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Source: MIL-OSI Submissions
Source: Quality Service Awards
 
Reader’s Digest has released the names of the NZ businesses that achieved customer service excellence during an extraordinarily challenging year.

In releasing the Quality Service Award results, Reader’s Digest acknowledges it has been a time of “extreme difficulty” for customer service given lockdowns and other Covid-19 challenges. Yet the owners and staff of businesses listed as award winners rallied and their success is arguably more commendable than ever, says Reader’s Digest editor-in-chief Louise Waterson.

She says that while the pandemic may have shifted the standard markers of business success, customer service has remained core among those success markers.

“During the peak of the pandemic, the award-winning businesses remained savvy, clever and calm in their approach to customers, so much so that the importance of kindness and understanding once again became paramount.”

The Reader’s Digest survey revealed that about two thirds of New Zealanders (68 percent) say they are more money conscious now since the start of the pandemic. And 68 percent of New Zealand consumers acknowledge they now put more thought into their choice of products and services than they did pre-Covid.

Reader’s Digest commissioned independent market research company Catalyst to survey New Zealanders’ opinions of a range of service providers.

A total of 1,500 New Zealanders of a mixed demographic were asked to rate their experience of service provided by businesses / organisations.

Running since 2015, the survey identifies the most satisfied customers across 40 different categories, from pet insurance to pizzas and from Supermarkets to Superannuation. The prestigious Quality Service Award recognises companies that truly understand consumers’ needs.

The winners’ line up includes businesses that have repeatedly featured on the podium, as well as first time Gold winners such as Electric Kiwi (Gas& Electricity Provider) and Hello Fresh (Meal Plan Delivery Service).


The full list of New Zealand Quality Service Award winners are as follows:
CATEGORY WINNER SILVER
Campervan rentals Jucy Britz
Car insurance AA Insurance AMI
Car rentals (excluding motor homes) Avis Hertz
Coffee shops & cafes Starbucks Columbus Coffee
Cruise operator Princess Cruises Royal Caribbean
DIY/home improvement stores Mitre 10 Bunnings
Educational Tutors Kip McGrath NumberWorks ‘s Words
Electrical Appliance Stores Noel Leeming Briscoes
Flooring stores (excluding tiling and DIY/home improvement stores) Carpet Court
Flooring Xtra
Harrisons Carpet
Funeral insurance Cigna Momentum Life
Furniture stores Harvey Norman Smiths City
Garden centres Kings Plant Barn Palmers
Gas & electricity provider Electric Kiwi Mercury
Health insurance Southern Cross Health Society AA Health
Hearing services Bay Audiology Triton Hearing
Home & contents insurance AA Insurance AMI
Home loan suppliers ASB BNZ
Home design & build service Lockwood Homes G.J.Gardner
Internet service provider 2degrees Skinny
Kindergarten centre operator BestStart Central Kids
Life Insurance AIA Southern Cross Life Insurance
Liquor outlets Liquorland Super Liquor
Loyalty cards New World AA Smartfuel
Manufacturer certified used car sales Toyota Signature Class Honda Certified Used Cars
Meal plan delivery service Hello Fresh My Food Bag
Mobile phone service provider Skinny 2degrees
Optometrists Specsavers OPSM
Paint & decorating stores (excluding DIY/home improvement stores) Resene Guthrie Bowron
Personal banking Kiwibank The Co-Operative Bank
Pet Insurance Southern Cross Pet Insurance Petplan
Pizza franchise Domino’s Pizza Hut
Real estate sales Harcourts Barfoot & Thompson
Retirement villages Rymen Healthcare Bupa NZ
Roadside assistance AA Roadservice State
Superannuation ASB BNZ
Supermarkets Countdown PAK’nSAVE
Tiling stores (excluding DIY/home improvement stores) Tile Warehouse The Tile Depot
Travel insurance Southern Cross Travel Insurance AA Travel Insurance
Tyre retailers Bridgestone/Firestone Beaurepaires
Used vehicle dealerships Turners Cars 2 Cheap Cars


Background information:
A representative sample of 1,500 New Zealanders were involved in the survey which involved the following criteria:

CRITERIA POINT 1 – PERSONALISATION: How well was the company able to provide the consumer with an individualised customer experience?

CRITERIA POINT 2 – UNDERSTANDING: How effectively was the company able to demonstrate a genuine insight into the customer’s needs?

CRITERIA POINT 3 – SIMPLICITY: How quick and easy was the process of dealing with the company?

CRITERIA POINT 4 – SATISFACTION: To what level did the company meet or exceed the customer’s expectations?

CRITERIA POINT 5 – CONSISTENCY: Did the company deliver ongoing quality service?

MIL OSI