Credit Unions have emerged as the winners for the third year in a row in an annual survey of Irish brands based on customer experiences (CX).
In a Top 10 dominated by retail brands, Lush Cosmetics and An Post retained 2nd and 3rd position for the second year in a row in the survey which was carried out by Amarách Research on behalf of the CX Company.
The full report can be downloaded from The CX Company website here.
Today (Tuesday Oct 3rd) is international CX Day and the survey is being published to raise awareness of customer experience excellence in Ireland.
A spokesperson for the Irish League of Credit Unions (ILCU), which represents over 270 credit unions in the Republic of Ireland, said the organisation was humbled by the result.
“This is a hugely positive endorsement by the general public of the services we offer to members. Credit unions are different from other financial institutions, not just because we are not-for-profit, but because decisions are made at a local level and tailored to the individual needs of members.”
The top ten ranked companies
Brand |
Sector |
2017 |
2016 |
2015 |
Movement 2017 vs. 2016 |
Movement 2016 vs 2015 |
Movement 2017 vs 2015 |
Irish Credit Union |
Financial |
1 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
Lush Cosmetics |
Retail |
2 |
2 |
NEW |
0 |
NEW |
NEW |
An Post |
Retail |
3 |
3 |
8 |
0 |
5 |
5 |
Amazon |
Retail |
4 |
28 |
15 |
24 |
-13 |
11 |
Boots |
Retail |
5 |
7 |
5 |
2 |
-2 |
0 |
Parcel Motel |
Retail |
6 |
NEW |
NEW |
NEW |
NEW |
NEW |
Penneys |
Retail |
7 |
10 |
9 |
3 |
-1 |
2 |
Netflix |
Entertainment & Leisure |
8 |
38 |
32 |
30 |
-6 |
24 |
Marks & Spencer |
Retail |
9 |
9 |
NEW |
0 |
NEW |
NEW |
Argos |
Retail |
9 |
39 |
NEW |
30 |
NEW |
NEW |
Sam McCauley Pharmacies |
Retail |
9 |
4 |
13 |
-5 |
9 |
4 |
Michael Killeen, Chairman of the CX Company described the consistent success of the top three brands as remarkable.
“Customer Experience isn’t something you can switch on and off like a special offer. It’s a constant. If it’s part of your culture, if genuine care for your customers is second nature to your staff you will earn their trust and loyalty. If it’s not you have to learn it and earn it. It shouldn’t come as a surprise that these three brands are also Ireland’s most trusted brands. In that context, reports that An Post plans to close hundreds of branches will be of great concern to consumers.”
Travel a faller
“Top companies can make CX look easy, but when it goes wrong the results can be frightening. Look at Mytaxi/ Hailo. It was a star performer in the first survey in 2015. Now it’s one of the biggest fallers, tumbling 94 places to 137 and out of the Top 100. They didn’t get the drivers on board with the new app and now with the introduction of new charges and reports of declining service levels they may well struggle to get passengers on board as well.”
“Ryanair is down 38 places and also out of the Top 100 (115). Customers just didn’t believe its explanation of the way seats are pre-allocated. The flight cancellation story is a much more serious affair and will surely see the airline slide further” Killeen said.
Elsewhere in the Travel sector intermittent industrial action on trains and buses left many consumers stranded and undermined trust in brands such as Irish Rail, Bus Eireann and Dublin Bus while dissatisfaction with airport delays saw the Dublin Airport Authority fall 55 places to 109. On a more positive note Aer Lingus has maintained its top 30 position while Luas has repaired its reputation somewhat, climbing 38 places and back into the Top 100.”
Retail and the impact of digital
Retail, with 52 companies in the Top 100 and four in the Top 5 was the top performing sector this year. In fact Powercity was the biggest riser this year moving up over 50 places to number 50 in the table. One of the main drivers of Retail’s success and indeed that of the Entertainment sector was the rise of digital brands such as Amazon which jumped to number four. It was followed by a host of others including Parcel Motel, Netflix, Argos, YouTube.com, Google and Adverts.ie Interestingly one exception here was Facebook, whose integrity score suffered pushing them down 15 places to 124.
