‘Failure to respond to inquiries costs NW firms £8bn’ claims survey

COMPANIES in the North West are losing out on contracts worth £8bn because they do not respond quickly enough to potential customers, according to research from telecoms firm Vodafone.

Nationally the figure is a staggering £70bn, the company’s Critical Response Time Index claims.

The research of more than 700 senior managers in public and private sector firms says that failing to respond quickly to inquiries costs businesses dear.

The average cost of not responding to a potential new business enquiry is £30,000 for the average company this year, an almost £10,000 rise on 2009.

The Vodafone Critical Response Time Index, now in its fourth year, shows that more than a quarter (28%) of business people in the North West expect a response from a prospective supplier within one to two hours, and one in 10 (9%) within half an hour.

Of those who have not heard back within their preferred timeframe, 15% will contact another supplier immediately, although a lenient 86% would send a reminder or call to follow up – the highest in the UK.

Business owners say that these lost new business opportunities cost them an average of more than £30,000, up from £21,993 in 2009.

Peter Kelly, enterprise director for Vodafone UK said: ““Businesses need to respond quickly and efficiently to their customers if they want to survive and thrive.

“More and more companies will choose to work with suppliers who can prove that they will be contactable 24/7. If your business is not responsive, it’s not going to win in this fiercely competitive environment.”