For unhappy customers, complaints may not be the first option.
In fact, for many, the response to a poor experience is to take their money elsewhere.
Nearly half of consumers will stop doing business with a brand that frustrates them, according to a newly published CMO Council study conducted in Q4 2016.

By contrast, about one-third said they would send a complaint via email or company form, and a similar number said they would complain in person.
But the most commonly cited responses tended to be dramatic: Abandon the brand that’s delivering a bad experience.
A separate survey found that communicating with customer service via phone call had the highest instance of resolving a customer service inquiry the first time around, according to a Northridge Group (NRG) study.