Self-service benchmark: your customer portal next to your competitors', rated by real customers

WUA's Digital Service Scan is a benchmark of your self-service. Your own customers do service tasks in your customer portal and app, such as changing their address or bank details. Customers of three competitors do the same in their own account. You get a score per task, an advisory report and a workshop.

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A woman at her kitchen table changes something in her account on her phone, with a letter and a cup of tea beside her

How the self-service research works

The Service Scan shows how easily customers get things done online, with you and with your competitors.

  1. Choose the tasks

    From the questions your customer service gets most often.

  2. Choose three competitors

    We do this together.

  3. Customers do the tasks

    Each in their own account.

  4. Analysis

    Scores per task, device and provider.

  5. Report and workshop

    With your team we set the priorities.

How the Service Scan measures one task

  1. Your customer logs in to change her bank details.
  2. First, she says how much effort she expects.
  3. Customers of three competitors do the same task, each in their own account.
  4. With the competitors it goes smoothly. With you, she gets stuck at step two.
  5. Afterwards she says how much effort it took. With you, more than expected.
  6. For each task you see where your customers get stuck. And how your competitors do.

Task: change bank details

  1. Your customer

  2. Customer of A

  3. Customer of B

  4. Customer of C

  • Expected effort
  • Experienced effort
  • More than expected

How much effort does your most important service task take?

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What the Service Scan gives you

After the Service Scan you know which service tasks to tackle first.

  1. A score per task

    For each task you see whether customers can finish it themselves, how easy that is and how they feel about it. You also see whether they would rather call and whether they would recommend you. Always next to the scores of three competitors.

  2. Effort before and after

    Customers say beforehand how much effort they expect and afterwards how much it took. If a task takes more than expected, your service falls short there.

  3. Why, in your customers' own words

    After each task, customers explain what helped and what did not. So you know not only where things go wrong, but also why.

    Customer explanations

    Examples

    “I couldn't find anywhere to change my account number.”
    Your customer, change bank details
    “After saving, I didn't know whether it had worked.”
    Your customer, change bank details
    “I had to log in again to confirm it. Cumbersome.”
    Your customer, change bank details

  4. An advisory report and a workshop

    In the advisory report, WUA puts the improvements in order: what to tackle first and why. In a workshop you discuss the results with your team and choose the next steps together.

    A team at a meeting table covered with printed report pages and sticky notes discusses the results

    Advisory report

    1. Make the account number easy to find
    2. Confirm after saving
    3. No second login

Price and lead time of the Service Scan

Investment
from €12,000
Lead time
2 to 6 weeks
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And then?

  • Go deeper

    Watch recordings of what customers do in the tasks that took more effort.

  • Repeat

    Measure the same tasks again after an improvement.

  • Improve

    We build and test prototypes of your improvements.

Is a Service Scan right for you?

  • You want customers to do more themselves online.
  • You want to know which service task takes the most effort.
  • You want to see your service next to your competitors'.
The Digital Service Scan next to other research methods
StudyMethodNumber of peopleCompetitorsOutcome
Website Experience Deep DiveReal customers rate the sites2003Scores, advisory report and workshop
Digital Service ScanCustomers do service tasks in their own accountAbout 2003Scores per task, advisory report and workshop
Website AuditExpert review with AI analysisNo customers2Report with priorities
Website Experience SnapshotDeep Dive on 3 partsAbout 150Up to 2Scores, advice and presentation
Digital Market TrackerConsumers search the whole marketAbout 400 per quarterWhole marketDashboard, every quarter
Lab45 UsabilityOne to one, thinking aloud8 to 12No benchmarkRecordings and findings
Mystery shoppingTest customer checks criteria--Findings per criterion
Compare the studies

Frequently asked questions about benchmarking your self-service

What is a self-service benchmark?

A self-service benchmark shows how easily customers handle service tasks online themselves, with you and with your competitors. In WUA's Digital Service Scan, real customers do this in their own customer portal or app.

How do you compare your customer portal with your competitors' if you can't log in there?

By having those competitors' customers do the tasks. In the Service Scan, your customers and customers of three competitors do the same service tasks, each in their own account. You choose which competitors together with WUA.

How do you test a customer portal or app that requires a login?

With people who already have an account: your own customers. A test panel cannot get into your portal. In the Service Scan, customers do the tasks in their own account, the way they do at home.

What is the Customer Effort Score and how do you measure it?

The Customer Effort Score (CES) shows how much effort it takes a customer to get something done. In the Service Scan, customers say beforehand how much effort they expect and afterwards how much it took. Where it takes more than expected, your service falls short.

Why do customers call when they could do it online?

Often because doing it online takes more effort than they expect. Or because they are not sure whether it worked. For each task, the Service Scan asks whether customers would rather do it online or call. You also see at which step they get stuck.

Which service tasks can you test?

The tasks customers ask your customer service about most often. Think of changing an address or bank details, viewing an invoice, changing a subscription or filing a claim. Together with WUA you choose which tasks go into the research.

How is this different from mystery shopping?

In mystery shopping, a test customer checks a process against fixed criteria. In the Service Scan, real customers do the tasks in their own account. They say themselves how much effort it took and why.

How is this different from a usability test?

A usability test follows 6 to 12 people closely, so you see what goes wrong on a screen. The Service Scan measures with many more customers how a task goes with you and with three competitors. A usability test is often a logical next step.

How many customers take part in a Service Scan?

About 200, spread across the providers: each provider has its own group of customers. The exact number depends on the number of tasks and providers.

Does the Service Scan work for an app too?

Yes. Customers do the tasks on their smartphone, on desktop or in the app. You see the scores per device, so you know where the differences are.

What does a self-service benchmark cost?

WUA's Digital Service Scan costs from €12,000. For business customer journeys the price is higher, because business respondents cost more. The price also depends on the number of tasks and how complex they are.

How long does a Service Scan take?

A Service Scan takes 2 to 6 weeks. The exact time depends on the number of tasks and providers.

Other studies by WUA

See where your customers get stuck online

A Service Scan tells you within 2 to 6 weeks.

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