According to a Nuance commissioned survey of 1,000 American consumers, a quarter (26 percent) of customer service interactions are a negative experience. Among Generation X consumers—those born between 1965 to 1980—this number rises to more than one-third (36 percent). And over half of those polled have cancelled a service because of a bad customer experience. The top complaints are the usual suspects: being put on hold, having to repeat themselves, getting transferred, not getting the issue resolved, and others. (See paper, “Top Customer Service Frustrations,” Nuance Communications, 2014.)

All of this strikes me as good news for organizations that want to stand out. There are still so many misses across the service landscape. Getting the essentials down—good mix of channels, consistent quality, accessibility, et al.—goes such a long way.