Cheap broadband options attract switching customers

Dissatisfaction with connection speeds often drives many broadband customers to change their service provider, a recent study on switchers’ behaviour has indicated.

Other reasons like price, customer service and reliability also prompted people to switch, but they were smaller issues, compared to slow connection speeds which caused so much dissatisfaction before the users decided to leave their current service, the research has revealed.

About a quarter of the surveyed said they were unhappy with the customer service offered by their suppliers.

The survey by Orchid Consulting, call centre and customer service specialists also showed that more than half of the respondents switched their internet providing service at least once. Surprisingly, more than a third (81%) did not change their provider for the last one year, saying they were satisfied with the service quality.

People often tend to choose their broadband internet provider on the basis of reliability, speed, and customer service. However, in many cases, the price was the key factor that influenced customers’ decision while choosing a new supplier, the research shows.

Keith Gait, the analyst at Orchid Consulting said, “What’s interesting is that price is the biggest single driver of purchasing decisions, not reliability of service. It would be more logical that if people want to switch that they should choose their new provider on the same basis that they decided to leave the old one. Otherwise it’s not comparing apples with apples.”

Service providers would find it difficult to maintain good satisfaction levels over a long period or retain their customers just by focusing on one aspect of their offering, as purchasing decisions and switching decisions are much more complex than any one single issue, he also warned.