The Great Customer Resignation: Customer churn is costing mid-market companies an average of £4m per year

Posted on 8 May 2022 by The Manufacturer
Partner Content

Life in the manufacturing sector has always been a challenge, but the past few years have put particular strain on companies to deliver. With the Coronavirus pandemic changing the face of business almost overnight, supply chains have been fractured, critical skills gaps widen, and customers are more discerning than ever before.

The manufacturing industry, as well as many others, has seen its growth curtailed. As manufacturers increasingly sell direct to the consumer online and provide continuing service packages in addition to products, customer experience has become the key differentiator that can make or break a business.

Experience sits at the heart of loyalty, underpinned by technology and the proper use of customer data. Customers need to be met with empathy, where they are, and with the exact services and products they want. The pandemic has accelerated many technologies and customer experience trends, including the continued rise of self-service and increasing digital transformation, as more of our economy has been forced online.

In a world driven by convenience and speed, technology plays a pivotal role in ensuring consumers can access products or services quickly and easily. Consumers will go elsewhere if these systems aren’t fit for their purpose.

Businesses are facing the Great Customer Resignation while being held back by substandard systems. Customer experience and CRM technology are fundamental to business success. When used effectively, they can drive engagement and deliver a customer journey that nurtures brand loyalty. Yet, many businesses are selling themselves short by not equipping themselves with sufficient data about their customers or utilising this data properly. SugarCRM, leading global provider of CRM software solutions, spoke to 1,600 sales and marketing decision makers in organisations all around the world to determine the causes of poor customer experiences that impact customer churn, satisfaction, and retention.

According to The 2022 CRM Impact Report conducted by SugarCRM, customer churn is costing mid-market companies an average of £4M per year. This year, 58 percent of global respondents reported their rate of customer churn has increased over the last 12 months. This “Great Customer Resignation” – yet another challenge for companies fighting an onslaught of forces including supply chain disruption and employment challenges – threatens the future of companies across all industries worldwide.

61% of sales leaders also reported that they were fatigued and frustrated with the CRM admin burden placed on their teams, taking them away from valuable customer facing activities.


61% of sales leaders are fatigued and frustrated with the CRM admin burden placed on their teams, according to SugarCRM’s 2022 CRM Impact Report 


We live in a world where data is king. Yet businesses are still allowing key gaps in their data to impact their processes and delivery of a great customer experience. To stay competitive and drive improvement, businesses must consolidate their processes across all sales touch-points and offer a holistic view of customer data across the entire organisation. However, nearly half (45%) of those surveyed state they are unable to access the same view of customer data across marketing, sales, and service, leaving front-line staff with an inaccurate view of customers. This lack of consolidation and a holistic approach allows customers to fall through the cracks.

By ensuring systems are married up and incorporating a complete historical record of every change event in the customer journey, businesses can greatly improve the customer experience providing their customers with a seamless and consistent journey. By unlocking this potential, businesses can directly impact their customer lifeline value, identify and reduce churn, and positively impact their sales and all-important bottom line. The pandemic has brought about many societal shifts, and customer expectations are just one area that has been significantly affected. Now, more than ever, businesses must adapt to survive. Those that fail to connect with their customers will not.

Download our CRM impact report here