Apple Trails Microsoft, Samsung and Sony in Customer Experience

Apple Trails Microsoft, Samsung and Sony in customer experience according to recently released data from a customer experience survey conducted by Forrester Research.

Apple fell behind some of its main competitors such as Samsung, Sony and Microsoft. This is the third annual customer experience survey and the first that Apple has trailed its rival companies.

Forrester surveyed 7,500 consumers about their retail and customer support experience and used the responses to assign each company a customer-experience index score. The data revealed the following as part of its results:

Amazon scored highest among the 17 consumer-electronics manufacturers operating in North America. It was the only manufacturer to garner an “excellent” rating of 91 for Kindle customers. 

Sony came in second with a rating of 83, while Microsoft and Samsung followed one point behind at 82. Apple scored an 81. All three brands rated below Apple in the 2013 survey.

Although it fell behind its competition, Apple still improved its score in the 2014 survey and earned a “good” score according to the survey’s criteria.

Apple has struggled somewhat with the continually increasing volume of customers visiting its retail stores for sales and support, particularly under the leadership of former retail chief John Browett. Part of the reason for Browett’s ouster from Apple in October 2012 was because he decided to cut retail employee hours after giving everyone a raise to boost Apple's profits. He was later forced to apologize and reinstate employee hours.

The survey measures customer experience, which tries to quantify difficult-to-define criteria based on how a customer feels about their interaction with the company.

The survey asks customers to rate companies on the following criteria:

How enjoyable were they to do business with?

How easy were they to do business with?

How effective were they at meeting your needs?

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