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Freeman Wins Major International Award for Customer Service

Posted on: Thursday, 11 December 2008, 09:00 CST

First win for a company in face-to-face event industry

MIAMI BEACH, Fla., Dec. 11 /PRNewswire/ -- What do leading companies such as Jet Blue, Nokia and Bath & Body Works have in common with Freeman? All have been named winners of the 2008 International Service Excellence Award from the International Council of Customer Service Organizations.

Freeman was presented the award at ceremonies in Anaheim in November. More than 175 companies were considered for the nine top awards.

"The International Service Excellence Award is the most sought-after global award for service excellence," said Christine Churchill, executive director of the Customer Service Institute of America. "Freeman stood out because of their unwavering commitment to the service journey and their realization that this journey was, and will remain, a challenging road to maintain and improve their service delivery. It is this type of focus and commitment that the judges look for in the finalists and ultimately, the winners."

The award is based on a thorough and rigorous examination of the company's business practices with respect to customer service, an outline of goals and measured results compared to overall best practices, and a site visit including tours of customer-facing areas, and extensive interviews with a variety of stakeholders within each organization.

"This award is gratifying news for Freeman, because it recognizes a very intensive effort we have undertaken in the past several years to improve service levels to all our customers. It is especially significant that the honor represents the first time a company in the face-to-face event industry has been recognized internationally for customer service on par with highly successful consumer brands," said Carrie Freeman Parsons, Freeman's vice chair and chief marketing officer.

In 2003 Freeman launched a major effort to improve customer service. One of the first steps was to review and refine its understanding of customer needs and expectations. In a major research study, customers told Freeman that they would benefit from a more intense focus on key areas of service throughout the trade show process, including ordering, shipping, invoicing and exhibit set-up and take-down. Armed with this and other key findings, Freeman launched a program that has produced impressive results. When customers were asked how they characterized their overall experience with Freeman, their positive responses nearly doubled from 2004 to 2008.

Katy Wild, Freeman's executive vice president of customer relations, said, "Based on our continuous surveying and research feedback, we know how critical a positive experience is in keeping exhibiting companies involved in face-to-face marketing events, and we have made this a major priority in our overall business plan since 2003. It is exciting to see this recognition of our continuing efforts to do a better job for our customers."

More information about the International Service Excellence Award is available at www.serviceinstitute.com.

Freeman is the world's leading provider of integrated services for face-to-face marketing events, including expositions, conventions, corporate events, and exhibits. The company is headquartered in Dallas, Texas and has offices in 41 cities across North America. Freeman produces over 3,900 expositions annually, including 103 of the largest 200 U.S. trade shows, and over 10,000 other events worldwide. Founded in 1927, the company remains privately held by the Freeman family as well as the full-time employee owners through an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP). For more information, visit www.freemanco.com

High-resolution digital image available upon request: barbara@hopkinspr.com

SOURCE Freeman

Source: PR Newswire

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