StudiesService and Support from Your Life Science Suppliers The Science Advisory Board surveyed its members on their opinions about the customer service and technical support that they receive from their life science suppliers. Over 1,080 members participated in the study, "Service and Support from Your Life Science Suppliers." The Science Advisory Board conducted this study because receiving prompt and satisfactory support from life science suppliers and distributors is a necessity for conducting one's research successfully In the report, both industrial and academic life scientists shared their expectations of customer service and technical support and how these perceptions play a role in their decision to use one supplier's products over another. Almost one-fifth of scientists surveyed expect a reply within one to two hours after contacting customer service by email or through a Website. Additionally, 20% state that half of their calls to technical support are "urgent"-meaning that if an answer is not received in a timely manner a critical experiment could fail. According to the scientists surveyed, the most common reason that they contact a company's customer service department is when the product they ordered did not arrive when promised. In order to address product delivery problems, over half of the study respondents would like the ability to monitor the progress of their orders and shipments via the company's website. When a product fails to arrive on time or a replacement cannot be delivered when needed, a scientist's ability to perform his or her experiment is compromised or delayed. "Scientists are deeply committed to their work and when a scientist feels that their work has been jeopardized by a supplier's performance, the sense of injustice can turn into a backlash against the supplier," claims Dr. Tamara Zemlo, Director of Scientific & Medical Communications at The Science Advisory Board. Interestingly, when a technical problem is encountered, academic scientists usually first review the printed manual or protocol included with the product, while industrial scientists are more inclined to immediately contact the supplier for assistance. Scientists believe that a company's most useful Website feature for solving their technical problems are detailed protocols and manuals. To read selected members' comments, please click here. [ View Current & Future Studies ] [ View Past Studies ] |
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