Business and Marketing

Customers want great experiences, but are companies ready to deliver?

The good news is that 81% of businesses believe that customer experience is more important than three years ago. Despite that, 30% have not increased their investment in customer experience in those three years and 40% invest less than 2% of their revenue into customer experience, according to a recent study.

The study, conducted by customer experience transformation firm Strativity Group, surveyed 248 corporate executives in Africa, Asia, Europe, Central America, North America, and South America.

The study found that companies that committed at least 3% of revenue to customer experience saw 9% more referrals, only 9.5% attrition, and an 82% retention rate. Conversely, the 40% of companies that dedicate 2% or less of their revenue to customer experience experienced a 7% referral rate, nearly 12% attrition, and 75% retention.

Executives lack ample knowledge of the costs associated with customer experience, with less than a fourth (24%) understanding the cost of acquiring a new customer. At 83%, most executives don't know the cost of a customer complaint. Only 40% know the average annual value of a customer and 85% don't know how much it costs to resolve a service issue that affects customer experience.

The study found that companies with higher satisfaction scores generally share several characteristics, including C-level support for customer experience, an integrated brand promise and customer experience, and consistency in business decisions and the overall customer experience itself.

Business Breaking News: Stressed Out Workers Say These Two Thing Bother Them Most

Long commutes and low pay are the two things causing workers the most stress.

For the fourth consecutive year, small paychecks were the top stressor of employees, with 13 percent of adults ranking low wages as the most stressful aspect of their job, according to a new study from Everest College. Low pay shared the top spot with Americans' long commute to and from work, which jumped to 13 percent from 9 percent in 2011.

Among the other things putting stress on U.S. workers include unreasonable workloads, annoying co-workers, poor work-life balance, a job that is not a chosen career, lack of opportunity for advancement, bosses and fear of being fired or laid off. [5 Ways to Improve Your Work-Life Balance Today]

Commodity Online News: Fresh selling seen in RM Seeds open interest up 1.78%