NCR Corporation (NYSE: NCR) today announced the launch of NCR Customer Voice, a web-based customer loyalty, retention and referral tool that enables operators to monitor customer satisfaction, deal with any dissatisfaction immediately and turn happy customers into brand ambassadors using social media channels.

Already driving increased sales for users, NCR Customer Voice provides restaurant operators with an easy way to survey customers and automate the process for receiving feedback on the customers’ experience. The software uses two survey questions that take less than 30 seconds to complete for customers and are distributed via email or available via a survey link on the customer’s receipt. Analytics that leverage the Net Promoter Score methodology are then used to escalate any concerns by customers so that operators can quickly make wrongs right and reach out directly to customers as soon as the feedback is given.

Separate findings from the American Express report also illustrated the potential for spreading positive word-of-mouth via online social networks.

In all, the typical social media customer service user will tell 42 others about a good experience, and 53 about a bad experience. These totals drop to nine and 17 respectively among non-users.

Sharing of customer service stories is also on the rise among the general population, with the typical American telling 15 people about positive interactions. When American Express conducted the same poll last year, this total reached just nine people.

At the same time, concerns over the quality of customer service are also on the rise, with almost a third (32%) of respondents saying they believe brands are not prioritising service in the same way as they used to. Last year, just 26% said the same.

Targetbase, a U.S.-based marketing services provider known for its expertise in customer intelligence, has been cited in Forrester Research, Inc.’s recent report The Evolution of the Customer Engagement Agency (February 2012).

Forrester’s research found that the demand for data-driven intelligence is growing as marketers strive to meet their customers’ expectations and create a seamless, relevant brand experience across multiple channels.

The Forrester report stated that “forward-thinking agency leaders are adding services and changing how they approach the marketing ecosystem, shifting from a traditional campaign-centric view of the world to one of continuous customer engagement.” The successful agency of the near future will be a customer engagement agency (CEA). Forrester defines CEAs as agencies that focus on defining customer-oriented business strategies and mapping them to tactics and execution. They help clients maximize customer profitability and optimize customer experiences by applying data and analytics to every interaction.

The inaugural report measures the overall sporting goods retailer customer satisfaction experience by examining five key factors: staff, cost, facility, merchandise and sales/promotions.

"Placing an emphasis on in-store interactions with customers will help create a successful experience and build brand loyalty—as well as helping to create advocates for the brand," said Sara Wong Hilton, senior director, strategy and product management. "With such a competitive landscape among sporting goods retailers, every interaction counts toward building a strong, loyalcustomer base."

The report also finds that while cost is important, a helpful and knowledgeable sales staff is the key driver of customer satisfaction with a sporting goods brand. Among the five study factors, staff has the highest importance weight in determining overall satisfaction (30%), followed by cost (23.5%) and facility (18%).

"Interestingly, merchandise and sales/promotions are rated by sporting goods customers as the least important among the five factors, which may suggest that customers see the industry as commoditized," said Wong Hilton. "What really differentiates one brand from the others is staff. Customers want to be helped by someone who is knowledgeable about the products and who can assist them in making informed decisions when it comes to selecting sporting goods."

Get Satisfaction is extending its customer engagement tools into customizable widgets that can be placed anywhere a brand wants to offer clients answers and input.

The San Francisco-based company that is already powering 65,000 online customer communities is launching this new adaptable widget with a small group of clients in a beta test and expects to soon roll out these offerings to all current and future companies interested.

As most companies thrust their brands and employees into the world of social media, there are a lot of issues that arise from bringing together customer service and the online platforms were people go to get more company information.