfaction, dissatisfaction, and their impact–you can refer back to them.
Several factors determine customer satisfaction, and the importance of a single determinant might vary depending on the sub-segment of the medical device market.
For example, the impact of product reliability is less critical for a single-use and low-priced device than for reusable and expensive medical equipment.
Moreover, over time the importance of the determinant may evolve as it is influenced by various factors such as market dynamics. And this is one of the reasons for continuously monitoring customer satisfaction and its determinants.
Let’s see the four key factors affecting customer satisfaction in MedTech, and the actionable steps you can take to improve customer relationships.
1. Customer perceived value
Customer value can be seen as a ratio between the total benefit for the customer and the “sacrifice” made by the customer.
The sacrifice is in line with the exchange process and includes the overall transaction costs and not only the price. Thus, the sacrifice consists of time, effort, and search involved with the purchase and the use of the product.
Consequently, there will be disappointment and low customer satisfaction when the ratio value perceived by the customers’ sacrifice with the products offered by the company is different from the customer expectations.
But a medical device company can increase the perceived value by raising the clinical, economic, functional, or emotional/psychological value and/or reducing the costs.
2. Product
The product is a key factor affecting customer satisfaction in terms of quality, availability, and image.
Garvin, in 1987 developed a system of thinking about the quality of products by describing the basic elements of product quality in eight dimensions. This system can be applied to medical products too.
The following is a summary of Garvin’s eight dimensions of Product Quality:
- Performance refers to a product’s primary operating characteristics.
- Features are additional characteristics that enhance the product’s appeal to the customer. These are the secondary aspects of performance.
- Reliability is the likelihood that a product will not fail within a specific time period when put in use.
- Conformance is the precision with which the product or service meets the specified standards.
- Durability measures the length of a product’s operating life.
- Serviceability is the speed, ease, and costs with which the product can be put back into service when it breaks down.
- Aesthetics refers to how the product looks, feels, sounds, etc. It is a matter of personal judgment and a reflection of individual preference.
- Perceived quality is the quality attributed by the customer, noting that perception is not always reality.
In my opinion, it is essential to understand that the quality of the product is not considered from the company’s standpoint but from the customer’s perspective.
This means that two factors must be considered: the expected product quality and the perceived product quality. Thus, the qualification of both a poor and good quality product depends on meeting customers’ quality expectations.
3. Service
There is no doubt that service quality is considered a key source of competitive advantage, as it helps retain and attract customers. Unlike product quality, service quality is normally the result of a comparison between the expected service and the service received.
In my experience, my distributors were frequently able to take competitive accounts thanks to a better service level.
Because service quality is an important instrument that will make customers behave positively, it can be interpreted that service quality will positively impact customer satisfaction and loyalty. And I’ll explain more on this using the five service indicators according to SERVQUAL.
What is SERVQUAL?
SERVQUAL is a widely used metric based on five dimensions that customers consistently rank as the most important for service quality in any industry.
The five indicators of service quality are Tangibles, Reliability, Responsiveness, Assurance, and Empathy, and here’s what they mean below:
1. Tangibles–the physical evidence of the service.
For example, customers tend to expect clean and professional facilities, employees who look smart and neat, and well-written and designed materials.
The attention to appearance indicates that the company considers the customers seriously. Although appearance is not the most critical aspect of service, it must align with the company’s promise.
2. Reliability–the ability to perform the promised service dependably and accurately.
Customers are happy if they can rely on the company’s promises regarding effective and reliable service.
This is true, especially for medical devices that severely impact the customer’s processes, such as big capital equipment devices. Customers want to count on the company they buy from.
3. Responsiveness–the willingness to help customers and provide prompt service.
Responding quickly to customer requests for help is vital, especially in today’s highly competitive MedTech market.
Responsiveness informs the customers that you’re taking care of their needs and working actively to solve their problems.
4. Assurance–is employees’ knowledge, courtesy, and ability to convey trust and confidence.
Customers expect your points of contact, even if you are working through local distributors, to be experts in the service they deliver. Communicating directly to the customer the service level acquired by the company helps to reassure customers.
Also, service becomes prevalent when customers have many options because the product needs to be better differentiated, and there are multiple suppliers. Among the service determinants, assurance is essential because it can set your company apart and gain consumer trust.
5. Empathy–is the care and individualized attention the firm provides its customers.
Showing empathy to customers means ensuring your company demonstrates care for them at every point of contact, from customer service to complaint handling. For example, training employees on customer feelings and how to provide empathetic service can help exceed expectations.
Without a doubt, providing high-quality service to customers is necessary for today’s competitive medical device business. Using these five service quality dimensions and measuring them regularly and accurately can help your company find actionable ways to improve customer satisfaction.
4. Price fairness
According to Kotler and Armstrong (2012), “Price is the amount of money charged for a product or a service; the sum of the values that customers exchange for the benefits of having or using a product or service.”
The customer’s perception of a specific price can have a significant effect on the customer’s intention to re-purchase the product. Because price transparency gives the possibility to check the price paid by other customers, that too has an impact on price perception.
The thing is, nobody wants to pay more compared to other customers. Hence, price fairness will always influence customers’ perceptions and, ultimately, their willingness to stick to your brand.
Conclusion
As already discussed, customer satisfaction is the customer’s feelings when a product or service meets expectations. To understand more about customer satisfaction, it is essential to know the factors that can influence it.
In this post, I have shared the main factors affecting customer satisfaction, for example, the customer perceived value which is a valuable tool to assess any medical product.
Overall, a medical company must assess the total customer benefit and cost associated with its product compared to the alternatives according to the customer’s perception.
What’s your thought on this? Is discounting an excellent method to increase customer perceived value? Let me know in the comments below.
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Thanks for reading.