Nine out of 10 customers say a bad experience with a company impacts their future buying decisions, with 42 per cent saying it stops them buying from a brand altogether, according to new research by customer service software company Zendesk.

The firm’s Quantifying the Business Impact of Customer Service in Australia Report found that companies that fail to deliver quality customer service experiences may be losing loyal customers, as well as sales.

“Businesses are always competing to offer the latest and greatest products or services,” said Zendesk ANZ managing director Amy Foo. “But what is often overlooked is how quality customer service remains to be a cornerstone of business success.”

“What this data suggests is that businesses can no longer afford to overlook the importance of delivering consistent excellence in customer service.”

The research also found that customers are four times as likely to remember an unfavourable experience compared to a positive one for as long as two years, dramatically impacting a customer’s desire to return to a store.

Some customer service lowlights include being expected to wait too long, or failing to have an issue resolved at all. Highlights, on the other hand, include fast service and not having to explain an issue multiple times.

“Providing positive experiences can mean the difference between poor, short-term and positive, long-standing customer relationships,” Foo said.

“This inevitably has a significant impact on sales and revenue in the long-term.”

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