Portbase has scored a splendid 7.7 in the 2022 edition of the major annual customer experience survey. The rating given by the daily users of the Port Community System (PCS) is a welcome affirmation. But far more important are the concerns raised. For Portbase, these are indispensable signals to help us work on further improvements. The first concrete actions are now underway.
View the infographic with key findings
View the infographic with an extensive picture of the results
Within Portbase, market researcher Jos Jooren and customer experience expert Marlies de Groot are the driving forces behind the many surveys that Portbase conducts throughout the year in order to improve its services. Those surveys range from large to small, from a focus on strategic and tactical topics to questions about operational experiences. “I want to thank customers very much for taking the time to fill out our questionnaires time and time again”, says Jooren on behalf of himself and De Groot with regard to the community’s involvement. “We really appreciate that; the various teams within our organisation genuinely put that input to good use. We want to continually improve our services.”
Practical improvements
The 2022 edition of the annual customer experience survey again yielded many valuable insights. This year’s study focused specifically on users’ operational experiences. “It’s often about very concrete things”, De Groot points out. “One issue raised, for example, was the PCS automatically shutting down when a user has been inactive for too long. Users find that annoying. From an information security perspective, there is a good reason for that measure. At the same time, it detracts from user-friendliness.”
Easier to connect
It’s just one small example. The infographic showing the most important research results highlights many more outcomes that Portbase is currently working on or has already. Jooren: “For example, new customers find connecting to Portbase’s services very laborious. Over the next few months, the Marketing and Sales departments will be putting a lot of time and effort into making that process easier and giving customers better support.”
Growing appreciation
The rating of 7.7 is, of course, an average. Some customer groups are more positive than others. As in previous surveys, shipping companies and terminals are the most satisfied, while hinterland carriers are the most critical. Among those carriers, however, a turnaround is visible. “In the survey from two years ago, the user-friendliness of the hinterland services was a major concern. We took that finding seriously at Portbase.” This has resulted in the rating given by hinterland carriers rising to 7.4 in the current survey. “Two years back the figure was 7.1 and another two years before that just 6.7. There are more improvements on the way in terms of user-friendliness. We continue to evolve in that regard.”
Established place for customer research
The positive change in sentiment among hinterland carriers is perhaps the best example of what gathering customer input year in, year out can achieve. De Groot: “Customer research is becoming more and more an established part of our daily processes. Users give their input for a reason. We at Portbase really make it our business to do better every time.”