Killeen believes the Irish consumer has finally recognised digital’s positive impact in our lives. “What makes the digital brands stand out is their ability to humanise the experience they give customers through the use of data, demonstrating they understand their needs and expectations. While this is great news for consumers there is also a warning here for retailers doing business in Ireland.”
“Our research shows that the vast majority of consumers (62%) across all age groups interact in store or inbranch. However in the US many people are buying everything online – from their groceries to their lightbulbs.If we don’t love our customers online then that spend will evaporate out of the country to those, like Amazon, who are investing huge amounts in CX.”
Selected brands
Rank |
Brand |
Sector |
Places from 2016 |
26 |
Laya Healthcare |
Insurance |
40 |
50 |
Powercity |
Retail |
54 |
56 |
Maldron |
Travel |
29 |
59 |
Clayton |
Travel |
29 |
68 |
VHI |
Insurance |
34 |
73 |
Electric Ireland |
Utilities |
22 |
76 |
Done Deal |
Retail |
36 |
82 |
Aviva |
Insurance |
35 |
85 |
Allianz |
Insurance |
51 |
89 |
Luas |
Travel |
38 |
102 |
Heatons |
Retail |
-55 |
106 |
Irish Rail |
Travel |
-30 |
121 |
Costa Coffee |
Restaurant |
-50 |
121 |
An Garda Siochana |
Public Sector |
-24 |
124 |
|
Ent & Leisure |
-15 |
131 |
Dublin Bus |
Travel |
-25 |
141 |
Sky |
Telecoms |
-20 |
144 |
Virgin Media |
Telecoms |
4 |
146 |
Bus Eireann |
Travel |
-51 |
148 |
AIG |
Insurance |
-2 |
149 |
Three |
Telecoms |
-12 |
150 |
Eir |
Telecoms |
-12 |
151 |
Greyhound |
Utilities |
-12 |
152 |
Irish Water |
Utilities |
-3 |
Telco’s Travails
The report found that Telecoms had the lowest consumer tolerance level over any other sector. This is partially due to its absolute complexity and the customer journey involved. When a breakdown in service occurs it causes major headaches and hassle for the consumer. Killeen describes their customer service as dire.
“This sector is guilty of having a fixation with acquisition and ignoring the needs of current customers and in many cases holding them to ransom with inflexible contracts. The sector is a text book case of over promising – via expensive ad campaigns - and under delivering. One exception is Tesco Mobile, the only brand from this sector in the Top 100. It jumped 16 places to 31” he said.
Utilities, Insurance, Financials & Public Sector
Although operating in very different areas, these four sectors face many similar challenges including legacy issues, a challenging market environment and lack of investment.
One of the authors of the report, Cathy Summers who is Head of Insights & Planning at the CX Company says that while many of the companies in these sectors feature at or near the bottom of the table, some are making a concerted effort to break with previous poor past performance.
“While Utilities continue to be our lowest performing sector they are finally getting their acts together by focusing on their existing customers rather than the switching game and managing customer expectations better. Electric Ireland is leading the way here but new entrants such as PrePayPower, Energia and Pinergy are starting to make headway.”
“It’s a similar story to some extent with Financials and Insurance. In the US and UK banks lead CX delivery and the penny has dropped with banks here that the consumer views CX as the key differentiator. AIB is the largest financial jumper this year joining Ulster Bank in 89th position in our table”
“The Public Sector has dropped one place in the sector ranking despite marginally increasing its overall CX score. A string of controversies including fake breath tests, financial irregularities and the speeding fine issue has seen An Garda Síochána fall 24 places” Summers said.
Supermarkets and Restaurant Sector
While Irish supermarkets stand out for CX delivery with three brands in the top 15, all of the main players dropped positions with the exception of SuperValu. The situation is more serious for restaurants with very few of them moving in the right direction this year. The sector has suffered greatly over the years due to a lack of investment and constant turnover of staff.
Summers says staff training will be key for both. “Both sectors need to put their employees first if they are to meet challenges from online and indeed from smaller more community friendly offerings. Both might do well to look at IKEA’s CX strategy which is based on ‘treating every customer as a guest’. The Company says its ‘Customer Experience Map’ helps the whole business to walk in their customers’ shoes. That is key to understanding CX” Summers concluded.
