Moneypenny Survey Shows the Divide in How SMBs & Customers Perceive Their Customer’s Communication Experiences
Friday, May 29th, 2026
A new report from Moneypenny, the world’s leading customer conversations company, shows SMBs believe they are delivering a better call experience than their customers perceive. The research was commissioned among 2,000 SMBs and 2,000 consumers to understand the gap between business and customer perceptions, and across every single contact method tested, businesses scored themselves significantly higher than customers.
Crucially, the research also suggests that when service falls short, customers are unlikely to complain, instead choosing to go elsewhere, creating a hidden and often unmeasured revenue risk for businesses.
“Across each channel, there were significant gaps between how SMBs graded themselves versus their customers – some as high as 32 percentage points,” said Jesper With-Fogstrup, Group Chief Executive Officer for Moneypenny. “The survey also revealed that the channels SMBs rely on the most to drive sales conversions are often those that fall short in terms of meeting customer expectations, highlighting a critical disconnect.”
For example, 64% of SMBs surveyed said their social media drives conversion, but only 32% of consumers felt it meets expectations. Company web forms show a similar perception gap, with 64% of SMBs believing they drive conversion but only 32% of consumers feeling they meet expectations. The pattern was repeated for company AI receptionists: 56% (business belief) versus 26% (consumer perception) and for chatbots: 54% versus 26%, respectively. Messaging apps had a 20-percentage point difference, email a 23-percentage point difference, while Live Chat had a gap of 13 and phone a gap of 16.
A whopping 89% of SMBs said the phone was effective at converting customer inquiries into actual business, more than any other channel, and 69% of consumers agreed. Further highlighting the importance of answering calls quickly, 33% of businesses and 17% of consumers think a response should come within seconds, while 36% of businesses and 41% of consumers say within minutes.
Speed of response is key in a world where consumers order dinner, book taxis, and stream films on demand. They don’t wait around for a call back, and will simply choose the business that responds fastest, with the Moneypenny survey showing that 72% of consumers say they're likely to choose the business that responds first.
When considering factors that determine loyalty to a company, speed of response (36%) and “quality I can rely on” (32%) rank more highly with consumers than trusting the brand (30%). The findings also highlight how little feedback businesses receive when things go wrong, with customers far more likely to abandon an inquiry entirely than raise a complaint, reinforcing how easily missed interactions can translate into lost revenue.
When asked what matters most on first contact, both businesses and consumers rated clarity, professionalism and courtesy as most important, but there was a significant perception gap in the importance of personalization, with 87% of businesses rating it as important, compared with only 65% of consumers.
The survey showed that 39% of consumers say call support between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. would best meet their needs, while 24% would prefer early evening support between 5 p.m. and 9 p.m. This suggests many businesses may be missing a key window of customer intent outside traditional working hours, particularly in the early evening when demand remains high.
According to the research, this after-hours availability makes customers more likely to feel reassured (37%), choose or stick with a business (32%), make the company stand out compared to others (31%) and complete an inquiry or purchase (31%). Businesses (40%) recognize that customers expect after hours support, and yet, most of those surveyed cite staffing and cost as the reason they don't extend coverage.
“I found it particularly interesting that the report highlights a broader customer experience challenge, with 1 in 10 consumers unable to recall a memorable service interaction,” said Jesper With-Fogstrup Group CEO of Moneypenny. “For SMBs, this is both a challenge and an opportunity. While smaller businesses may lack the scale of larger organizations, they can build genuine, personal relationships with customers.
Today, customer expectations are shaped by the best experiences they have anywhere, from fast delivery updates to seamless returns and personalized recommendations. For SMBs, success isn’t about adopting every new technology, but about listening to customers, responding quickly, and creating meaningful human connections. Businesses that combine speed, clarity and a personal touch will stand out and build long-term loyalty.”
