Consumer Insights

According to a new research report from Temkin Group, 2012 Temkin Experience Ratings, which rates the customer experience of 206 large companies across 18 industries, only eight companies provide excellent customer experience: Sam’s Club, Publix, Starbucks, Subway, Chick-fil-A, Aldi, Winn-Dixie, H-E-B and credit unions. At the other end of the spectrum, 76 companies (37 percent of the total) received “poor” or “very poor” ratings. This is the second year that the customer experience research and consulting firm has released the ratings.

The current research is based on a survey of 10,000 U.S. consumers performed in January 2012, and looks at the customer experience in 18 industries: airlines, appliance makers, auto dealers, banks, car rental agencies, computer makers, credit card issuers, fast food chains, grocery chains, health plans, hotel chains, insurance carriers, Internet service providers, investment firms, parcel delivery services, retailers, TV service providers, and wireless carriers.

Grocery chains, fast-food chains and retailers are the top three industries, earning an average rating of “good,” while at the bottom of the ratings, TV service providers, Internet service providers, and health plans earned an average rating of “poor.”

“While many companies aren’t delivering experiences that meet customers’ needs, it’s an epidemic for TV service providers, Internet service providers, and health plans,” noted Bruce Temkin, author of the report and Managing Partner of Waban, Mass.-based Temkin Group.

The research also examines the changes in ratings between 2011 and 2012, and how individual companies are rated relative to their industry peers. For example, Sam’s Club enjoys a double-digit lead over the retail industry average.

The report can be downloaded from the Temkin Group website or from the blog Customer Experience Matters. The data can be accessed from the Temkin Ratings website.