International & National Trends
Ireland is still lagging behind the UK and the US when it comes to customer experience excellence. Ireland is 3% behind the UK and 9% behind the US, although there has been small improvements year-on-year. The US is very much the front runner, having seen a 4.5% uplift in their overall CX score in 2017.
Two brands in Ireland achieved an overall CX score higher than 8 (out of 10) in this year’s survey (Irish Credit Union & Lush). This compares to the most recent UK survey where four brands achieved this high score (First Direct, John Lewis, Lush and Emirates). In the US 2017 survey 58 brands reached an overall CX score of 8 or more showing that they are global leaders in CX .
CXi
The CXi Report is published annually by the CX Company which is based in Dublin. The Report is based on a survey of 2,500 consumers which is carried out on the company’s behalf by Amarach Research. The CX Company offers a subscription based service for Irish companies who want to grow and improve their business by learning from the experiences of their customers and by studying international best practice. This is the third year the CXi Report has been published. The authors of the report are Michael Killeen, Cathy Summers, Susannah Hewson (all from the CX Company) and Julian Douglas,CEO of Bright Way Up.
The Report
The CX Company helps businesses understand what great CX looks like and enables themto benchmark against the best in Ireland and abroad. Using a Six Pillar framework developed by KPMG Nunwood, the CX Company is able to scientifically score Ireland’s top brands on how successful they are at delivering brilliant CX. This framework and analysis can then be used to address specific business challenges such as brand differentiation, retention, loyalty and driving acquisition through advocacy.
In the last three years the CX Company has collected 115,000 Irish consumer evaluations of 170 brands across 10 sectors. The CX Company also has access to 1.4 million global consumer evaluations across 1,000 cross-sector brands based on seven years of research conducted by KPMG Nunwood.
Top 100 brands
Brand & Sector |
Ranking |
Movement |
|||||
Brand |
Sector |
2017 |
2016 |
2015 |
Movement 2017 vs. 2016 |
Movement 2016 vs 2015 |
Movement 2017 vs 2015 |
Irish Credit Union |
Financial |
1 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
Lush Cosmetics |
Retail |
2 |
2 |
NEW |
0 |
NEW |
NEW |
An Post |
Retail |
3 |
3 |
8 |
0 |
5 |
5 |
Amazon |
Retail |
4 |
28 |
15 |
24 |
-13 |
11 |
Boots |
Retail |
5 |
7 |
5 |
2 |
-2 |
0 |
Parcel Motel |
Retail |
6 |
NEW |
NEW |
NEW |
NEW |
NEW |
Penneys |
Retail |
7 |
10 |
9 |
3 |
-1 |
2 |
