We’ve all heard this and most of us have probably fallen victim to it [...]]]> “Why would you waste time changing that? We never had any complaints!” An associate was recently relaying a story to me about how he was trying to improve some of the documentation going to the customer when he was hit with these statements.

We’ve all heard this and most of us have probably fallen victim to it at one time or another. “No news is good news”, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”, “No one is complaining so it must be good” and many other variations. But the truth is quite different. It’s a funny thing about dissatisfaction, far more often than not, someone who is dissatisfied simply walks away, never to return. Some studies show that as few as 1 in 25 dissatisfied customers will choose to complain. The rest will just lock it away, another black check mark against your brand, and when you collect enough black check marks, you’ve lost a customer.

In the “analog” world, a dissatisfied customer might tell 8-16 others about their dissatisfaction by word of mouth. in the digital world, it could be thousands. And, importantly, 91% of dissatisfied customers will never purchase goods or services from you again! Of course satisfaction does not guarantee loyalty. These are closely related, but different phenomenon. It is not possible to have loyalty without satisfaction, but it is quite possible that satisfied customers will not remain loyal. Satisfaction can best be thought of as a willingness to continue in the relationship, but an openness to the next, better, offer. Loyalty is a willingness to continue in the relationship in the face of competition.

There are dozens (perhaps hundreds) of factors that drive customer loyalty. A common factor among many of them is that they are based on a relationship between the customer and the supplier. This relationship may never manifest itself as a dialog between two people, but it almost always does if it is to have truly lasting value. Trust can be built and expectations defined through a simple request-fulfillment loop, but a feeling of engagement comes from someone reaching out to you, being genuinely interested in what you offer, and acting on that interest.

Customers who complain are a gift! Complaints mean the customer is engaged in the relationship. They mean the customer WANTS the relationship to work. If a customer complains and is satisfied with how the complain is handled, they are as much as 10% MORE LOYAL than a customer who has never had any problems. Of course making your customers complain may not be the most desirable way to get them engaged, but if they are engaged they will complain, and you better be prepared to listen and act!

Engagement through involvement in the creative process is a fantastic and positive way to build loyalty, even in a product or service you aren’t ready to offer. Such is the motive behind the proliferation of “open beta” releases by software companies, popularized by Google. “Here, have a look at what we are working on, kick the tires, let us know what you think.” This strategy can be wildly successful as long as you listen and act! On the other hand, it might be the worst business decision you ever make if you think it will get you good PR but you don’t really need to listen to what these early adopters say.

No news is NOT good news. Do not assume your customers are happy, let alone loyal, simply because they do not complain. You need to build relationships with your customers and talk to them even if (especially if) they are not talking to you.