Converting Customer Dissatisfaction into Loyalty and Profits at Cornerstone of New Boulder Business

Resident Cheryl Flink at helm of The Verde Group's first US office

October 3, 2005, BOULDER, CO - After more than 10 years consulting to some of North America's most respected organizations on how to turn customer dissatisfaction into loyalty and profits, The Verde Group of Toronto has set up a dedicated US office in Boulder, Colorado.  Led by local business woman and Ph.D. Cheryl Flink, The Verde Group's US network will help companies measure the cost of customer dissatisfaction, prioritize the issues based on ROI, and quickly fix the problems for improved retention and profitability.

"The Verde Group is delighted to be putting a physical stake in the ground in the United States and is pleased that Dr. Cheryl Flink has agreed to lead our US operations," says Paula Courtney, President, The Verde Group.  "With a doctorate focusing on research methodologies and statistics and more than a decade of creating and implementing innovative business models and marketing strategies, Cheryl is the perfect person to continue to grow our business south of the border."

Over the past 10 years The Verde Group has conducted more than 100 customer dissatisfaction studies with 25,000 customers and recently compiled the results into a ground-breaking White Paper.  Highlights of the White Paper include the fact that the typical North American company is at risk of losing a full 21 per cent of its customers due to dissatisfaction. 

"If a business has more than 20 per cent of its revenue tied directly to the customer experience, that means tens of millions of dollars literally hang in the balance if merchants don't take steps to improve customer service," says Dr. Cheryl Flink, Senior Vice President, The Verde Group.  "My role in the US will be to pinpoint the customer issues that cause this dissatisfaction and create strategies to halt the churn, build loyalty and increase profits. In fact, our Revenue@Risk research is so valuable that some companies now tie management compensation to its results."

Revenue@Risk is The Verde Group's proprietary baseline study that characterizes and measures the amount of revenue a company has at risk, and then identifies the highest payback initiatives that will reduce that risk.

Additional findings from The Verde Group White Paper include:

. 60 to 80 per cent of defecting customers categorize themselves as 'satisfied' on surveys conducted immediately before their departure;
. 59 per cent of customers experience at least one problem with a company's products/services over a six to 12 month period;
. Customers who don't experience problems are twice as loyal as those who do;
. Only 30 per cent of customers are completely satisfied with the resolution to their problems;
. More than 40 per cent of those who have a problem never tell the company about it; and
. On average, 70 per cent of customers defect due to service/quality problems that, if known, would have been relatively easy for the company to fix.

"These statistics usually come as a surprise to most senior executives because the conventional customer satisfaction metrics used by most organizations are poor predictors of customers' future behavior," says Ms. Courtney.  "Companies usually conduct research that measures how much their customers love them but this doesn't identify the problems that cause defection or tell the company which problems to fix and in what order."

Rather than focusing on customer satisfaction measurement and tracking, The Verde Group works with organizations to implement programs that focus on measuring the prevalence and drivers of customer dissatisfaction.  Only this way can a company determine the financial impact of customer dissatisfaction, what the defections could cost the company, what to do to win back loyalty and where to invest for the greatest payback.

The Verde Group specializes in helping North American organizations measure the cost of customer dissatisfaction, prioritize the issues based on ROI, and quickly fix them for improved retention and profitability.  With offices in Canada and the United States and affiliates in the United Kingdom, The Verde Group has consulted internationally to clients including AGF Mutual Funds, Toyota, Levi Strauss, Allstate Insurance, Honeywell and Eli Lilly.  The company's new Boulder office is located at 4370 Walnut Street.  Visit www.verdegroup.ca for more information.




For additional information or a copy of The Verde Group's White Paper, please contact:

Ann Gallery
High View Communications
416-322-5897
[email protected]