Why people complain online
As a nation we seem to be catching onto the complaining culture... it's about being heard and understood
Why do we feel the desire to complain on line? Because it makes it feel better? It's extremely cathartic getting it off our chest. Its far easier to express all that pent up emotion on paper and makes us feel we can seal the lid on our resentment bucket. Off loading resentment can be great therapy for moving on. Maybe its because when its in writing its documented for all to see. Our revenge; that cannot be erased. For me personally it takes a lot for me to even bother.
I would have to feel seriously wronged to carry out this duty...if there was no resolution then I wouldn't hesitate to complain.
I would have to feel seriously wronged to carry out this duty. If I felt I’d been misguided or a service/product wasn’t up to my expectation I would first attempt to resolve the problem by making contact. I,m fair but I don’t suffer fools. Its not always about compensation, its more than that. It's about being heard and understood. If there was no resolution then I wouldn’t hesitate by expressing my opinion online and taking this as far as I could.
when someone admits to the problem, it reduces the negative emotion in an instance... responsibility is all that's required.
I think you have to be a certain type of character to make a complaint in the first place. Does that make us wrong or bad? No, I don’t think so. I think it demonstrates assertiveness - strong individuals with strong opinions; and that’s what this nation needs more of. I would like to think my opinion would make a difference and would be taken in a positive way, constructive criticism, where improvement is required. Just having somebody admit to a problem reduces the negative emotion in an instance, accepting responsibility is all that is required.
Like they say for every person who has a complaint as many as ten people hear about it…..
Feaured Blogger: Sharon Wright
Dragon Slayer One of the best pitches on Dragons Den Inventor, Entrepreneur Author of Mother of Invention Publisher And ordinary person
Dragon Slayer from Dragons Den TV Programme
On Twitter @sharon_wright
Richard says:
Interesting in-depth thinking. But it's so true regarding complainers, and not just online
Honch says:
Love it. Seriously good read Sharon. You get the sentiment over so well and this is probably one of the most difficult thing for online trading companies to get their heads round.
Fantastic.
Steve Goodman says:
Here's a story. A pizza parlour owner had one customer who complained every time he bought a pizza. The owner tried to persuade the customer to go elsewhere but he said" I don't want to, I live just round the corner so it's really convenient for me. Just get your product and service right".
The owner began to realise that although most of the customers complaints were not valid, every now and again the odd one was fully justified and enabled the owner to make some improvements which he probably would not have spotted.
So he made an offer to the customer. "I'll provide you with free pizza on condition you tell me about anything that you think is unsatisfactory. I'll feel better because I won't be constantly refunding money to you, so I'll listen more closely to what you are telling me".
Most customers who are dissatisfied actually don't complain to the service provider, but they do tell other people. So we should encourage people to complain because therein lie gold nuggets of information that will show us where we can improve our business.
Mark says:
A very true and interesting read, keep up the good work.
Simon Jordan says:
Great blog Sharon. Some people would rather complain than do something positive to resolve an issue. This takes courage and being online can mean we can hide behind our computers.
Thanks for sharing.
Duncan says:
If I get a bad service I complain, why wouldn't I. Too
many people are scared of standing up
for their rights! Good blog
Steve Kuncewicz says:
Excellent post Sharon-in the social media world bad news tends to travel very quickly and commanders tend to be way more motivated. Straight forward thinking like this should focus into every brand's strategy-obviously it's this kind of understanding that's won you so much respect already.
Ketan Makwan says:
Very interesting.. your blog outlines the thought process surrounding complaints. What is important with this topic is that the complainer should be constructive where as the recipient should be open to the criticism.
People only feel they need to complain as they are passionate about the subject and those who are passionate as much as they could be destructive to your business can quickly become advocates for your business.. so take the message on board respect your buyer's reaction and make then walking business cards for your business.
Warren Cass says:
Good read Sharon and an area I have recently made a couple of mistakes by failing to properly acknowledge and then act swiftly to conclude. It made the problem 10 times worse and I regretted it!
Jay says:
Excellent post Sharon. Typical of you - informative, well written and though provoking. Hope it's the first of many more to come.
tweetsbyskeet says:
I enjoyed reading this, a lot.
I find the whole subject matter totally fascinating. I'd iterate what Katan says in that there is a good marketing opportunity to convert complainant in to brand advocate through fab customer care.
BigDogStudioX says:
This was a very good read. Think you captured the essence.
With good procedures in places, its a win-win and its very valuable.