Q. Can you throw light on how Kingston has maintained a consistent TAT of 80 percent to service customers on the same day?
Kingston is the world’s largest manufacturer of memory products and we strongly believe that effective Service is an important element for customer satisfaction. Achieving a TAT to 80 percent, which was around 60 percent till last year, was possible with innovations in the existing processes and introduction of newer concepts. We have appointed a single strategic partner dedicated to service Kingston and HyperX customers. What this move meant was that Kingston could service requests of most customers on the same day and around 90 percent of the remaining requests within seven working days. We introduced our customers to smarter and transparent real-time updates that they could check on their own. To take care of their convenience and to deliver an exceptional after sales service, we have established 50+ dedicated customer service counters in the country where skilled professionals handle Kingston products. As an icing on the cake, Kingston also provides free technical support to everyone who has bought our products or is even thinking of making the purchase.
Q. How are you ensuring that people buy from genuine/ authorized sources?
Kingston encourages customers to buy from authorized stores as they then get the complete benefit of after sales service from the brand. We have a regular communication with our channel partners and sellers about these points, in the form of mailers, meetings, training modules, etc. We have introduced more changes in our policies and products that help give customers the best they deserve.
Q. How has 2017 been, in the light of GST implementation?
2017 was exciting with multiple changes in the government policies, GST being a major change. More than the tax, we had seen our channel partners struggling to understand the implications of GST. Other than a temporary effect due to the transition, there was not much noticeable difference in business. In fact, 2017 was a good year for overall business. We would hope to see such changes being implemented in a better way with proper information to the parties impacted by them.
Q. How did you take care of the partner sentiments while ensuring sales?
We work closely with our channel partners and owe much of our success to them. For any of our partner’s engagements with Kingston, be it pricing, inventory, promotions or service, we try to improvise and find perfect solutions for our them. So, when GST was introduced, we helped them understand its implications. Amongst many other things, we were able to help a few to gather footfalls so they could invest time to adjust their books in line with the new tax structure.
India is a diverse market and hence there is a need for channel partners to communicate effectively with our customers. Due to their relentless efforts in bridging the gap between us and the customer, we provide them with pre-sales help. At Kingston, we offer assistance to our channel partners in order for them to understand the product to get better sales. Furthermore, if the Channel Partner faces a problem with a product he can either approach the distributors or our service centers.
Q. What kind of pre/ post sales customer support is required in your product categories?
Kingston is a brand known for its quality products and support to the channel community. We understand that pre- sales support is as important as after sales. Based on market feedback, independent researches and customer suggestions, our product teams work tirelessly to improve the quality, design and utility of our products. Also, as mentioned earlier, we provide ‘Free Technical Support’ to both, the existing customers and customers who have doubts before the purchase. We are open to communication that can help people make an informed purchase decision. Our products are available pan India and we are working on increasing coverage and reach. We have already mentioned some of the best after sales features we provide that make the customer’s time worthwhile. These things provide a complete package for the customers.