[24]7 announced that UK consumers are now willing to take action when faced with poor customer service, according to new research released today. More than one-third of consumers have switched suppliers as a result of bad service and three in ten have not signed up to a service because of the bad customer service they received initially.

The survey of 1,404 consumers was conducted by YourSayPays on behalf of intuitive consumer experience company [24]7 and also showed that more than half of respondents (51 per cent) felt frustrated when companies do not know who they are or what their issue is, despite having interacted with that company via another channel previously.

“Consumers are now saying ‘enough is enough’ and are willing to change providers if a service doesn’t meet their expectations,” said Mike Hughes, European MD, [24]7. “{{Bad service is costing firms customers and cash, and organisations need to better understand what constitutes good customer service.}}”

35 per cent of respondents said that they frequently feel dissatisfied with the customer service they received, showing that many brands have work to do in delivering a better customer experience. This figure rose to more than four in ten amongst people aged 65 or over and dropped to one in five amongst 18-24 year olds, showing that elderly people are less tolerant of poor customer service.

“The world has changed for customers and they demand that companies know who they are, what they want, and how they want to be served. Customer service and the multi-channel experience are essential. Brands risk alienating their customers to the point that they take their business elsewhere,” said Mike Hughes, European MD, [24]7. “Consumers use their mobile, online, social media, and web chat when interacting with customer service teams and they expect smart, integrated service across all channels. They don’t want to constantly repeat their issues and expect prompt resolution.”

[24]7 works with some of the world’s biggest companies and use big data to predict customer intent and provide an intuitive experience to suit modern service expectations. The company commissioned the research to see what customer service issues were most important to consumers.