Hey, I also recommend doing the opposite when you receive above average customer support (this is much more important than knowing how to receive satisfaction). If I talk to a CSR who is very helpful, I always ask to speak to his/her supervisor so that I can tell him/her what good service I've received. I'll make the extra call if that's what it takes, or ask a service person if they have a customer feedback form for me. I do this especially when I've had difficulty and finally find someone who is helpful. It is right to reward good service.
Also, I choose my businesses by customer service. Americans tend to shop based primarily on price; however, one needs to wonder how the low cost provider can provide good customer service. Usually, they cannot. I don't think it's fair to buy the cheapest product and then expect the best customer service. I often see this in the electronics business. People will say that they spent an hour on the phone only to speak to someone who can barely speak English. I ask, "Did you take customer service into account when you purchased it?" Of course, this doesn't work so well with Internet purchases; however, my rule there is to try to shop from sites that appear to be professionally designed -- going on the theory that you don't put cheap wine in good bottles.
Edit 10 Jan: When providing positive feedback, I've found it helps to be as specific as possible: the rep was very knowledgeable about your products; the installer was efficient and did an extremely professional looking job; the rep went the extra mile to resolve my issue; the service person was prompt and efficient; etc. The reason is that specific compliments are more likely to "stick" than are general comments. In rare cases, I have dashed off a letter; it's easy to dash off the three lines for a positive letter, and this is very helpful for the type of professionals who have a file that gets reviewed annually or for reps who take ownership of a long running problem.
For anyone who hasn't done this, do it, do it and you'll enjoy the experience. It's fun to hear the suprise in CSR's voice when asked to be transferred to someone in order to say something
good. I've had a few experiences in which the person had to check to find out how positive feedback is to be handled.