Netflix |
Entertainment & Leisure |
8 |
38 |
32 |
30 |
-6 |
24 |
Marks & Spencer |
Retail |
9 |
9 |
NEW |
0 |
NEW |
NEW |
Argos |
Retail |
9 |
39 |
NEW |
30 |
NEW |
NEW |
Sam McCauley Pharmacies |
Retail |
9 |
4 |
13 |
-5 |
9 |
4 |
IKEA |
Retail |
12 |
14 |
38 |
2 |
24 |
26 |
M&S Simply Food |
Supermarket |
12 |
10 |
12 |
-2 |
2 |
0 |
Lidl |
Supermarket |
14 |
13 |
29 |
-1 |
16 |
15 |
YouTube.com |
Entertainment & Leisure |
15 |
57 |
48 |
42 |
-9 |
33 |
Smyths Toystore |
Retail |
15 |
25 |
32 |
10 |
7 |
17 |
Aldi |
Supermarket |
15 |
8 |
4 |
-7 |
-4 |
-11 |
IMC Cinemas |
Entertainment & Leisure |
18 |
33 |
19 |
15 |
-14 |
1 |
|
Entertainment & Leisure |
19 |
31 |
31 |
12 |
0 |
12 |
Specsavers |
Retail |
19 |
14 |
13 |
-5 |
-1 |
-6 |
McCabes Pharmacy |
Retail |
21 |
14 |
41 |
-7 |
27 |
20 |
Arnotts |
Retail |
22 |
22 |
56 |
0 |
34 |
34 |
Homestore + more |
Retail |
22 |
12 |
NEW |
-10 |
NEW |
NEW |
Carraig Donn |
Retail |
24 |
NEW |
NEW |
NEW |
NEW |
NEW |
Omniplex |
Entertainment & Leisure |
25 |
28 |
32 |
3 |
4 |
7 |
Laya Healthcare |
Insurance |
26 |
66 |
71 |
40 |
5 |
45 |
Aer Lingus |
Travel |
26 |
28 |
21 |
2 |
-7 |
-5 |
Citylink |
Travel |
26 |
5 |
32 |
-21 |
27 |
6 |
Hickey's Pharmacy |
Retail |
29 |
NEW |
NEW |
NEW |
NEW |
NEW |
Debenhams |
Retail |
30 |
33 |
NEW |
3 |
NEW |
NEW |
Tesco Mobile |
Telecoms |
31 |
47 |
62 |
16 |
15 |
31 |
Art and Hobby |
Retail |
31 |
NEW |
NEW |
NEW |
NEW |
NEW |
Radisson Blu |
Travel |
31 |
74 |
32 |
43 |
-42 |
1 |
Adverts.ie |
Retail |
34 |
87 |
NEW |
53 |
NEW |
NEW |
Dealz |
Retail |
35 |
22 |
22 |
-13 |
0 |
-13 |
Supervalu |
Supermarket |
35 |
41 |
27 |
6 |
-14 |
-8 |
Applegreen |
Retail |
37 |
50 |
73 |
13 |
23 |
36 |
StenaLine |
Travel |
37 |
51 |
55 |
14 |
4 |
18 |
Dominos Pizza |
Restaurants |
39 |
49 |
43 |
10 |
-6 |
4 |
Kilkenny Design |
Retail |
39 |
45 |
37 |
6 |
-8 |
-2 |
Lloyds Pharmacy |
Retail |
39 |
14 |
10 |
-25 |
-4 |
-29 |
Aircoach |
Travel |
42 |
20 |
17 |
-22 |
-3 |
-25 |
Passport Office |
Public Sector |
43 |
32 |
NEW |
-11 |
NEW |
NEW |
Avoca |
Retail |
43 |
21 |
48 |
-22 |
27 |
5 |
Brown Thomas |
Retail |
43 |
45 |
50 |
2 |
5 |
7 |
Eason |
Retail |
46 |
33 |
29 |
-13 |
-4 |
-17 |
Odeon Cinemas |
Entertainment & Leisure |
47 |
18 |
20 |
-29 |
2 |
-27 |
Lifestyle Sports |
Retail |
47 |
75 |
65 |
28 |
-10 |
18 |
Topline |
Retail |
49 |
71 |
NEW |
22 |
NEW |
NEW |
Powercity |
Retail |
50 |
104 |
53 |
54 |
-51 |
3 |
B&Q |
Retail |
50 |
51 |
88 |
1 |
37 |
38 |
Littlewoods |
Retail |
52 |
NEW |
NEW |
NEW |
NEW |
NEW |
GameStop |
Retail |
52 |
79 |
66 |
27 |
-13 |
14 |
Mr Price |
Retail |
54 |
NEW |
NEW |
NEW |
NEW |
NEW |
JD Sports |
Retail |
54 |
57 |
NEW |
3 |
NEW |
NEW |
