Customer satisfaction is on the rise

Customer satisfaction has been on the rise since late last year and some analysts think the upward trend is a prelude to a rebounding economy.

The American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) published its first quarter 2009 results Friday and nearly all sectors, including air travel, have shown improvements.

"Stock prices have been rising. Real estate is showing signs of life. Consumer confidence is up," said Claes Fornell, the founder of ACSI. "Corporate earnings are mixed, but generally better than expectations ... It is too early to predict whether the recession has bottomed out, but since ACSI is usually a precursor to increasing consumer demand, it could very well be signaling a revival for a very depressed U.S. economy."

The data could also mean consumers have lower-than-ever expectations and any indication of stability is enough to give them a little more confidence.

That is the conclusion of Britt Beemer, the founder of America's Research Group.

Based on his data, consumer loyalty is at 6 percent, which is an all-time low.

"Consumers simply expect less when they shop nowadays," Beemer said. "I do think you have a situation today where people are satisfied whenever things don't get worse. Things have been so bad in the last couple years that it can only get better."

So many customer service offices are moving overseas to India and other countries and that has greatly contributed to lowering expectations, Beemer said.

"That's been a huge issue for some people," he said.

While loyalty is low, the urgency for businesses and industries to maintain their regular customers is high, said Sean Snaith, an economics professor at the University of Central Florida.

"In this recession, businesses have had to pay a greater attention to their customers," he said. "They've probably succeeded in some instances because there's been such an emphasis on that."

It was the second time in a row that the ACSI returned with quarterly increases in customer satisfaction.

The five industries that showed the sharpest gains were: gasoline stations, 5.7 percent; motion pictures, 5.7; full-service restaurants, 5.0; airlines, 3.2; and health insurance, 2.8.

It was the first time since 2003 the airline industry showed improvement.

The five industries with the sharpest decreases were: Internet portals and search engines, -6.3; Internet brokerages, -6.3; banks, -3.8; limited-service restaurants, -2.4; and apparel -2.4.

The industry with one of the worst showings in the first quarter of 2009 was AT&T, which showed severe decreases in both fixed line telephone service, -5.3, and wireless service, -5.6.