Why Customer Complaints Are Great for Business

Customer complaints can create a sense of doubt about how we run our business, however, what if we approached them as opportunities? The reality is complaints are ok, if you respond and do something about them. If no words were spoken by our customers about how we do business the same mistakes would go unnoticed. Only a small amount of people will speak up while the majority of others will quietly ignore and move on. In fact, only 4% of customers who are unsatisfied take the time to speak out.  You would never know that you are losing potential business if some complaints did not arise and you weren’t proactive in making needed changes.

Employees

Customers may make complaints about a specific employee.  This may be an innocent mistake or a continual recurring problem that again is affecting all the customers they come in contact with. By channeling the problem to a specific individual you can deal with that individual one on one and ensure that the issue does not affect the company as a whole. We are not involved in every interaction that our individual employees do and therefore when customers speak out it’s a great opportunity to really learn how that individual is handling their job.

The Product or Service

Sometimes customer complaints may arise about the physical product or about the level and type of service they received. Even if it is a service by a specific individual this type of complaint is directed towards the company itself since it is an issue about the processes or procedures that the company has laid out for its employees.  As a business It gives you a chance to look into your internal processes through your customer’s point of view and where you can make changes. Maybe the delivery of the product is too slow, or instructions are not clear, changes can be made to ensure that you keep future business from walking away.

Customers

Inevitably some customer complaints are plain and simply a culprit of the customer themselves. It may not be anything that the company or the employee did wrong specifically but it is a great opportunity to make them aware. A customer could have used the product in the wrong way or was not aware of its capabilities. This is a chance to think about the communication between the customer and how they view your product or service.  If it is a product; are you clear in how you demonstrate the product to them and how they should work it, build it, open it etc.? Making changes could clear up confusion for the customer and result in higher customer satisfaction.

As long as customer complaints are rarer than common they can be taken as a great opportunity to learn and educate yourselves and your team about common business practices. They allow you to rectify a problem before it leads to more bad customer experiences or bad reviews. A complaint is also a great opportunity to build a relationship with the client by reassuring them that you care and creating a memorable experience. Customer complaints can be great for business.