Introduction
In section 3 we consider the importance of understanding our customers, both in terms of their experience and expectations, so we can provide excellent customer service.
Learning outcomes
By the end of this section you will be able to:
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Identify who our customers are and what their needs might involve
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Reflect on experience of customer service
Who are our customers?
Our customers might be students, academics, NUIT staff, external users etc.,... the list is endless! We know that not everybody is comfortable with the term ‘customer’ in a university context (Does it worry you? What term do you prefer? Readers, users, patrons?) but we are using it here as the most convenient term to encompass everyone we support and engage with as part of our service.
The requirement to know and understand customers has never been more important in higher education. Why do you think this is?
A key reason is tuition fees. Since they were first introduced in 1998 tuition fees have risen from £1000 to £9000 per year (2010). Students (and their parents) are therefore now expecting good service and a good ‘experience’ while they attend university..
Take a look at page 11 in your booklet. Can you identify all the customers that we deal with here in the library service? Consider the different ways that we categorize our customers, e.g. students, staff – can you divide these further into specific groups (e.g. part-time students, international students...)?
We don't necessarily think of our customers in categories when we meet them. But it's still important that we are aware of these categories in order to provide appropriate services for different needs. For example, while any customer may request or borrow a book, the way we provide that service will vary if they are a distance learner, a student with a disability, or a member of staff.
It's also important to remember that our customers are individuals - no two distance learners, for example, will be the same - so we need to tailor our support to meet individual needs.
We'll be looking at meeting the additional needs of our customers in more detail in Section 7.
Understanding our customers
Let's find out more about our customers:
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What does good customer service mean to you? Share your examples of the best customer service you've received on our Whiteboard on MS Teams.
Examples of good customer service
Check out these examples of excellent customer service ... are there any similarities in the stories? What made the service excellent?
