DEALING WITH COMPLAINTS: A SURVEY OF UK GROCERY SUPPLIERS

Intense competition, tougher food legislation, increasing customer expectations, large numbers of new products and recent food scares have all contributed to highlight the importance of handling customer complaints. Describes the advantages for companies in the areas of legal proceedings, brand loyalty, manufacturing, marketing, R&D, company image, word‐of‐mouth and consumer risk perception. Despite the obvious advantage, a survey of 233 grocery manufacturers showed that some companies are not taking complaint handling seriously. The survey covered: who replies, how long replies take, what form responses take, complaint follow‐ups and invalid complaints.