Battle of the Sexes

Fizzback analysed 1:1 customer-staff interactions across a number of industries and touch-points, including in-store sales, telemarketing and customer services. In all cases, a measure of interaction satisfaction was calculated and a measure of advocacy captured (the extent to which the customer would recommend the company to a friend or family.)  Groundbreaking insights were found in how customer sentiment varies simply as a function of staff gender relative to their own. 

Both male and female customers rated interactions with female sales, marketing and customer service staff as being more satisfactory than with male staff. The best rated interactions took place between females on both sides. The worst rated interactions took place between males on both sides. The same pattern was true for advocacy ratings.

The following chart shows the deviation from the average normalized Fizzback sentiment score, with customers on the left and staff on the right:

A recent UK study conducted by psychologist Dr David Lewis indicates that shopping in crowded stores raises stress levels of men to the point it’s hazardous to their health. “The peak levels were equivalent to emergency situations experienced by fighter pilots or policemen going into dangerous situations,” says Dr Lewis who studied of men’ s stress levels during Christmas shopping. 

Dr Lewis sent three dozen men and women of different ages to stores with identical Christmas shopping lists. Each shopper was accompanied by researcher who recorded periodic blood pressure and heart rate. Even before they had stepped out of the front door, more than 70 per cent of men started to show symptoms of anxiety. “For men even the thought of going shopping was enough to send stress levels soaring,” comments Lewis.

The stress levels for women who had brought their husbands along were much higher than those who went alone or with other female companions. Even those who brought their kids along recorded lower levels of stress than those accompanied by their husbands.

This could indicate why the in-store shopping experiences of male customers are rated lower than those of their female counterparts. In our study, female shoppers rated their experience more positively with retail staff of both genders, but the female to female relationship was rated the highest. So why is this?

According to Angie Court, European Chair for SOCAP (Society of Consumer Affairs Professionals): “These findings consistent with my experience. The suggestion is that women form relationships more quickly and make quick, instinctive judgements, whereas men can tend to focus on the transaction.”

This view is backed by research studies conducted across 37 countries confirming that women are generally able to read body language and facial expressions better than men. Studies by communication experts at UCLA suggest that 93% of communication is non-verbal, a view also echoed by Bandler and Grinder, fathers of Neuro-linguistic Programming. Body language, facial expression and voice tone form a critical part of human communication and the suggestion is that women are able to read and adapt to these visual and auditory cues far quicker than men. This skill is vitally important in face-to-face interactions, and also important in telephone interactions, as UCLA suggests that 38% of communication is through voice tone and quality.

The science behind this is equally fascinating. Medical researchers have discovered the corpus callosum fibers connecting the brain’s left and right hemispheres are more developed in women than men, resulting in women being more receptive to contextual and intuitive messages. This extends to branding and advertising: when both a woman and a man view a piece of advertising creative, their perceptions of the message may be altogether different. Marketers take note!

About Fizzback

Fizzback helps brands to engage with their customers. The Fizzback™ service solicits instant customer feedback at the point of experience and employs a unique artificial intelligence engine to understand the nature, sentiment and tone of comments. Tailored responses are generated and delivered in real-time, driving meaningful conversations. Relevant staff are intelligently alerted, enabling companies to resolve customer issues quickly, and an interactive dashboard, including KPIs and verbatim customer feedback, helps senior management drive their business by voice-of-customer. 

Fizzback™ is being used by companies determined to innovate and differentiate themselves though a superior customer experience. In practical terms it is like being able to walk the shop floor 24/7, listening to what your customers are saying and acting upon their insights.

Headquartered in London, Fizzback is privately owned and backed by Advent Venture Partners.

Contact: 0845 067 1000