One of the most essential tenets of business is making sure that your customers are happy. Not only does it do good things for your reputation, but also has been proven to be cheaper. According to studies, it is 25 times cheaper to retain customers than to acquire new ones. This is why it is essential to follow and check with your customers’ satisfaction at every step of their customer journey. There are several ways to do this, from customer feedback app to a customer feedback survey on multiple platforms. Even when using technology to keep track of customer feedback, it is essential to follow the 5 Ws.
Why: Collecting Data
With more business being conducted over the internet, it has become easier to measure aggregated information on customer satisfaction. The data collected using customer feedback app can point out patterns which you might miss otherwise. Once you have these insights, you can apply them into your business. Several companies have automated systems in place, which take appropriate steps when certain thresholds are reached. It is crucial to stay ahead of customer trends for obtaining exponential growth.
Who: Customer Status
It is equally important for you to collect feedback from both happy and unsatisfied customers. This is the only way, you will be able to collect and analyze the activities on the customer front. It isn’t enough that you know who is satisfied with your business. You will have to dig a little deeper in order to get a layered understanding.
With customers who have been engaging with your business for some time, you can ask the following questions:
- What makes them a recurring customer to your business?
- Were their expectations met?
- What motivated them to initiate engagement with your business?
When approaching dissatisfied customers, it is better that you a customer feedback survey to capture their feedback. The following set of questions for these customers are central in determining the falter in your services that they might have experienced:
- Where were their expectations not met?
- What did your competitors offer that was better?
- Why did they decide to find other solutions?
What: Types of Feedback
It is important that you collect feedback based on certain categories that will help implement necessary action based on the feedback. A customer feedback app employs multiple metrics to capture customer feedback.
- Customer Satisfaction Score: This score is determined by a simple questionnaire based on the interaction the customer has had with your business. If the score is low, then you know where you will have to make changes for a more positive experience.
- NPS® (Net Promoter Score®): Here, you will be sending out regular feedback surveys to your customers based on a timeline that you decide. Here, you are not trying to understand the experience with specific products or services. NPS is used to examine how your customers feel about your business as a whole and how they rate their relationship with you.
When: Time To Collect
It is also essential that you plan to collect feedback at the right time. There is a critical period when customers are receptive towards giving feedback. Anything before or after will not gain you results in this category. For example, if your customer is based overseas and you might have send out your feedback email based on local delivery time. In reality, the customer may not have received your product yet. On the other hand, if you ask for feedback a week after they’ve used your service, chances are that they won’t be willing to give a proper or any feedback at all. Here are a few times when you should reach out for feedback using customer experience software.
- Kickoff Period
- Post-training Sessions
- Moments of Improvements
- Customer-related Events
- Promotions and Sales
- Positive Metrics Reported
Where: The Right Channels
Understanding the various channels available to you for interacting with your customers is vital for collecting an optimum amount of customer feedback to better your venture. A slight majority of customers usually prefer using email for contacting with businesses. However, a large section of the customer base also engages with companies through various social media platforms. Essentially, this means that you customarily should have a robust multi-channel network with which you can interact with your customers. Different channels have their own set of challenges and limitations, and your customer relations team should have specific models created for each channel to deal with these barriers.
When using customer feedback software, it is essential that you use specific software and apps that are related to your business in order to collect pertinent data. This will help you address any issues in a timely fashion and will save you money in the long run.
