Everyday we judge the things surrounding us, we have pre-conceived ideas of what something stands for, how it relates to us and whether or not it is interesting.
Customer satisfaction is a huge example of this. Let’s be honest, all too often, customer feedback is seen as boring, a chore, a lengthy survey added to the pile, even left ignored? But if we change the way we look at feedback, we can start to really appreciate its value. Flip a few stereotypes on their head and we could be on to something truly valuable...
There’s no such thing as bad feedback
This may be a controversial concept, but as brands we should be accepting that this simply isn’t true. Not all feedback is as valuable as each other. This does not mean that only positive feedback is useful (in fact the very opposite can be true) but rather that quality over quantity is certainly something that should not be overlooked in this field. Ask yourself a few questions, why have these people shared their feedback? Have they really thought about the information that they’re sharing? How accurate of a representation is this data? 100 survey responses of smiley faces may seem like a broad range of feedback, but 5 detailed text responses about specific circumstances and suggestions can be just as, if not more beneficial to a brand. Which leads to my second point...
Don’t bombard the customer – they’ll come to you
Of course, no company would support the idea of overwhelming customers with feedback requests, but the old fashioned idea that ‘if a customer wants to share about their experience enough then they’ll approach us’ is just that – old fashioned. A little proactive communication at the right time, in the right way can be the difference between little, no or useless feedback and really relevant and powerful customer insight. Noone wants their inbox full of feedback requests about companies they’ve been in contact with, but using the right channels of communication with the right types of customers can be just the right amount of encouragement for the right type of customer...
A customer’s a customer
A customer is a customer, a sale is a sale, money is money. Right? Wrong. Absolutely not in the world of great customer service. Of course the way to best satsify your customers is to know them, and customer feedback is no exception. By knowing your customers, you become aware of the channels of communication by which they would best be reached, by the type of feedback they’d be most comfortable with sharing, and how engaged they are with your brand. By taking more time to really look at your customer feedback base, you suddenly see your brand advocates, your feedback champions, and those really willing to help shape your brand with you. Look no further than vodafone, as discussed in our latest eBook.
Slice of cake for your thoughts?
It seems like a simple idea to really improve the amount of customers sharing and engaging with a brand. Provide an incentive and watch the feedback roll in. Yes, it certainly works, but how valuable is this insight? Why are these customers sharing, because they want to, because they have something valuable to share, or merely because they’re a bit peckish? Adding incentives to feedback attracts a large number of customers, but how much time is then spent on sharing their thoughts and experiences? It’s not a totally useless concept, but one that should be considered, I refer back to quality over quantity. A free Victoria Sponge may be a crowdpleaser, but how much of that will be strong, productive feedback?
Block out the haters?
Absolutely not. Problems happen, people make mistakes, and no company is perfect. More often that not customers aren’t expecting perfection, they’re expecting some real interactions. So when things go wrong, how do you deal with it? Who can they speak to? Will their problems be solved? Instead of hiding those customers that are unsatisfied with their experience with you, how about using them. Firstly showing how much you care. Okay so 100 customers had a great experience, but 1 didn’t – and as a company, that bothers you, so much so that you’re willing to share it with the 100. Take that one unsatisfied customer and do everything you can to turn their experience into a posititve one, not only can you then shout it from the rooftops, but with a bit of luck, they’ll be wanting to aswell.
By taking some of these stereotypes and questioning them, suddenly we’re winning the feedback lottery. Use the unsatisfied customers, aim for quality and not quantity and always fight for the best feedback you can get. It’ll be worth it in the end. Find out more in our eBook:
