UP TO HALF OF CUSTOMERS LOST THROUGH POOR SERVICE

British businesses are losing customers and sales because of poor service in call centres, a study reveals today.

Over one million customers can hang up on companies call centres each week, businesses reveal in the Voice Report published by Vocalis. A third of businesses believe their customers hang up after theyve been put on hold for as little as thirty seconds.

As a result two in three firms believe they are losing as much as 30 per cent of potential business.

Paul Wright, CEO of Vocalis, said: Poor service and inefficient call centres have a direct impact on the bottom line. Our research shows that customers are increasingly demanding even better service they dont expect to be kept waiting.

The real issue for the businesses with inefficient call centres is that callers who put the phone down dont always try again and customers who cant get through might try a competitor . And both will complain about their bad experience to their neighbours and colleagues.

The impact this has on the brand of the business is two-fold. First, existing customers feel let down and are less likely to the trust the brand because it does not live up to their expectations, set through other forms of communication, such as advertising and direct mail. Secondly, potential customers are put-off shopping with that brand because of the lack of by word of mouth recommendation.

The problem is set to worsen. Consumers who experience bad call centre service tend, as their frustration increases, to want even quicker service as they become even less patient and are even more easily disappointed.

Vocalis works with organisations to create contact centre solutions that build the organisations business and brands for commercial success. It has worked with businesses, such as Powergen and Chelsea Building Society, to implement systems that make it easier for customers to get what they want without having to wait to speak to a call agent.