Customer Service Statistics: What the Data Says About Customer Experience

Customer service directly affects revenue, reputation, and retention. Understanding the data behind customer expectations, communication preferences, and team performance helps you build a service strategy that produces measurable results. Below are the most important customer service statistics, organized by topic.

How Does Customer Service Impact Revenue and Business Growth?

90 percent of Americans base purchasing decisions on customer service. An American Express study found that customer service plays a role in nearly everyone’s purchasing decisions.

Roughly 70 percent of all purchasing decisions are based on how a customer feels they are being treated. According to McKinsey and Company, more than two-thirds of purchasing decisions are attributable to a customer’s perception of treatment quality.

Customers are 4 times more likely to buy from a competitor if a problem is service-related. This is compared to price- or product-related problems, according to Bain and Company.

Businesses can grow revenue 4 to 8 percent by improving customer experience. A separate Bain and Company report found that customer experience improvements can increase revenues by up to 8 percent.

Companies with $1 billion or more in revenue can increase revenue by $823 million over 3 years. According to Temkin Group, even moderate customer experience improvements produce enormous revenue gains for large companies.

Customer acquisition costs are 6 to 7 times higher than customer retention costs. A study from Kolsky found that investing in retention through better service provides far more value per dollar than acquiring new customers.

73 percent of companies with above-average customer service outperform their counterparts. According to Temkin Group, better customer service correlates directly with stronger business performance.

Personalized customer service boosts conversion rates by 8 percent. According to Trust Pilot, individually tailored service increases conversions measurably.

Companies that invest in customer experience also increase employee engagement by 20 percent. A McKinsey study found that CX investments create positive results across multiple areas of the business.

How Much More Will Customers Pay for Better Service?

67 percent of customers will pay more for a great experience. According to Salesforce, the majority of customers are willing to pay a premium for great service.

On average, U.S. customers will spend 17 percent more for a great experience. That number is up from 14 percent in 2014, indicating that good customer service is becoming more important over time.

Millennials are willing to spend 21 percent more for great service. According to American Express, millennials are the most likely demographic to pay a premium for quality service.

67 percent of customers say they’d pay extra for excellent customer service. According to Financesonline.com, customers consistently value service quality enough to pay more for it.

73 percent of customers remain loyal to a company with friendly reps. According to RightNow, consistent access to friendly, helpful service reps is enough to maintain most customer relationships.

77 percent of people will recommend a brand after a single good experience. According to Temkin Group, one positive interaction is all it takes for a customer to become an advocate.

How Do Positive and Negative Experiences Affect Brand Reputation?

Happy customers share positive experiences with an average of 11 people. According to American Express, good service generates significant word-of-mouth marketing.

Angry customers share negative experiences with an average of 15 people. The same study found that negativity spreads further than positivity — a single bad experience reaches more people than a good one.

72 percent of customers share good experiences with others. According to Salesforce, the majority of customers are willing and motivated to share positive service interactions.

62 percent of customers share bad experiences with others. The same Salesforce study found that while fewer people share negative experiences than positive ones, the number is still substantial.

53 percent post positive comments about companies on social media, while 35 percent post negative comments. Even if you do not take social media complaints seriously, they can affect brand reputation. The good news is that more customers post positive messages than negative ones.

81 percent of Americans believe their service needs are being met or exceeded. Most Americans generally feel that businesses are doing a good job with customer service, though there is always room for improvement.

68 percent of customers credit pleasant reps as the key to a positive experience. Two-thirds of people who had a good experience point to a friendly, personable representative as the primary reason. Additionally, 62 percent credit the rep’s knowledge or resourcefulness.

After a bad experience, it takes 12 positive experiences to make up the difference. According to Ruby Newell-Legner, one negative experience can eclipse several positive ones.

30 percent of consumers will not give brands more than one chance after a bad experience. A Hiver study also found that 60 percent of consumers would switch after just 2 or 3 bad experiences.

57 percent of customers have switched to a competitor after a bad experience. And nearly half of all Americans have switched providers in the past year due to bad service, according to New Voice Media. The top reason for switching is “feeling unappreciated” — sometimes a simple “thank you” email or discount is enough to keep customers.

78 percent of customers have backed out of a purchase due to poor service. According to Glance, more than three-quarters of people have abandoned a planned purchase after dealing with bad service.

What Do Customers Expect From Good Customer Service?

90 percent of customers want an immediate response. Hubspot research found that responsiveness is critical for satisfaction.

60 percent of customers define “immediate” as 10 minutes or less. The same research quantified exactly what “immediate” means to most customers.

40 percent of customers wish their concerns were addressed faster. According to American Express, speed continues to be a top priority.

Fast responses matter more than effective but slow ones. A Nielsen-McKinsey study found that 33 percent of customers recommend brands that respond quickly but ineffectively, while only 17 percent recommend brands that provide effective solutions but are slow. Fast and effective is the best combination, but if you can only choose one, choose fast.

