The importance of complaining customers to marketers
According to marketing expert Theodore Levitt, “ One of the surest signs of a bad or declining relationship is the absence of complaints from the client. The client is either not being candid or not being contacted. Probably both. The absence of candor reflects the decline of trust, the deterioration of the relationship.” Complaints can be transformed into opportunities for a business to grow. Complaints can be difficult to handle at times, but complaining customers can be valuable for the growth of a business. Given below are the ways customer complaints can benefit a business.
1) Identifying areas for improvement – Most complaints focus on a key area where a product or service needs work and updating. Each complaint carries with it an opportunity to increase client loyalty and thus increase business. They may also bring to light areas of weaknesses of staff members who might need more training, supervision, or perhaps a refresher course. Customer complaints can also help to monitor consistency. With the observation of where complaints are focused, quality of service across departments, teams, and locations can be addressed.
2) Enhanced customer communication- Customer communication is a major channel of feedback between a business and its customers. Most clients switch companies because they feel that a p company or business does not care about them. A customer needs to feel important. When customers observe that a business is there for them during problems, they value the depth of the relationship that a company is able to offer. Amazon’s reviews have shown how to convince customers to buy a product over alternatives.
3) Positive effect on brand image– If clients do not complain, they are more likely to go to competitors. If a business responds to complaints, it gains trust and protection from customers going to competitors. If customers feel that they are seen, heard, and cared about, it would lead to deeper and more meaningful relationships. It would improve the reputation of a company and make it appear trustworthy. Happy customers would share their positive experiences with friends and family, and this would only help build the reputation of a business.
4) Obtain valuable insights – Fruitful information can be gathered better from complaints. Throughout the customer experience, the Le Pain Quotidien team went seeking customer inputs aggressively. They did it through the company’s website, emails and at their restaurants. When customers responded, they had a massive number of complaints to analyze. Once they worked on the complaints and improved customer service, the number of complaints lessened. If current customers’ problems are resolved, they will feel that a business cares about their concerns overall.
