10/09-09   -   Press releases

Genesys to release valuable new customer research at CC & CM Expo – measures economic value of service to UK companies

* Survey results will show how much poor service actually costs companies
* Copies of the UK research available at Call Centre & Customer Management Expo – Birmingham, 22nd and 23rd September 2009, Stand G5

Genesys Telecommunications Laboratories, an Alcatel-Lucent company (Euronext Paris and NYSE: ALU), will announce the results of a survey that measures the economic impact of negative customer experience on UK businesses at the CC & CM Expo. The new research quantifies the frequency and value of lost relationships due to poor customer service and also identifies preferred communication channels for consumers. This will provide call centre managers with detailed insight and understanding of how valuable good customer service is to businesses across the UK and what customers want from their contact centres.

Consumer dissatisfaction is a serious problem for global businesses. A similar survey undertaken in Australia, New Zealand and India revealed that more than 30 per cent of dissatisfied consumers chose not to spend any money after ending a relationship with a company that did not meet its expectations, resulting in a substantial loss in the amount of capital being injected into their businesses. This highlights the importance of having a good customer service system in place that reduces customer frustration by integrating all methods of contact including, phone, email, web chat, SMS and video calling, with the customer´s total contact and transaction history.

“The statistics provide novel insight into the importance of customer service for UK businesses," commented Lucille Jackson, Senior Marketing Manager UK & Ireland, Genesys. “The importance of these statistics is further highlighted by the results of the surveys taken in Australia, New Zealand and India, which showed that businesses in these regions lost a combined USD$5.6 billion each year in revenue due to customer dissatisfaction. In Australia, the average lost relationship was valued at approx. USD$338.85, which alone may not seem like a large figure, but multiplied has the potential to generate large losses for companies.

“The losses generated by poor customer service is a key area for concern and illustrates the importance of having a good contact centre and customer relations. Genesys platforms focus on reducing customer frustration by not only providing integrated contact centre solutions, but also helping to optimise workforce performance and drive business goals. A more unified approach to customer services is needed in order to reduce the amounts of customer complaints and lost relationships for businesses," Lucille Jackson concluded.

Copies of the UK research will be available at Genesys stand G5 at Call Centre & Customer Management Expo, Birmingham 22nd and 23rd September 2009.

About Genesys Telecommunications Laboratories, Inc.
Genesys, part of Alcatel-Lucent’s Applications Software Group, is the leading provider of software to manage customer interactions over the phone, Web and mobile devices. The Genesys software suite connects customers with the right resources – self-service, assisted-service and proactive outreach – to fulfil customer requests, optimise customer care goals and efficiently use resources. Genesys software directs more than 100 million customer interactions every day for 4,000 companies and government agencies in 80 countries. These companies and agencies can leverage their entire organisation, from the contact centre to the back office, to dynamically engage with their customers. As a result, Genesys stops customer frustration, drives efficiency and accelerates business innovation.

For more information, please visit www.genesyslab.com

About Alcatel-Lucent
Alcatel-Lucent (Euronext Paris and NYSE: ALU) is the trusted partner of service providers, enterprises and governments worldwide, providing solutions to deliver voice, data and video communication services to end-users. A leader in fixed, mobile and converged broadband networking, IP technologies, applications and services, Alcatel-Lucent leverages the unrivalled technical and scientific expertise of Bell Labs, one of the largest innovation powerhouses in the communications industry. With operations in more than 130 countries and the most experienced global services organization in the industry, Alcatel-Lucent is a local partner with a global reach. Alcatel-Lucent achieved revenues of Euro 16.98 billion in 2008 and is incorporated in France, with executive offices located in Paris. For more information, visit Alcatel-Lucent on the Internet: www.alcatel-lucent.com

Media Contact:
Duncan Burford, UK PR for Genesys, 01780 721 433, dburford@iba-europe.com