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By K.C. Neel
Although cable operators have improved their customer service, DirecTV and EchoStar's Dish Network continue to kick cable's butt when it comes to customer satisfaction and customer care scores, if you believe J.D. Power & Associates.
The market research firm has ranked DirecTV tops in customer service the last two years in a row, and in May 2003, DirecTV was given the highest score for customer satisfaction among cable and satellite companies by the American Customer Satisfaction Index for the second year a row.
Consumer research from Leichtman Research Group released in January found 70% of DBS customers were very satisfied with their provider; only 53% of cable customers were happy with their provider. There is some good news though: There is virtually no difference in the potential for customers to switch from each service, president Bruce Leichtman says, despite the difference in overall satisfaction. Only 11% of cable subscribers reported that they are likely to switch from their current provider in the next six months, while 10% of DBS subscribers reported that they are likely to switch.
DirecTV and EchoStar have some distinct advantages. They've been able to build their state-of-the-art customer service operations from the ground up and have, from the beginning, contracted with customer care experts. DBS providers also have the advantage of having a national footprint and one lineup. Moreover, DBS services are totally digital, providing customers with top-notch picture quality and reliability.
DirecTV farms out much of its phone traffic but inherited a 1,300-seat call center in Boise, Idaho, when it bought Prime-Star several years ago, according to spokesman Robert Mercer. (By the way, when Prime-Star won the J.D. Power survey, both of the extant satellite guys pooh-poohed it.)
Convergys handles the bulk of the company's call center activity with another 3,200 seats dedicated solely to DirecTV. EchoStar has some 6,000 in-house CSRs answering phones and also has an undisclosed number of in-house installers. Still, the bulk of the installation work is currently handled by outside retailers and installers.
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