The world is globalizing, and everywhere businesses are feeling the changes as they sweep through all industries. A growing source of value for many of these companies has been the idea of improving to cater to their customers. With social media being so heavily ingrained in today’s society, and forums existing for the sake of airing out grievances about companies, the time for consumer feedback is at an all-time high. The key to success for any business is customers, and these days customers have more than their fair share of things to say when it comes to the companies that serve them.
With this customer feedback trend, sites like Pissed Consumer thrive on ensuring that these big companies hear these voices. The big problem with the customer to business interaction is that these kinds of grievances are often left to the wrong individuals. The reality is that most of the time, they can’t always affect real change, but there is still a benefit to hearing these voices. Companies that ensure customer complaints go through the right channels often are able to make changes that save them a great deal of hardship in the future. Not to mention that they can turn upset customers into advocates for their brand when they handle the complaints appropriately. There is value and truth in the statement according to Mike Podolsky, Founder of Pissed Consumer, “it’s easier to keep old customers than to find new ones.”
It isn’t just companies that can benefit from hearing customers complain; the customers themselves often air out grievances due to feeling helpless or like they’ve been cheated or lied to by the companies they speak about, but when they speak their minds and actually receive a response from the companies, it not only gives them a sense of feeling heard, but the psychological benefits that come from being allowed to air out frustrations that lead to positive response is astounding. Usually, the idea of facing customer feedback can be unpleasant for all parties involved, which is why ensuring that these voices are heard and then given over to the right hands for management can often create a far more positive relationship between the customer and business.
These kinds of interactions do wonders for a company’s reputation, but even beyond reputation, some businesses can have problems within their model that go unrealized until someone says something. The value of customer feedback also lies in affecting positive change for a business’ model. Being able to read through first-hand experiences dealing with a company offers an insight into the customer side of things. Businesses can’t account for what kind of experience their consumers have, so personal accounts highlight problems that would otherwise go unnoticed.
Advocacy for customers’ complaints to be heard is an immensely valuable opportunity for any company to improve its business model and dealings and offers customers massive benefits in feeling like their voices have been heard. This process is absolutely invaluable, and the more companies take on this practice, the more successful they’ll be.