Why does a customer leave without saying anything?

Have you ever had a customer service experience that left you unfulfilled? One where you had high expectations  and when you got there it just wasn’t what you thought. Or have you watched an ad on TV where they show that good food for a restaurant? You know how they make the food look so inviting and delicious that you just want to stick your face to the TV! So, you go to that restaurant and order the food. It comes out looking nothing like what you saw on TV “sad face“. You think in your mind, “This is not what it looked like on TV” and you feel a little dissatisfied. Even more so if the food is not good. You leave the restaurant not saying a word about your experience thinking it will be better next time. You feel disappointed, unfulfilled and now still hungry because the food was not good and you didn’t even eat it all! Will there even be a next time based on this experience?

Why does this happen? Why does the customer leave without saying a word, voicing their concerns?

Here are some stats that share some information.

 

The No. 1 reason why customers stay or leave. … 60% of all customers stop dealing with a company because of what they perceive as indifference on the part of salespeople. 70% of customers leave a company because of poor service, which is usually attributed to a salesperson. Jun 10, 2013
http://www.customerexperienceinsight.com/the-no-1-reason-why-customers-stay-or-leave/

5 Reasons Customers Leave
1% pass away
3% move
14% are lured by a competitor
14% are turned away by product or service dissatisfaction
68% leave because of poor attitude or indifference on the part of the service provider
http://www.insightsfromanalytics.com/blog/bid/335381/5-Reasons-Customers-Leave-and-9-Ways-to-Keep-Them

For every customer who bothers to complain, 26 other customers remain silent.
Source: White House Office of Consumer Affairs

A typical business hears from 4% of it’s dissatisfied customers.
Source: “Understanding Customers” by Ruby Newell-Legner

 

I have a couple of thoughts on why this might be the case.

 

1. Why bother
   You may have this feeling of “what difference will it make?” A sense of helplessness, that no one is going to correct the problem anyway and it would just be a waste of your time.
2. Attention
   Some customer service experiences you may not want the focus on you. It may seem as though you are making a scene. A feeling of being embarrassed. It might be better if nothing is said.
3. Backlash/Argument
   In some customer service experiences when they are not good and you try to bring it to the attention of someone they take offence. “Oh! you didn’t like the way I prepared the dish?” “You should have asked for no sauce!” “No, we can’t refund this.” “All sales are final!” Some of these exchanges could make for a heated argument and may even cause the support/service person to make it more difficult for you as the customer.

 

So, if you are someone who likes to avoid conflict (I am one of these people) You may find it best in most cases to just say nothing about your customer service experience and just hope the next time it will be better. What if that’s not the case? What if you never go back to that restaurant or you never purchase that product again? That company will never get the chance to know how you felt. 

As the customer, it should not be ok to endure a bad experience or just go along with it. I have listed a few tips that could be helpful in allowing you to recover from a not so pleasant experience.

Do speak up
If you have spent money on a product/service and it’s not right. You must say something about it. It is up to the business to make it right with you. The business has a responsibility to honor their commitment in providing a quality service/product to you.

Write the company
If the service/product is not what was promised and you feel like if you say something now you will make a scene (turn heads in a public setting). Take some time and write a letter to the company about the product or service and how you didn’t get what you were promised Talk about how the experience made you feel (I have done this a few times and received a positive outcome each time).

Share
Social media is a wonderful tool in reaching the masses. If you are not getting the desired feedback at the service level (at the shop, restaurant, store etc.). Then reach out on your social media channels. It’s almost a given that what you are feeling about your experience someone else has the same feeling but were not willing to say it because of the above points I stated earlier. As a bonus to you sharing you might just give that other person the courage to do the same the next time he or she has a bad customer experience.

Follow up
Request feedback from the company about the service/product you had the bad customer experience from. Ask how they plan to make it better. Ask them when they plan to make the change to service their customers better. Let them know you will follow-up in a couple of weeks to see where they are at with what they said they would do. Hold the business accountable.

 

Remember as the customer have options and resources. We have to be ready to use them when the customer experience does not go correctly. We should never be made to feel as though we are the problem. We are the priority. Without the customer the business would not exist.

Thank you for taking the time to read my blog. If you feel this content is customer service useful. Please share.

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