We continue to keep track of our performance in the context of both product and service. Over our long history, as surveys reveal, we have built an instantly recognisable and highly trusted brand.
We remain in close touch with customer views and of the 1,278 cases of complimentary feedback received during the past year, 459 (35.9%) were in appreciation of counter services and 691 (54%) were in recognition of our delivery service performances. These figures indicate the high regard in which the general public holds Hongkong Post.
A considerable drop in complaints of 32.4% was recorded in 2010/11 as compared with the previous year. Of the 560 complaints received, most were related to counter and delivery services.
The City University of Hong Kong last year interviewed 13,000 people in a survey covering 68 major local goods and services. Hong Kong's postal service ranked second in terms of consumer satisfaction.
In addition, the Customer Satisfaction Survey we conducted in 2010 recorded very pleasing results. The customer satisfaction level for overall service reached 98.6%, an increase of 1.4% when compared with the previous year. Satisfaction levels of 97.9% were recorded for our counter services, 98.7% for our delivery services and 95.5% for our hotline services. Among the 2,270 responses received, 1,136 expressed appreciation.
We are pleased that the outcomes from these surveys show that our brand remains strong and recognisable across the range of services we provide.
Operating at a more intimate level, our Customer Liaison Group (CLG) and Philately Liaison Group (PLG) regularly exchange views with customers on service performances. The objectives of both groups are:
to enhance customers' understanding of our postal and philatelic products and services;
to improve our understanding of customers' needs and their views on postal and philatelic services;
to gauge customers' opinions on Hongkong Post's performance and quality of postal and philatelic service which, in turn, enables us to enhance operational efficiencies and service standards;
to serve as a consultative mechanism on our corporate strategy and new initiatives.
In 2010, the CLG and PLG consisted of 62 members. The groups met 10 times and covered 20 discussion topics in total. We continued to invite representatives from all District Councils to join the CLG. The positive feedback and the frank exchange of views on postal issues we received during group discussions were exceedingly helpful to us.
We are continuously exploring measures we can adopt to support Hong Kong businesses. PostalPlus for SMEs has been an effective communication platform linking Hongkong Post and local SMEs since 2003. It now has more than 40,000 corporate members. Hongkong Post's reliable services, extensive network and all-round cost-effective postal solutions help SMEs to enhance their competitiveness. To stay attuned to the evolving needs of SMEs, we have organised seminars with global online trading platforms and China Post looking at topics such as online trading and cross-border direct mail marketing channels that could reach visitors from the Mainland. We showcased success stories of matching businesses using electronic trading and the effectiveness of promotional strategies which provide useful market information and enhance business competitiveness. Hongkong Post also participated in the World SME Expo 2010 where we presented our one-stop value-for-money postal solutions designed to help SMEs grow their business.
Understanding the needs of different market segments is critical to ongoing success. Over the past year, Hongkong Post has integrated Customer Relationship Management (CRM) philosophy into sales and marketing operations. We proactively analysed customer requirements by reviewing background, preference and purchasing patterns, and devised various tailor-made marketing campaigns to suit different customer segments. This provides us with greater insight into customer needs and enables us to interact more effectively with customers by streamlining operations across areas of sales, marketing and back-office support. CRM intelligence also helps us identify changing customer expectations and create a range of marketing tools and initiatives to meet their needs.
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