Consumer Feedback Increasingly Important

by Annie Wallace from Viral Marketing for Moms

Tips to Encourage Consumer Feedback For your Business

Consumer feedback can have a profound impact on your business. When consumers talk to you about their experiences, both positive and negative, you get a comprehensive understanding of the service you are providing. There are a wide variety of ways you can receive customer feedback, but knowing how to encourage it can be a more difficult task.

Encouraging Consumer Feedback

Method #1: Surveys

Surveys are one of the oldest and most effective ways to encourage feedback from your customers because you can get feedback on a wide variety of different subjects. In a single solitary survey you could easily gather feedback regarding your product, your service, your customer service, your overall quality and numerous other areas. Additionally, thanks to modern options like online survey software, getting this kind of feedback has never been easier.


Method #2: Online Comments

Encourage customers to post feedback on your blog or website, because this is a place where the feedback from your customers can benefit you and other customers as well. A glowing review will help generate more interest in your product or service, for example. Another great place to solicit feedback from your customers is online review sites. Offer links to websites like Yelp, Insider Pages, and City Search where satisfied customers can post reviews about their experience. These positive reviews will help to drum up additional interest in your product, service, or company.


Method #3: Feedback Cards

If you send out products or offer services, then feedback cards can be excellent at helping you gather feedback from customers. You should aim to keep your question count small, and try to gather specfic information so you can actually act on the feedback you receive.


Method #4: Query the Competition

Do not go directly to your competitors, but instead, try to talk to their customers. Find out what the customers and clients of your competitors actually like about your competitors, and use this information as feedback to help you develop your own company. Sometimes it only takes very small changes on the behalf of a company to bring in an entirely new set of paying customers.


Method #5: Testimonials

Asking your customers to deliver a testimonial is easier than you may think. The truth is, your customers who are satisfied with your company would probably be more than willing to provide a glowing review if you asked. There is nothing wrong with asking your customer to give a positive testimonial about your product or service, and asking happy customers should give you a great positive response. If you plan on posting these testimonials online or in print, make sure to get permission from the customer beforehand.

The right encouragement for customer feedback will urge your customers to speak to you. Above all else, your customers need to understand that their feedback is being listened to and taken into account, and not just heard and discarded. When your customers know that their feedback matters, they will feel much more confident about speaking out about their experiences with your business.

Annie Wallace blogs on viral marketing for moms as well as other tips and tricks on building WAHM business online.