New Study Reinforces Importance of ‘People Behind the Product’

Aug. 17, 2010
Companies that invest in people development activities to drive customer service, including sales training and employee recognition and rewards, may perform better than firms focusing solely on brand development, marketing and advertising, suggests a new study published by the Forum for People Performance Management and Measurement.

The study, “The Employee or the Company: The Relative Importance of People versus the Company Brand on the Customer Experience,” authored by Forum Academic Director Dr. Frank Mulhern of Northwestern University, predicts a return to more direct customer contact and less reliance on mass media advertising.

”Brands will always remain important. However, as technology enables greater addressability of communications and interactivity becomes mainstreamed, we may see a return to the pre-modern business world where personal relationships matter more than brand names,” Mulhern said.

While these relationships are more common to personal service businesses such as health care, financial services and education than mass retailing, the Forum’s study focused on the nation’s personal insurance industry (life, health, auto and property), which showed dramatic links between sales agent performance and customer retention and new business.

A series of surveys conducted for the study showed that customers consistently rated the insurance sales agents higher that the insurance company itself. “The customer’s experience with the agent is more important than the customer’s experience with the brand in driving performance,” Mulhern noted. “The person is more important than the brand.”

The research study is on the Forum’s Web site at http://www.performanceforum.org/Research.5.0.html.

Sponsored Recommendations

3 Essential Elements for a Strong Safety Culture

March 13, 2024
Organizations globally have increased their attention on safety culture: trying to figure out what it really is and the aspects that are necessary to develop and sustain it. And...

Making the Case for Occupational Health Software

March 13, 2024
Deciding to invest in Occupational Health (OH) software can be a challenging leap for many organizations. This article will equip businesses with insightful strategies for effectively...

Fighting the Flu: Solutions for the Workplace

March 13, 2024
Seasonal flu continues to wreak considerable havoc both on individual wellness, as well as on our business continuity and productivity. Explore these solutions for protecting ...

Preventing SIFs with Digitization: Reduce Serious Injuries and Fatalities with Technology

March 13, 2024
This eBook discusses the origins of SIF prevention, outlines principles, models and tools available to EHS leaders to better detect and address SIF potential in their business...

Voice your opinion!

To join the conversation, and become an exclusive member of EHS Today, create an account today!