I was putting finishing touches to a training for one of our clients, and I felt like I needed to share this little part of it with a larger audience. Below are the facts of the reasons why customers quit. This means that customers cease patronizing companies for the following reasons.
1% Die
3% Move away
5% Other friends
9% Competitive reasons
14% Product dissatisfaction
68% The attitude of indifference of an employee
Can you imagine that? The real reason why people leave you or stay is not because of the quality of your product, the inferiority or superiority of the same, but the way they are treated by your staff. And in case you are wondering if you need to shout at a customer before he quits, think again! All you need to do is just act indifferent. An average customer will get the cue, if he/she thinks for a moment his/her patronage makes no difference, you have lost that patronage.
I have sat in many interviews in my life where candidates say that they are interested in customer service. When asked for the skills that they have, they tell you they are friendly! While being friendly is a good thing, it’s different from customer service. Customer service is learning to treat your customers with a difference. A good difference. Customer service is a learnable skill, it can be classroom trained and perfected by practice.
In case you think they’ll just stop doing business with your company, think again! They will not only stop coming, research as shown that the greater majority of them will not even complain about this service to the company. They will move away and share the story with their friends. Here are the facts!
68% of customers who stop patronizing a business do so because an indifferent employee treated them poorly.
96% of dissatisfied customers never complain about rude or discourteous service to the company, but…
-91% will not buy from that business again.
-100% will tell their “horror stories” to at least nine other people.
-13% of those unhappy customers will tell their stories to at least 20 other people.
Think about it, have you ever been dissatisfied with a particular service? Can you remember how many people you told? Did you inform the company officials? Does you answer follow the pattern above? I remember a time when a lady called me in the heat of her displeasure with a product, after she finished venting her anger, I asked her why she was telling me as I have no connection to the company. She told me she just wanted me to know 
I know of companies where people prefer to eat trash, rather than go to a better food supplier that treats them with contempt.
Customer Service standards are extremely important. As options begin to increase and exist, the value of great customer services skills and culture within an organization will begin to matter astronomically. Long time ago in these sides of the world, people will take almost anything from you, today, options are increasing, and people will gravitate towards where they are treated with a difference. I remember some weeks back, when a new friend was telling me how good she felt and how she started contemplating changing her bank to Zenith, just because of how she was treated by the guards! Can you imagine that? Every employee who has any dealing with customers needs to be skilled.
The cost of not developing these skills is costly! Much costlier than the cost of developing them. Look at the facts below.
Treating customers indifferently or poorly costs the average company 15% to 30% of gross sales!
Replacing lost customers is expensive; it costs five times as much to attract a new customer as it does to sell to an existing one!
About 70% of a company’s sales come from existing customers.
Because 20% of a typical company’s customers account for about 80% of its sales, no business can afford to alienate its best and most profitable customers and survive!
Customer service is increasingly becoming a choice skill, get enrolled. You can contact me for further enquiries. I hope this proves useful for you.
Deolu,
Thank you for tackling this issue. I have noticed for a long time that Nigerian businesses have a very lackadaisical attitude towards their customers – makng them feel that they are receiving a favour from the business. This is very visible in old-school banks, where the cashiers can be pretty saucy and unconcerned about the customers, even when the bank has a problem itself.
The lack of competition and weak legal system makes seeking legal redress for such treatment impossible or difficult at best.
Customer Welfare and Service is one of the important steps to be taken in re-invigorating the Nigerian economy. It really builds consumer confidence which is needed in all aspects of the economy.
Thanks again and God Bless.
Once again you’ve hit the nail on the mark (not the head o!). Customer Service is rather poor in Nigeria but appears to be attracting some well meaning attention towards improving the sector.
Hello sir,
I need training on customer services, how do I enrolled in your training programme.Is there weekend training for individuals that are interested?
thanks
I think the entire GBT members of staff need this training.
Why? Read the following post.
We must all be watchful and careful about the activities of all these banks. I am concerned not just for Zenith but the banking system in Nigeria. We are yet to develop a robust system backed up by legal framework with adequate goverment or regulatory policies. That is why anybody can just wake up and say your salary has been slashed or online faciltiy removed.
It is sad to hear that. In the UK, before a thing of that magnitude could be done there must have been a serious consultation and at least a year notice.
Jim Ovia should thread carefully on the way he conducts himself. I will suggest to him to look inward and carefully though before taking any action that may have a lasting negative effect on what he has built so far.
All said, we Nigerian must watch the activities of these so called banks. I am currently disappointed about what GTB did.
GTB removed a 3rd party online transfer faciltiy without any prior notice.
I opened my account with GTB just because of this facility so that I can transfer money to brothers and sisters in the University and my aged parent. But now it was removed. You don’t do things like that. GTB is not sensitive to its customers. I suspect there is more to this development. We must be watchful.
Can anyone explain why GTB removed 3rd party online transfer faciltiy?
I cannot even fund my stock account any more.
Can you imagine third party online transfer being stopped all in the name of security. No I don’t think so. There must be something more than that. Here in the UK, you don’t just remove a faciltity without informing your customers.
I was sad because I had planned to send money via this medium for Xmas festivity.
I think I have to close my account with GTB and go elsewhere. This is a breach of contract on the part of GTB. I opened the account just because of this online 3rd party transfer. A bank whose customers opinions do not matter.
Rubbish!.
how do i get enrolled?
thanks for the write up, its really encouraging and loaded.
some people treats customers rudely because they have monopoluy of the goods or items they are selling and feel that even if the customers goes, he will still come back. this is very wrong. i just wish all the people in business can read this post. thank you sir.it has hepled me too.
This is a very good write up on customer service.
Nigeria lacks human relation/customer service.It annoys me. Its so true that when I dont get a “warm welcome” into an organization, I run away and also report the isues to friends and relations. And my report always makes them not want to go to that place, thereby making the orgniation or business to lose potential customers. Recently I went to make enquires on French classes. Went to one of the most popular French schools in Lagos. I was so disappointed. The lady that was suppose to attend to me was talking to another collegue and answering me as if I “begged” my way in. When I confronted her that I had more questeions, she just looked at me and said ” I have finished with you”.Imagine! I came for enquiry and see how I was treated. I just looked at her and shook my head then walked away. That same day, I went to another French school which isnt so popular and applied there because the lady that attented to me was nice, poilte and ALL ears to my questions! We really need to develop our customer service/human relations in Nigerian organization. Good write up!
The business analystical view of regarding customer as king stem from their relevance to business or firm. The sole aid of any business development can been seem from the angle of profitability. This ideology holding true to our Nigerian situation, it therefore places the highest regards on the agent (customer) that stimulate and aid in the accomplishment of such business.
Thank you for the write up…the statistics is what fascinates me, what it takes to win or lose a customer. I am a Customer Service officer and i totally agree with all you have siad…indeed in Nigeria, we need to beef up our interpersonal relationship with customers, a pastor said on a pulpit that the day Customer Service personnels begin to relate the money the customer pays to the salary earned, mabe it could make more meaning.
I also think in a place where the employee does all that needs to be done and treats the customer well but the services to be delivered are not done, do you say its the employees fault?I believe where services are promised and delivered as it is said to be, it will make easy the job, both parties will be happy and in any case there is a hitch, the customer knows its not an everyday issue, even though there are difficult customers who just do not want to understand.
I will like to know if there are any trainings on course of discussion.Please send such to my box.
Thank you.