We see it so much in the modern marketing arena, the value of customer feedback, why it will be the thing to push your business further into the stratosphere. It then bleeds into every aspect of how you promote your company, from digital marketing, to how you interact with your customers on social media, and so forth. But is customer feedback the defining factor that we need to push our business forward? And is there another way we can utilize customer feedback without it denting our pride? We see now that customers have a bigger platform in which to complain, such as social media, where one little slip up by your business can mean a dramatic loss of sales. So what can we do to get the feedback we need, but also make sure that it doesn't damage our relationship with the customer?
Is Feedback That Important?
Regardless of how we choose to operate our business and we all can benefit from feedback, pointers, and general tidbits of information to help us grow properly, the one big debate in feedback, not just in business, but in any practice, even in life, is whether we choose to take it on or not. Some people and businesses choose to take on every aspect of feedback, regardless of who is giving it, and, as a result, there are so many conflicting points of feedback being implemented into the business, that the company loses all sense of focus. The other aspect is completely ignoring every single item of feedback, and just pressing on, completely oblivious to any criticism, taking it as a slight on how you operate. Both aspects are very dangerous. It's easy to say that you need to get a delicate balance, but you know what is good for your business, and, you need to learn to take criticism on board, regardless of who is making the criticism. A lot of stubborn business leaders are precious with their business, and therefore won't make any alterations, believing that their path is the right one. However, as we seen countless times with businesses in the past where these entrepreneurs are holding their cards so close to their chest, that it is only a matter of time before the business implodes. It is in this respect, that feedback is a vital component.
Receiving Measured Feedback
It can be very easy to assume that every aspect of feedback is going to be negative, especially from customers, but this is where the idea of constructive criticism comes into play. And what you can do to help generate measured, considered, and sufficient feedback, is to create a suitable platform in which your customer feels confident enough to deliver no-holds-barred feedback, not just on the negative stuff, but on the positive stuff too. And while it's easy enough to say that something is good or is bad, we need to know exactly why it is so. The business of getting good quality feedback is a business within itself, there are various ways of doing this, there are resources that focus on satisfaction metrics, such as the customer satisfaction survey, or delving deeper into the emotive responses, such as on the RATER scale. There are many ways you can do this, and while we see department stores offering a quick online survey for customers to complete or a piece of paper for them to complete in store, the main motivation for giving feedback is if a customer is compelled to do so. So, to receive measured feedback, it's usually if you are either very good, or terrible. Instead, to bypass this, you need to make the customer feel important, so that they will be compelled to give feedback, regardless of how good or bad your service is. Making a customer feel included should be part of the sales model in the first place, but if it is not, this is a good time to integrate them.
Using The Feedback
This is the most important aspect of customer feedback, and why we need it. Implementing changes is the goal, of course, but customers won't give you feedback and less they see that their opinions will bring about important changes to how you operate the company. When customers feel neglected, they will turn and walk away, resulting in a loss of profit over time. Your customers and how they interact with the brand is what will generate future sales, so as far as getting adequate feedback is concerned, this feedback needs to be fed back into the machine in order to create a suitable outcome, not just for your customers, but for you. Building up your brand is your modus operandi (MO). A brand is not just a logo; it is the embodiment of trust and faith in your business. If you betray this trust, you have dwindling customers. The great thing about feedback is that, regardless of how many bad experiences customers may have with your company, one glowing piece of feedback could be the thing to reset the balance, especially if you've got a bad reputation. Word of mouth is still the best way to market a company because it's not about flashy sites and billboards, it is the word of the people. You can look at articles in our Marketing section for more information on the importance of word of mouth, but any entrepreneur that doesn't know the importance of word of mouth needs to go back to the drawing board and learn it now. And, the one simple notion of positive reviews snowballing, as we’ve seen on Amazon, is that the more 5-star reviews you get, the more people will buy the product. Positive feedback is easier to use to market a product, but negative feedback helps too, believe it or not, and so if you can take advantage of that one detailed piece of negative feedback, and address the issue with the customer personally, it alters their opinion and helps your business no end.
Company Customer Feedback Conclusion
In essence, customer feedback is the driving force of improvements for the vast majority of companies nowadays. As important as marketing is, if we've got it wrong, it's customer feedback that will set us back on the straight and narrow. We need customer feedback because it's the one true way our business will heal and grow.
I hope you enjoyed this article about customer feedback and why it's critical to growing your business.
Interested in more articles about customer experience?
Read My Posts:
- Tips To Analyze Customer Feedback For Better Service
- How To Prep Your Office For Clients & Customers
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I hope you enjoyed this article about customer feedback and why it's critical to growing your business.
Interested in more articles about customer experience?
Read My Posts:
- Tips To Analyze Customer Feedback For Better Service
- How To Prep Your Office For Clients & Customers
More Bootstrap Business Below