Our research showed some interesting results when surveys were broken down by geographical region. The following information is for the U.S. only:
There are noticeable regional differences in satisfaction results obtained from the agents surveyed. Agents on the two coasts appear more difficult to please. Respondents from the South and the so-called American Heartland register higher levels of satisfaction on average.
Interpretation
The results seem to confirm regional stereotypes. It is difficult to know how much of this is attributable to actual differences in satisfaction levels, and how much is due to differences in scoring. That is, people on the coasts may, on average, simply be more demanding and grade on a lower curve. Unfortunately, we have no way of conducting a valid calibration study on this point.
My Agent Voices blog posts are the result of research on over 5,000 agent surveys conducted in North America. - - Bruce Belfiore