"Your call is very important to us." How often have we, as consumers, heard that line repeated over and over again after calling a company's customer service department and being put on what seems like perpetual hold?

Don't worry, we're not alone.

A recent Consumer Reports survey found that 67 percent of respondents had hung up on customer service without having their problem addressed, and 61 percent were "tremendously annoyed" when they couldn't reach a human on the telephone.

In fact, "Can't get a human on the phone" is the No. 1 gripe of phone customers, according to a separate survey.

If you think in-store consumers are happier with their customer service experience, think again. The Consumer Reports survey found that 64 percent of respondents said they had left a store in the past year because service was poor.

The bottom line is that many companies are driving a wedge between themselves and their patrons through poor use of technology and inadequate training of staff.

Business consultant Deborah Shane is "astounded" by the lack of priority and vision that the survey results reveal when it comes to businesses not only attracting new customers, but also retaining the ones that they have.

"In today's marketplace, except for a few standout brands that have done an amazing job at being 'indispensable,' competing for consumers' loyalty doesn't seem to be a major priority for businesses," Shane says in a recent Internet post. "Big mistake. Getting new customers, retaining them and then getting more customers from the ones you already have is the perfect business ecosystem - but it is only possible if retention is a priority."

Shane then uses a recent "run-in" with her cable television provider to illustrate the problem.

"What shocked me was the package I had signed onto was not the package they had me on," she says. "My service had to get interrupted so that I could call and ask what was up, and the service people I reached on the phone ranged from clueless and disinterested to flat-out rude and inconvenienced."

On the flip side, Shane shows how a restaurant made amends for a mistake.

"I went to a very popular, usually consistent restaurant that was a service and quality disaster that night," she says. "They got hit with a big party of people that had their kitchen and servers scrambling. I don't care. Schedule more people that night to handle it.

"We waited 45 minutes for our main dish, and when it came, it was bad. I called over the manager, who was polite, accommodating and took the dish off the bill. They will see me another time for that."

Shane believes there are far too few companies that "get it."

"I am a consumer who pays dearly for my credit card, media, phone and communications services," she says. "If a company is not treating me like gold, a diva, special, appreciated, respectfully, I am going to dump them immediately. Loyalty and longevity are built on the highest commitment to customer service and retention. Indispensable, standout, unexpected service today is as essential and important as air, water and food are for the survival of human beings.

"Make this a priority, and you and your company have a chance for success and longevity."

Ignore her advice at your own peril.

Contact Ted M. Natt Jr. at tnatt@thepilot.com.