UK businesses are failing to meet spiralling customer expectations by not keeping up with the latest trends and developments in their markets, new research has revealed.

A BT study found that more than one in three firms admitted to not getting products on sale quickly enough to keep up with consumer demands.

A further 63 per cent of companies said that they cannot anticipate what customers are looking for because their information on sales trends are out of date and fail to keep abreast of new developments.

Eight in ten of those polled said they wished their IT systems could better pinpoint customer demands, while 63 per cent of respondents admitted that it takes so long to gather customer information that it is obsolete by the time it is ready to use.

BT said that firms generally recognise that British consumers are becoming more sophisticated and discerning, but they cannot respond quickly enough to new demands.

The report will make worrying reading for small firms, who often do not have the resources of their larger counterparts to research customer trends in order to attract greater numbers to their core client base.

Steve Ackling, chairman of BT Contact Central, said that sadly this was a triumph for the old cliché ‘data rich, information poor.’

“Today’s customers are a bit like Pop Idol’s Simon Cowell. They know what they want, aren’t afraid to show it and can be very tough.

“Like Pop Idol, those that struggle to respond to the feedback they get won’t get a second chance. Businesses are right to be concerned with increased customer demand.

“They are missing out on new opportunities and potentially lucrative new revenue streams – it is increasingly difficult for firms to understand from their CRM systems where they need to innovate,” he said.