[sage]

Is losing one customer really a big deal? You bet! When one customer has a bad experience with your company, they will tell 11 people about the poor service, and they will each tell five more people. If only 25% of those people decide not to do business with your company, that's still 17 lost customers -- and potentially $1 million in lost revenue over their lifetime.


This was in an article I read resently, thought it might be of interest.
Sage

 

[Tmrrptr]

Yup!
Bad news travels faster than the speed of light.
Good news may stay home!
r

 

[Workaholic]

Yep people will tell about a bad experience many times over a good one.

 

[Brian]

We can also lose customers when they don't have a bad experience. Customers can switch companies because they weren't "wowed", forget who they did business with, or can't find the company.

The last 2 point to the importance of retention marketing. Keeping in front of past customers is a very easy and cost effective way to retain customers, even if they weren't "wowed".

We've done a newsletter for the past 8 years, and it keeps our marketing cost at an embarassing low level.

Brian Phillips