Great expectations: consumers demand more from online services

New data has revealed that the interaction of mobile and socially networked-consumer empowerment, coupled with perpetual price promotions, has led to the highest levels of emotional consumer expectations for products and services in two decades, effecting consumer loyalty and brand profitability as a result.

The 18th annual 2014 Brand Keys Customer Loyalty Engagement Index® (CLEI), conducted by Brand Keys and based on the opinions of 32,000 US consumers, has revealed that expectations in the Online Service Category have gone up by nearly 28% in the past 12 months, while online service brands have only grown by 10%.

For all 70 brands tracked in the Online Service Category, emotional engagement expectations related to “trust and security,” “content/product range” and “customized curation” exerted the strongest influence on consumer decision-making and engagement with brands.

Though emotional engagement levels vary by category, brands in the Online Services Category that best met consumer expectations include Amazon.com (93%), PayPal (90%) and Netflix (88%).

“Congratulations to the companies that continue to create meaningful differentiation and engagement,” said Robert Passikoff, President, Brand Keys.

“Our validated and predictive metrics prove that brands able to better meet consumer expectations act as surrogates for added-value, always producing higher levels of engagement and loyalty than those that rely on the primacy of product, awareness, or a coupon.”

Clearly, quality online customer services capabilities, coupled with excellent digital marketing and social media handling, are key to winning the hearts of consumers these days, as more companies move into the digital world and jostle for the world’s attention.