Why “Satisfactory” Service Is No Longer Enough

Customers are losing patience. Many will no longer accept mediocre or sub-par service. They expect more for the money they spend. My annual customer experience research finds that customers are giving companies and brands fewer chances when they fail to deliver the experience customers expect.

The average customer will give a company 2.2 chances before walking. Furthermore, 27% of customers say they are either not likely (19%) or will never (8%) return, even if they are satisfied. The definition of “satisfied” is a “middle-of-the-road” experience. On a scale of one to five, an average or satisfactory experience is a three. In other words, the experience isn’t bad, but it’s not great either. The message is clear. “Satisfactory” customer service isn’t good enough, and it could cause you to lose a quarter of your customers.

And one more finding from the report to emphasize this point. When asked if they would be willing to switch brands because they know another company can provide a better experience, 79% of customers—almost four out of five—said yes. Even if your service is acceptable, the knowledge that another company can offer something better puts you at risk.

Proof from the American Customer Satisfaction Index

According to the recent release of the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI), customer service in the U.S. has dropped for three consecutive quarters after rebounding from lower levels during the pandemic, and it hasn’t really improved in 12 years. Meanwhile, corporate profit margins have increased by 3-4% over the past decade. This trend reveals that companies are “extracting more from customers while delivering less,” a practice the ACSI warns “is not a mark of a well-functioning economy.” This occurs when “buyers lose power relative to sellers, allowing companies to prioritize profits at the expense of customer satisfaction rather than by truly earning them through superior service.”

In short, markets are failing to reward good customer treatment. Furthermore, companies are making profits “at the expense of their customers” rather than by satisfying them. In the long term, a company practicing this type of customer experience will eventually fall behind competitors that offer the experience customers want and deserve.

Gen-Z Is Driving the Crisis

The differences between older and younger customers’ tolerance for poor service is worth noting.

While 52% of Baby Boomers give companies a second chance after poor service, only 37% of Gen-Z customers show the same tolerance. As younger consumers become the dominant economic force, businesses face an increasingly impatient customer base that expects the first interaction, and each one thereafter, to meet or exceed their expectations.

And what happens when customers need help or have a complaint? Four out of 10 customers (43%) would rather clean a toilet than call customer support. While you may smile at this finding, it’s a measurable aversion to what should be a basic business function and pleasant experience. And this lack of patience shows up as anger, especially toward the customer support contact center. Sixty percent of customers have hung up on customer service agents and 34% have yelled at them. This is not the behavior of customers looking forward to employees who can help them solve their problems and answer their questions.

Despite this frustration and lack of patience, 91% of customers believe companies should be putting more emphasis on customer service now than in the past. The message is clear: Customers haven’t given up on customer service. They actually want to experience good service. They are simply impatient and tired of waiting for it.

The patience and tolerance customers had “yesterday” is gone. Customers know what great service looks like. They’ve learned from rock star brands. Those companies and brands have created an expectation that customers now have for every company they do business with. Understand that, in general, we’re in a customer patience crisis. Failing to recognize that and take action puts your company at risk. Companies that recognize this shift and adapt their service/experience strategies accordingly will gain a significant competitive advantage compared to those that don’t.