Sixty-four percent of those surveyed said they'd walked out of a store because of poor service in the past year. Among the worst for service: Sam's Club and Walmart.
Overall, people complained about phone service, too. Sixty-seven percent said they didn't get their problem solved. Their biggest complaints: too long a wait on hold and too many menus to navigate to get a real person, or they couldn't get a real person at all.
But websites such as DialAHuman.com and GetHuman.com can help. They list customer-service numbers that will get you to a real live person.
Consumer Reports says another good move is to use social medial. Social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter are powerful tools because companies monitor those sites to see what's being said about them. So Consumer Reports says if you have a complaint, go online.
Consumer Reports found that it's not all gloom and doom when it comes to customer service. Some companies do a very good job, including Apple, Southwest Airlines, and Crutchfield.com, which sells electronics.
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