Three Ways To Get Honest Feedback From Clients

Feedback is not only useful to a business; it can be instrumental as a driver of change. There is never a time for complacency and ego, even when everything is going well in your company.

Change is a given, and it keeps businesses focused on delivering what consumers need and want. Otherwise, they lose out to competitors and eventually go out of business. Therefore never avoid honest reviews or comments on anything regarding your business as it’s one sure way to know how your products and services are working for consumers.

If no one ever gives you the pros and cons (what some may call ‘helpful criticism’), how will you know what you can change to get a better outcome?

Another way of looking at it is that investing in a product or service consumers are losing interest in will eventually see sales dry up, and your business lacks funds to invest elsewhere. Therefore be more objective about the business and seek feedback, both the positive and the negative comments.

Constructive but unfavourable feedback lets you know where to make changes in the business that are not working well. Remember, it’s not just about the functioning of the product. It’s also about your business customer support, pricing and after-sales process.

Favourable feedback will let you know where your business has got things right. Feedback will also allow you to target your focus and resources on projects and new innovations, all the while being in control of what to do with any areas of under-performance.

However, it’s not easy to entice feedback, so here are some tips to help make it easier for your clients and customers to let you know how you’re doing.

Incentavise Consumers To Take Your Survey or Review

While not everyone likes to take surveys on their experiences, some people enjoy them and feel it’s a great way to express their feelings about a company, product, or service. You’ve probably noticed that many retail and service industries now have incentives on receipts to ensure consumers take a short survey or give feedback on a visit or a transaction.

Even if you don’t have a brick and mortar business, you can still use surveys and provide rewards for customer reviews. Set up Google reviews and aim to get 5 stars every time.

Confirmation email

Confirmation emails, aka autoresponders, are perfect for a ‘set and forget’ feedback solution, so all your customers are invited to provide that all-important review and feedback. When you set up the confirmation email campaign, In the email message, add a catchy heading and sentence along with an online link to a survey.

Make sure the confirmation email is set to deliver to the consumer soon after their purchase or experience. This strategy only works if you time the delivery to occur while your business is at the forefront of your customer’s mind. The sooner the delivery, the higher the conversion rate as the customer has the highest level of emotion of your business shortly after their purchase experience.

A day in the life of an adult human is a very long time as we’re subject to so much information. Consider this too. We only retain about 10% of what we see. Quite a lot more if we’re using more sensors, upwards of 40% if we see and hear simultaneously, but we won’t remember everything as some memories are more lasting. A visit to a store wouldn’t remain in the hippocampus for long unless something remarkable occurred during the event.

Social Media

Share the love with links to your latest product demos and ask for product reviews. You’d be surprised how many online visitors see value in reviewing products that they may never buy nor need. If you’ve got time on your side, completing a quick review for a gift card is time well spent! Product reviews increases sales, so use this strategy to obtain sales for new products, so the news spreads and the product no longer need marketing support, as it sells itself!

Summary

Reach out to learn more about your business from the consumers perspective. Use email, social and your blog to encourage customers to share their feedback with you. Use quizzes, surveys, reviews, and testimonials to get your audience’s information to stay relevant. There is an art to getting a good testimonial and while it’s good to have them on your website, don’t rely on just that action as feedback on your business’s performance.