CREATE MEMORAblE ExPERiEnCES POST HAnDOvER
DUBAI — Real estate companies need to focus more of their attention to providing customers with a memorable and amazing experience post delivery, experts at the 2018 Customer Happiness Summit and Awards said.
“It is challenging to satisfy customers because it is a very multilayered industry; however, a high degree of customer satisfaction is achievable,” said Atif Rahman, partner and director at Danube Properties. “Most companies fail when it comes it intention; intention is where everything starts — once you say that you need to achieve the highest level of customer satisfaction, then it begins to reflect in everything that you do.”
He added: “As a developer, you have to be very careful to keep the customer informed, because they look to you as the expert. They are giving you their trust; not just their money, but their expectations and needs as well. I think it all boils down to giving them more value for less. People will forget the price, the payment plans, and the handover, but they will never forget the experience that they had with you.”
Alex Davies, MD at Emrill Services, noted that people want simplicity. “They want a home that is comfortable and safe to live in. They are looking for reliability.”
Mohd Kaiser Azad, head of Community Management at Emaar Community Management, said that developers have to look at the entire journey from the moment they are approached by a potential buyer to the moment that the buyer enters their new home.
“It is important to meet expectations. The process of transparency from the moment a project is launched to the end is very crucial. You have people who are investing millions of their life savings in a home. It is our responsibility that we give them the home that they want. Also, customers don’t just buy homes, they buy a lifestyle. Buyers want to be part of a safe and comfortable community, and they want to be assured that they are getting everything that they were promised.” Habib also noted that it was important to allow employees the freedom to express their emotions. “At the end of the day, we are humans. You cant have employees smiling all day because they will have ups and downs.”
“Employee happiness plays a vital role in our industry, because we are in the process of delivering dreams,” said Vagelyn Tumbaga Federico, director of HR at Dusit Thani. “We deal with the emotions of people. If our employees are happy, then they are more innovative, more productive, and more efficient. Our employees are our first customer, and their positive emotions impact the whole company.”
Little gestures, she said, go a long way. “Celebrate their birthdays. If they are sick, go visit them at the hospital or at their homes. Send them a fruit basket and a card with well wishes. We often have an activity called ‘back to ground’ sessions where senior management get back into ground roles and help the staff with tasks such as cleaning and laundry during busy periods. The science of happiness says that a person is happy when he makes another person happy.”