Public transport Singapore's biggest gripe: survey

Aiming at taking the pulse of local consumer attitudes Grey Group's Satisfaction Report examined Singaporeans’ levels of satisfaction across 15 dimensions, ranging from public transport system, quality of healthcare, exposure to global information and trends to retail customer service.

While 55 per cent of respondents were satisfied with the accessibility to local public transport, 35 per cent were not happy with its punctuality. The silver generation (41 per cent) were the most affected, followed by young adults (37 per cent), baby boomers (34 per cent) and middle-agers (30 per cent).

Retail customer service had the second highest total dissatisfaction score of 33 per cent; the most dissatisfied shoppers were middle-agers at 44 per cent, followed by the silver generation at 38 per cent. Young adults emerged to be the most satisfied consumers with the highest level of retail customer service satisfaction at 40 per cent.

The study also revealed that female shoppers were found to be more dissatisfied with customer service at 38 per cent compared to 27 per cent of males.

Subbaraju Alluri, CEO at Grey Group Singapore, noted that while brands are trying to understand what the next-generation Singaporean consumer wants, they have to improve the overall consumer experience. “There is still a long way to go. The focus has to be on providing greater value to the consumer, in terms of price, customer service, convenience and product development."

Topping the satisfaction list, according to 66 per cent of respondents, was access to global information, with some 72 per cent of the young adults indicating their satisfaction, followed by the silver generation at 71 per cent. They also expressed their satisfaction with high-speed broadband internet access at home.

Alluri said that access to information technology has emerged as the most significant trend impacting consumer behaviour.

“This level of exposure to global styles and trends has opened the eyes of local consumers to what is available globally and is driving new and higher consumer expectations in terms of products, services and brand experience,” he added.

Conducted in June, the survey involved 200 respondents aged between 18 and over 60. It is part of the Grey Sentiment initiative designed to monitor national sentiments on a wide range of issues that impact consumer behavior.