80 percent of customers believe customer experience is as important as products or services. According to Salesforce, the overwhelming majority of people believe service either rivals or exceeds other business elements.

70 percent of customers believe agent awareness of sales interactions is vital. The same Salesforce report found that most customers want agents to understand the context of their interactions — in other words, they want agents who are more invested in the conversation.

59 percent of customers believe companies should provide advanced digital experiences. Customers want modern tools like AI and high-quality knowledge bases to keep their business.

87 percent of customers want a more consistent experience. According to Zendesk, inconsistent results are a major frustration. Additionally, 35 percent want to stay in contact with the same agent throughout their service interaction.

73 percent of customers want their time to be valued. According to Forrester, the most important factor for customer satisfaction is feeling that their time matters.

Privacy builds trust. Salesforce data shows that 90 percent of people are more trusting of companies with strong privacy policies, 88 percent trust companies that do not share their data, and 92 percent trust companies that give them control over their data. At the same time, 79 percent of customers are willing to share personal information in exchange for valuable interactions.

Customer service agents ask for a customer name only 21 percent of the time. According to Glance, this simple touch point is used far less often than it should be. Asking for a name is one of the easiest ways to personalize the interaction.

What Are the Most Common Customer Service Frustrations?

33 percent of customers cite waiting on hold as their biggest frustration. Hubspot research found that hold time is one of the most damaging aspects of customer service.

33 percent cite having to repeat themselves as their biggest frustration. The same research found that explaining the same issue to multiple representatives is equally frustrating.

72 percent of customers consider repeating explanations to multiple people as bad customer service. According to Dimensional Research, this single issue can define the entire experience as negative.

27 percent of Americans cite bad customer service as their top frustration. According to Statista, bad service can ruin an otherwise great product or service. Additionally, 12 percent cite slow speed as their top complaint.

79 percent of people who complained about poor service felt ignored. According to Harris Interactive, the most common response to a complaint is no response at all.

75 percent of customers believe it takes too long to reach a live agent. According to Harris Interactive and HelpScout, access speed remains a persistent issue.

50 percent of shoppers believe their feedback is essentially meaningless. According to Qualtrics, about half of customers do not believe their feedback will ever reach someone who can act on it. You can differentiate your business by actively working on customer feedback.

Which Communication Channels Do Customer Service Teams Use Most?

The following channel adoption statistics come from a combination of Salesforce reports.

Email: 95 percent of customer service teams use email, and 98 percent of customers use it for service. Email remains the dominant channel because of its versatility and ease of use. If you ever consider eliminating email-based support, remember that only 2 percent of customers do not use it.

Knowledge bases: 66 percent of teams use them, and 82 percent of customers use them. Knowledge bases are growing in popularity because they provide consistent, scalable self-service support.

Customer portals: 64 percent of teams use them, and 84 percent of customers use them. Portals allow a convenient platform for ongoing agent-customer interactions.

SMS text messaging: 63 percent of teams use SMS, and 78 percent of customers use it for service. Text messaging has its pros and cons, but most teams incorporate it in some way.

Online chat and live support: 52 percent of teams use live chat, and 81 percent of customers have used it. According to Comm100, live chat is the top preferred channel for millennials. Statistics from CustomerThink suggest live chat has the highest customer satisfaction ratings of any channel.

Mobile apps: 51 percent of teams use mobile apps, and 82 percent of customers use them. Despite lower team adoption, customers clearly value the mobile channel.

Digital personal assistants: Only 20 percent of teams use AI assistants, while 54 percent of customers have used them. This gap suggests an opportunity — customers are ready for AI-driven support faster than teams are deploying it.

Generally, customers prefer self-service. The majority of American customers prefer knowledge bases and other forms of self-service to live interactions. A well-rounded strategy uses both self-service and live support.

How Do Training and Technology Drive Customer Service Performance?

88 percent of top-performing teams invest in agent training. Among low-performing teams, only 57 percent make the same investment. The gap in training investment strongly correlates with overall team performance.

83 percent of top-performing agents believe they have been adequately trained. That confidence drops to 52 percent among low-performing agents. Perceived training quality directly affects agent performance and morale.

69 percent of top-performing teams incorporate AI. Among low-performing teams, only 39 percent use AI. While AI is not a cure-all, its higher adoption rate among successful teams is notable.

These statistics all provide a general outlook on customer service, but to improve your own strategy, you need data from your own customers and team. Try new customer service tools and tracking methods to understand your target demographics and measure whether your approach is working.

EmailAnalytics tracks incoming and outgoing emails associated with any Gmail or G Suite account. You can monitor each customer service rep’s average response time, number of emails sent, busiest times of day, and more. Sign up for a free trial to see what it can do for your team.