Welcome to Revise and Resubmit. In today’s episode, we delve into the fascinating intersection of psychology, technology, and customer experience with a paper that rethinks how businesses communicate time expectations to their customers.
We’re spotlighting the article How Should Time Estimates Be Structured to Increase Customer Satisfaction?by Beidi Hu, Celia Gaertig, and Berkeley J. Dietvorst, published in the prestigious Management Science journal—part of the elite FT50 list of the world’s top business journals. This isn’t just another academic study; it’s a game-changer for industries like food delivery apps and GPS systems that depend on managing customer expectations in uncertain environments.
The research explores whether customers prefer precise point estimates—like “Your food will arrive in 45 minutes”—or range estimates—like “Your food will arrive in 40–50 minutes.” Through eight rigorous experiments with over 5,000 participants, the authors reveal that range estimates consistently outperform point estimates in fostering customer satisfaction. Why? Because range estimates set realistic expectations and soften the blow of delays, even though they’re not too broad to lose their meaning.
A huge thanks to Beidi Hu, Celia Gaertig, Berkeley J. Dietvorst, and the publisher INFORMS for their invaluable contribution to the world of management science.
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Here’s the question we leave you with: If customers value honesty in time estimates, how can businesses strike the perfect balance between clarity and trust? Let’s explore!
Reference
Hu, B., Gaertig, C., & Dietvorst, B. J. (2024). How Should Time Estimates Be Structured to Increase Customer Satisfaction? Management Science. https://doi.org/10.1287/mnsc.2023.00137
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