Wouldn’t it be nice to know what your customers are ACTUALLY thinking? Getting honest feedback could be just what you need to take your business to the next level. Why are customers buying from you? What do they like? What did they hate? Are they using you because they were referred by a friend? Did they think your service stunk? All of this kind of information can be invaluable.
But how do you find it out? How do you get a clear picture of what your customers are thinking? Here are 9 insider secrets you can use to take your business to the next level.
1) Harness The Power Of Surveys And Questionnaires
Having access to the kind of information you can get from surveys and questionnaires from your clients can give you a huge competitive advantage. You can send them to your database, publish them on your website, direct mail, direct product shipments or anything else that gets sent to your clients. You can create very easy and quick online surveys with such programs like SurveyMonkey.com or go old school and actually have a hard copy survey.
2) Create An Online Community For Your Customers
With technology these days, it’s quite easy to set up. You can use a private Facebook group, chat room or message board. By letting them have access to this, you can get instant feedback and know exactly what’s going on. Just make sure you are constantly monitoring these areas so you know exactly what’s going on out there. Be on the lookout for “trolls”…
3) Give Away Products
Select a group of customers and give away your products/service for them to review. Get them to fill out an honest feedback form and get them to send it back. Just remember that some may fill it out, some may not, but the information you collect from this can be well worth it. And depending on the cost of your products or service, it’s a pretty cheap form of getting great feedback.
4) Offer Products On Your Site In Exchange
Do you have a product or service you can give away that would entice someone to leave you feedback? It could be a free report, an e-book, a free consultation via email, a training seminar etc. In return you ask for them the fill out a short survey about your product or service or website.
5) Create A Focus Group
This takes a bit of planning and time, but can prove to be invaluable as well. Invite 10 – 20 of your most loyal clients to meet with you on a regular basis to share ideas with you. This will keep you in the loop, keep you in contact with your best clients and give you a reason to talk business with them. Some of the compensations ideas could be: paying them directly, treat them to dinner or give them some free products or service.
6) Keep Them In The Loop
Create a newsletter or mailing list and ask if they want to be kept on the “inside” of any upcoming changes to your business. They get special pricing and discounts and insider info just by providing you feedback for upcoming projects.
7) Make Contact Easy
Give your important customers as many contact methods as possible. Direct numbers, toll free numbers, personal emails, tech support etc. are all ways to ensure you get honest feedback and make sure your clients are staying in contact with you when you need it. And make it easy for them to voice their opinions or suggestions. Create a suggestion box so they can leave “anonymous” feedback.
8) Follow Up On Important Dates
Don’t forget to stay in contact with them on their birthdays and holidays. Send thank you gifts to your A+ clients, sent them birthday cards or emails to remind them you still care. If you don’t have a huge list, pick up the phone and call them personally to wish them a happy holiday. After you do this, follow up with a feedback survey. The personal touch first will take away most of the hesitation for them to give you feedback.
9) Invite Them In
If your situation allows for it, invite them to company meetings, lunch meetings, workshops or seminars. You can create a special client appreciate party or bbq so all your clients get a chance to meet and mingle and talk about how great you have been to them. You can get great feedback from people in a casual setting like this at the same time as keep them engaged with your event.
Conclusion
I’m sure by now you understand the importance of getting quality feedback from your customers. Try some or all of these 9 insider tips to get customer feedback and watch your business grow. But remember, you don’t have to stop at these 9, get creative and come up with your own.
What are your best techniques for getting customer feedback? Share with us below in the comment section. (This is the part where I’m looking for feedback from YOU!)
To you and your success,
Ryan Smith – Chief Content Creator