Other techniques used by a lot of organisations like Asda are called Appraisals; this is looked at by observations of employees at Asda. It will show the performance and possible changes that could be made to improve in the later future. Appraisals are normally set in stages.
Stage 1 of the Appraisal is to decide a purpose for an Appraisal system. This could either be an:
- Employee survey- can be used to work out whether the employee has settled in well to their new surroundings.
- Appraisal Interview- can be used to give employees constructive criticism and changes that need to be made to their attitude towards the work.
Stage 2 is to put the Appraisal into use this could be done by talking to employees and giving them constructive criticism and this can make the Asda employees up there game by working towards improving in there department and putting there ideas to use.
Monitoring Customer Service can prove to be costly to any business but the rewards at the end of it prove to be exceptionally good and this is because the business tends to gain more knowledge on what there customers want and what changes can be made to suit there customers needs. Each Customer is individual and very different so there must be variety of people chosen that may mean age and gender could be a variable.
Every Customer has a say and that is why suggestion cards are handed out so that people can write there views on what they didn’t like and what they enjoyed.
Here are some other methods that Asda can use to Monitor other supermarkets Customer Service:
- Interviews with Different Customers
- User Panel Discussions
- Internet Websites
Mystery Shoppers
Some stores like Asda employ mystery shoppers. These shoppers visit stores and test them on Customer care. There activities may include being a difficult and awkward customer, which involves lodging a complaint. This could be handy to Asda as they can work out what methods the other companies use in order to calm and understand the customer. It can be a good method but it must be done in a way that nobody knows so Asda might hire someone to play the part of the awkward customer and get some good feedback.
Interviews with Different Customers
Interviews with Customers who shop at different outlets may be excellent form of research as it will give you an indication of what the customer likes about that certain store and what changes they might like made at Asda if they shop there. The data could be then analysed via computer and could be used to help work required changes that the majority of customers want.
User Panel Discussions
User Panel Discussions provide valuable information but are quite difficult to set up and are quite expensive. If a user panel successfully selected a representative then the results can give the business organisation a good idea of what the customers want. This could help Asda as they can work out the requirements of each individual customer.
Internet Websites
Internet Websites can be used to help get prices on competitor’s latest products and deals they have this can help Asda decide on what deals they can make but also the evidence may be unreliable due to the site not being updated so it might be ideal for an Asda employee to check if the prices are correct or incorrect.
My Favourite Method
The method that I prefer is the mystery shopper because that is doing primary research and this could prove beneficial to yourself and the company; this could prove beneficial because the information you have received is first hand. The data or information collected can help you and the company update your strategies on how to deal with your awkward customers and mystery shoppers. It could also help to visit the other supermarkets because you get an idea of their special offers and prices on selected goods.