The Customer is King...

.....  and Customer Experience is the way to his heart.  The latest Customer Experience Report North America sponsored by RightNow has some great stats that should be taken on board by all businesses, large and small.   Topline summary:

CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE.   It's Make or Break
•    82% of consumers have stopped doing business with  a company as a result of a negative experience.
•    55% became a customer of a company because of their reputation for great customer service
•    40% began purchasing from a competitive brand simply because of their reputation for great customer service
•    85% of consumers said they would be willing to pay more over the standard price in order to ensure a superior customer experience.

Of those who decided to stop doing business with an organization,
•    73% was a reaction to rude staff
•    51% reacted to unknowledgeable staff
•    55% were because of issues that weren’t resolved in a timely manner

BEWARE THE POWER OF WORD OF MOUTH
•    79% of consumers that had a negative experience with a company told others about it.   Because….
  o    85% wanted to warn others about the pitfalls of doing business with that company
  o    66% wanted to discourage others from buying from that company
  o    55% wanted to vent anger or disappointment
  o    24% wanted to see if the company would take action to resolve their issue

•    76% of consumers said word of mouth most influenced their purchasing decisions, followed by
  o    customer reviews and online feedback at 49%,
  o    product review web sites at 41%,
  o    magazine articles at 23%
  o    reputation on social networking sites 7%.

YOU CAN TURN THE TABLES
All is not lost if a company trips up.  In today’s transparent environment, owning up to your mistake and taking action yields positive results.

•    92% of consumers said they would be willing to go back to a company after a negative experience if they ..........
•    Received a follow up apology/correction from a supervisor/head office (63%)
•    Were offered a discount (52%)
•    Or were offered proof of enhanced customer service (49%)

YOU MUST RESPOND
•    58% of respondents would like the company to respond if they left a comment on a social networking site like Facebook or Twitter.
•    But only 22% of those who actually did leave a comment on a social networking site got a response.
•    42% expect a response within a day
•    39% within a week
•    7% within an hour
•    2% within a minute

For full report see..
Presentation ppt
Site  pdf