Experience Investigators CEO Jeannie Walters, CCXP, CSP, says high customer satisfaction scores don’t guarantee customer loyalty. She advises companies to shift from reactive problem-solving to a proactive customer experience strategy that prevents issues before they reach customers.
Owner of Chicago Consultancy Says High Satisfaction Scores Don’t Prevent Customer Churn Without Strategic Approach
Nov. 10, 2025 – Many organizations celebrate record-high customer satisfaction scores while simultaneously losing customers to competitors, according to Experience Investigators CEO Jeannie Walters.
The disconnect stems from treating customer experience as reactive problem-solving rather than proactive strategy, says Walters, an award-winning certified customer experience expert, author, and international keynote speaker who has spent more than 20 years advising companies on customer experience transformation.
“Satisfaction measures whether you fixed a problem after it happened,” Walters said. “Experience is about whether you prevented the problem in the first place. Organizations that only chase satisfaction scores are always playing catch-up.”
According to Walters, most companies approach customer experience through three common reactive patterns: waiting for complaints before taking action, addressing individual issues without examining root causes, and measuring success solely through post-interaction surveys.
“When customers reach out to complain, the damage is already done,” Walters said. “For every customer who complains, research shows many more simply leave without saying anything.”
Walters founded Experience Investigators in 2009 to help organizations shift from reactive customer service to proactive customer experience management. Her work with Fortune 500 companies and SMBs across industries has established her as a leading authority on customer-centric transformation, with clients including JPMorganChase, SAP, Comcast, Verizon, PayPal, and BASF.
Her approach focuses on what she calls the Experience Commitments framework, which requires organizations to design intentional customer journeys before problems occur, collaborate with customers throughout their experience, build organizationwide cultural commitment to customer-centricity, and continuously innovate based on customer needs.
“Customer experience isn’t a department — it’s a business discipline,” Walters said. “It requires the same rigor as finance or operations, with clear goals, consistent processes, and leadership accountability.”
The distinction between satisfaction and experience becomes clear in how organizations allocate resources, says Walters. Reactive companies invest heavily in customer service teams to handle complaints — often spending 5-10 times more on problem resolution than prevention, according to industry research. Proactive companies invest in journey mapping, employee training, and process improvements that prevent issues before they reach customers.
More than 500,000 professionals have taken Walters’ LinkedIn Learning courses on customer experience strategy. Her upcoming book, “Experience Is Everything: Making Every Moment Count in the Age of Customer Expectations,” explores the shift from reactive to proactive customer experience management and publishes in April 2026.
Walters is recognized as one of the most influential voices in the industry by sources such as LinkedIn. Her insights on customer experience strategy have been featured in Forbes, The Wall Street Journal, NPR, and The Chicago Tribune.
For more information, visit: ExperienceInvestigators.com
# # #
About Experience Investigators
Experience Investigators, founded in 2009 by award-winning customer experience leader and international keynote speaker Jeannie Walters, CCXP, CSP, helps organizations shift from reactive customer service to a proactive customer experience strategy. Recognized by LinkedIn as one of the most influential voices in the industry, Walters and her team provide strategic consulting, training, and thought leadership for Fortune 500 companies and SMBs across multiple industries. The firm’s proven CXI Navigator™ framework empowers leaders at all levels to drive measurable customer experience outcomes. More than 500,000 professionals have taken Walters’ LinkedIn Learning courses, and her insights on customer experience strategy have been featured in Forbes, The Wall Street Journal, NPR, and The Chicago Tribune. Walters is the author of “Experience Is Everything: Making Every Moment Count in the Age of Customer Expectations” (releasing April 2026). Visit: experienceinvestigators.com
______________________________________________________________________
Press Contact: Jeff Pizzino, APR (or +1 480-606-8292)
DOWNLOAD high-resolution photo
