Bad customer service sees IT suppliers dropped

More than two thirds of end users have shown suppliers the door in past 12 months due to bad service, says research

Sixty-nine per cent of end users have dropped an IT supplier in the past 12 months due to poor customer service, a new report claims.

The independent survey, which was completed by Vanson Bourne in September on behalf of open-cloud firm Rackspace, questioned 250 end users and showed that customer service is becoming an increasing priority for IT departments.

The equivalent of 28 working days is lost each year as companies chase up and tackle technical glitches with suppliers, with the most common problems being poor communication and slow response times, according to the survey.

Taylor Rhodes, international managing director of Rackspace, said customer service is an essential consideration for businesses.

"Our report shows that ‘satisfactory service' is no longer good enough. Seven out of 10 of the respondent UK companies have voted with their feet in the past year and changed suppliers because of poor-quality service," he added.

"In today's highly competitive business environment, customer support is a crucial factor. A staggering amount of man hours are being wasted by UK businesses as they struggle to manage and control IT service issues."

Despite such problems, IT decision makers still scored their suppliers seven out of 10 in terms of overall satisfaction.