India is one of the most patient nations in the world – at least when it comes to customer service

16 minutes, that’s how long it takes Indians to get angry over bad customers service and slam the company door. They reach their boiling point quite late when compared to Netherlands and Germany (7 minutes) or even Japan (just 6 minutes).

The survey, American Express Global Customer Service Barometer, was conducted in 11 countries.

Opinion and feedback matters

However, when Indians finally do get angry, they tend to get quite loud. 64% of them have voiced their displeasure to a customer service representative. The average for other countries is just 48%.

This is the case the other way around also. When Indians receive good service, not only will they spread the word around quickly, they will also spend more for that service.

Lead by example

If you are an Indian company, or significant portion of your customers come from India, here are some other survey results to bear in mind:

1. Indians discuss their good/bad experiences more than other countries

They will share their negative experience to 46 people and a positive one to 44.
40% will praise and recommend positive experiences.

2. They are social

54% of Indians have used social media at least once last year to give responses regarding customer service.
Only 20% of respondents have used social media this way in the other 11 markets.

3. There are 4 main factors making Indians switch service providers

• 22% didn’t like to wait too long until the complaint was resolved.
• 20% complained of insensitive or rude customer representative.
• 17% were mislead into thinking their issue will get resolved, but didn’t.
• 14% did not appreciate having to continuously follow up on an issue.

4. India prefers small businesses over large corporations

80% of Indian consumers feel that SME’s offer better service than large companies.

5. Indian consumers spend more if offered better service

87% of Indians are willing to spend 22% more, if offered better service.

Learn from the best

These were the survey results from one of the most densely populated countries in the world. Stay tuned for results from other countries as well.

In the meantime, stay on top of your customer service game with a free e-book.