Home topics small-business-resources general eCommerce Expert General eCommerce An experience to remember: 3 ways to avoid disappointing your customer Guest Author November 17, 2015 Today’s consumers are armed with more choices, more substitutes and more outlets to pursue alternative brands. In a world where our next purchase can be just two clicks away if we’re dissatisfied with a particular experience, providing quality service has never been more important. We harp on about providing a strong customer experience and with good reason. A recent SDL study found just how critical consumers can be in the success of a business. The survey of almost 3000 global respondents revealed 64 per cent of consumers abandon the brand, stop recommending it or share their disappointment in the wake of a customer experience failure. Even more alarmingly, there’s only a 20 per cent chance of winning these customers back. Australians in particular aren’t afraid to voice their vexations if they were disappointed in a customer experience failure. 37 per cent say they actively start looking for competitors and 18 per cent go out of their way to disparage the brand by word-of-mouth at every possible chance. As customers are increasingly critical, the consequences are correspondingly significant. SDL found that brands can expect to lose 65 per cent of the revenue the failed customer contributed in the year after the incident. While a great deal of emphasis has been placed on how to create good customer experiences, it’s equally important to know how to avoid bad