Regatta |
Retail |
56 |
NEW |
NEW |
NEW |
NEW |
NEW |
Maldron Hotel Group |
Travel |
56 |
85 |
44 |
29 |
-41 |
-12 |
Next |
Retail |
58 |
37 |
NEW |
-21 |
NEW |
NEW |
Tiger |
Retail |
59 |
26 |
NEW |
-33 |
NEW |
NEW |
Dunnes Retail |
Retail |
59 |
43 |
NEW |
-16 |
NEW |
NEW |
Tesco |
Supermarket |
59 |
54 |
59 |
-5 |
5 |
0 |
Clayton Hotels |
Travel |
59 |
88 |
NEW |
29 |
NEW |
NEW |
DID Electrical |
Retail |
63 |
39 |
NEW |
-24 |
NEW |
NEW |
Woodies |
Retail |
63 |
51 |
67 |
-12 |
16 |
4 |
Irish Ferries |
Travel |
63 |
60 |
15 |
-3 |
-45 |
-48 |
Butlers Chocolates |
Restaurants |
66 |
26 |
6 |
-40 |
-20 |
-60 |
Centra |
Supermarket |
66 |
65 |
64 |
-1 |
-1 |
-2 |
VHI |
Insurance |
68 |
102 |
114 |
34 |
12 |
46 |
O'Briens Off Licence |
Retail |
68 |
19 |
47 |
-49 |
28 |
-21 |
Topaz |
Retail |
68 |
79 |
71 |
11 |
-8 |
3 |
Dunnes |
Supermarket |
68 |
57 |
70 |
-11 |
13 |
2 |
Supermacs |
Restaurants |
72 |
60 |
50 |
-12 |
-10 |
-22 |
Electric Ireland |
Utilities |
73 |
95 |
105 |
22 |
10 |
32 |
Four Star Pizza |
Restaurants |
74 |
60 |
42 |
-14 |
-18 |
-32 |
Shaws Department Stores |
Retail |
74 |
NEW |
NEW |
NEW |
NEW |
NEW |
Leisureplex |
Entertainment & Leisure |
76 |
85 |
NEW |
9 |
NEW |
NEW |
Donedeal.ie |
Retail |
76 |
112 |
NEW |
36 |
NEW |
NEW |
McDonalds |
Restaurants |
78 |
66 |
73 |
-12 |
7 |
-5 |
Milanos |
Restaurants |
79 |
69 |
56 |
-10 |
-13 |
-23 |
Peter Mark |
Retail |
79 |
6 |
53 |
-73 |
47 |
-26 |
Elverys Sports |
Retail |
79 |
56 |
44 |
-23 |
-12 |
-35 |
Aviva |
Insurance |
82 |
117 |
99 |
35 |
-18 |
17 |
Eddie Rockets |
Restaurants |
83 |
66 |
56 |
-17 |
-10 |
-27 |
Mothercare |
Retail |
83 |
33 |
22 |
-50 |
-11 |
-61 |
Allianz |
Insurance |
85 |
136 |
119 |
51 |
-17 |
34 |
DART |
Travel |
85 |
91 |
83 |
6 |
-8 |
-2 |
Harvey Norman |
Retail |
87 |
102 |
NEW |
15 |
NEW |
NEW |
Energia |
Utilities |
88 |
107 |
107 |
19 |
0 |
19 |
Ulster Bank |
Financial |
89 |
83 |
108 |
-6 |
25 |
19 |
AIB |
Financial |
89 |
104 |
111 |
15 |
7 |
22 |
Abrakebabra |
Restaurants |
89 |
84 |
95 |
-5 |
11 |
6 |
Chopped |
Restaurants |
89 |
NEW |
NEW |
NEW |
NEW |
NEW |
Carphone Warehouse |
Retail |
89 |
99 |
89 |
10 |
-10 |
0 |
TK Maxx |
Retail |
89 |
41 |
68 |
-48 |
27 |
-21 |
LUAS |
Travel |
89 |
127 |
22 |
38 |
-105 |
-67 |
Maxol |
Retail |
96 |
81 |
86 |
-15 |
5 |
-10 |
AA |
Insurance |
97 |
126 |
105 |
29 |
-21 |
8 |
Irish Life Health |
Insurance |
98 |
NEW |
NEW |
NEW |
NEW |
NEW |
Phonewatch |
Insurance |
99 |
60 |
NEW |
-39 |
NEW |
NEW |
Insomnia |
Restaurants |
99 |
77 |
68 |
-22 |
-9 |
-31 |
Prepay Power |
Utilities |
99 |
130 |
NEW |
31 |
NEW |
NEW |
Congratulations to the winners of round 1 of our NTA travel survey prize draw...