5 Ways to Lose a Customer (and What You Can do About it)

Acquiring a new customer takes indefinite amounts of time, effort, and resources; but losing one can happen in an instant. When customers encounter frustration, delays, or a lack of transparency, you won’t always get a nasty review on Google. Sometimes consumers simply take their business elsewhere, leaving you none the wiser. 

If you’re unintentionally making the mistakes below, you could be driving customers away without even realizing it. Here are five of the most common ways businesses lose customers and how ElevateERP helps you fix them before it’s too late. 

1. Negative Customer Service Experiences

Customer service will make or break your business. It is the single most important thing to consumers when determining retention rate, with 93% of consumers saying they are likely  to make a repeat purchase from a company with excellent customer service. But the customer service game has changed from back in the day. In our highly stimulating world that’s focused on instant gratification, consumers expect quick, efficient, and helpful interactions. When they face long wait times, unhelpful responses, or difficulty getting the information they need, frustration builds. 

A single negative interaction can turn a once-loyal customer into a competitor’s newest client. Studies show that 96% of consumers will leave a company due to poor customer service. And they don’t just leave quietly – they tell others. In the age of online reviews and social media, a bad customer service experience can damage your reputation and cost you more than just one lost sale.

Customers want convenience and efficiency. If your business can’t provide it, they’ll find someone who can.

Luckily, ElevateERP provides an innovative solution that allows your customers to kiss these pain points goodbye. Instead of being hindered by time of day or representative ability to get simple answers, customers can access all of their account information 24/7 with the click of a few buttons. 

Empower your customers to track shipments, create new orders, and start returns without needing to contact a representative. They find quick resolution that leaves them satisfied while your team saves precious minutes on the minutia. That way, when there is a more complicated issue, the best of the best from your customer service team can go above and beyond for each customer. 

2. Lack of Pricing Transparency

Few things erode trust faster than unclear pricing. When customers have to jump through hoops to get a quote, they feel like they’re being manipulated. If they don’t understand or can’t access your pricing structure, they’ll start looking for a more upfront supplier.

Transparency in pricing isn’t just about building trust in your brand, it’s also about efficiency. If a potential buyer has to call, email, or wait for a response just to get basic pricing information, it slows down their purchasing decision. And in today’s fast-paced market, delays kill deals.

If customers don’t trust your pricing, they won’t trust your business. But with ElevateERP, customers can:

• Generate their own quotes directly in the portal
• See clear, upfront pricing without waiting on a sales rep
• Access invoices and pay them within the portal 
• Keep track of receipts and past orders 

Statistics show that 94% of consumers would be loyal to brands that actively practice transparency. By making pricing information accessible and accurate, ElevateERP removes hesitation from the buying process, leading to faster conversions, fewer lost opportunities, and a more loyal customer base.

3. A Confusing Ordering Process

How easy is it for a customer to place an order with your company? If the answer is anything other than “as pie”, you’ve got a problem.

A complex or outdated ordering system creates friction, and friction leads to frustration. If customers have to go through multiple steps just to complete a purchase, they are likely to abandon their order entirely. In fact, 87% of online shoppers said they would abandon an order due to a complicated checkout process, an issue that is just as pressing for B2B interactions as it is for e-commerce. 

ElevateERP, on the other hand, allows customers to generate and submit orders directly from the portal and can receive instant order confirmation with minimal effort.

4. Delayed Orders

A customer places an order and expects it to arrive on time. When it doesn’t, irritation and disappointment are quick to set in. And if you really want to add salt to the wound, make sure they have no idea where their order is or when it will finally show up.

Shipping delays happen, usually through no fault of your own as a business owner. But the way you communicate those delays makes all the difference. If customers are constantly calling for updates, that’s a red flag. Roughly 91% of consumers actively track their shipments, and 82% of Americans expect highly accurate delivery information when tracking their package – so if your customers are experiencing delays with no updates and can’t sufficiently track their orders, you might be sending them straight into the arms of a competitor. 

You guessed it – ElevateERP to the rescue again. Our portal allows your customers to track orders and get updates on shipping status instantly, so they never feel like they’re left in the dark again. 

5. Limited Autonomy (No Self-Service Options)

Today’s customers rightfully want control over their buying experience. If they have to call, email, or submit a ticket just to get basic information, they’ll quickly lose patience and take their business elsewhere.

Self-service portals are becoming the gold standard across industries. Customers expect to be able to log in and access their vital account information without having to wait for a response from a representative. 

Here’s what frustrates customers the most:

• Having to contact support for simple tasks like reordering or invoice retrieval
• No access to the account details that impact them the most, like past orders or shipment tracking
• Feeling helpless in the return process
• Having to request reports or data manually instead of generating them instantly

Customers don’t want to wait on your availability, they want answers on their own time. If your business doesn’t offer self-service options, you’re forcing customers to take an extra step that they don’t want to take.

But ElevateERP puts your customers in control by offering: 

• Instant access to account data (order history, invoices, shipments)
• Self-service returns management to initiate RMAs hassle-free
• Custom queries to pull the exact data they need from your company, when they need it

By empowering customers with self-service tools, you reduce frustration, save time, and create a seamless experience that keeps them coming back.

Get Started Today

Keeping customers happy doesn’t have to be a hassle. We want to help you remove roadblocks to customer retention and protect your business from unnecessary loss. To learn more about our innovative portal or how we can help you effortlessly save time and money, book a demo HERE!