Take a look at these 20 Scary Statistics that are sure to have you rethinking your overall customer service strategy:

1. Poor customer service costs US businesses $41B per year. (InsightSquared)

2. 55% of consumers have backed out of a purchase they were going to make because of the way they were treated during the buying process. (American Express)

3. 25% have changed who they work with because of hold times. (New Voice)

4. 53% are immediately turned-off by not speaking to a real person right away. (New Voice)

5. 84% felt their expectations were not met on their last customer service engagement. (Harvard Business Review)

6. 42% stopped using a business because of rude or unhelpful staff. (New Voice)

7. 54% shared a negative customer service experience with more than 5 people. (Zendesk)

8. 48% told more than 10 people about a bad customer service experience. (Harvard Business Review)

9. 62% were required to contact a business more than once to have an issue resolved. (Harvard Business Review)

10. 35% have lost their temper when talking to a customer service department. (American Express)

11. 40% have chosen to work with a competitor because of their reputation for delivering excellent customer service. (Zendesk)

12. 86% are willing to spend up to 25% more for a better customer experience. (RightNow)

13. 45% shared negative reviews on social media. (Zendesk)

14. 63% read negative reviews on social media. (Zendesk)

15. 88% have had their buying decisions influenced by customer service reviews found online. (Zendesk)

16. 65% will talk to others about the bad service they receive. (Harvard Business Review)

17. 82% have decided to stop buying from a business because of the way the were handled. (Zendesk)

18. For every customer that bothers to complain, 26 others stay silent. (White House Office of Consumer Affairs)

19. It takes 12 positive experiences to make up for 1 negative experience. (Parterre)

20. 80% of CEOs believe they deliver great service— only 8% of customers agree. (Bain & Company)