Member Article

Poor customer service creates violent reaction

A lack of sufficient contact information on your website is guaranteed to drive customers away - and some to the point of violence, according to a recent survey.

Over three quarters of Britons have at one point struggled to identify contact information online, leaving them feeling stressed and powerless, research from web host 1&1 internet has claimed. Apparently, 2% were so offended they retaliated with violence!

Being held in a telephone queue, customer service staff with heavy accents, bad hold music, and inflexible customer service office hours were among the pet peeves of the 1,300 consumers surveyed. Real-time dialogue using live chat was the preferred type of customer service for 90% of those asked, but just 8% of businesses currently offer such facilities on their websites. Less than half plan to.

Poor customer service and communication has a direct impact on revenues, the report claims. The inability to interact with a business online would leave 41% of consumers with a negative opinion of it, while 29% said they would choose to spend less money as a result.

Andreas Gauger, CEO of 1&1 Internet, said: “Struggling to contact a business from its website is a major concern for consumers. More of us than ever are using real-time online messaging in our everyday lives and consumers now place a high value on the ability to talk to businesses in this way. “Businesses have a lot to gain from developing better online relationships.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Ruth Mitchell .