5 Reasons Why Customers Leave

GetSatisfaction [1. blog.getsatisfaction.com/2010/10/04/fastest-way-to-lose-customers/] recently came out with a great infographic showing what, in their research, are the reasons why companies lose customers.

They ask a very basic but important question: What are the circumstances in which a customer chooses to no longer do business with you? In other words, what are the reasons customers leave?

Below is a summary of why customers leave companies:

• 68% Leave because of the treatment the customer received
• 14% Leave because the customer is dissatisfied with product or service
• 9% Leave because the customer begins doing business with the competition
• 5% Leave because the customer seeks alternatives
• 3% Leave because the customers move away
• 1% Leave because the customer dies

Then came this fascinating summary of the effect of poor customer service:

In 2009, 71% of customers ended their business relationships because of poor customer service and customers ended an average of 2.1 business relationships.

Root Causes of Lost Business Relationships

1. The customer has to repeat themselves to the customer service agent
2. The customer is trapped in automated self-service
3. The customer is forced to wait too long for service
4. The customer service representative doesn’t know the customer’s history of value
5. The customer cannot switch between channels easily

The rest of the infographic is below.