[fusion_builder_container hundred_percent=”yes” overflow=”visible”][fusion_builder_row][fusion_builder_column type=”1_1″ background_position=”left top” background_color=”” border_size=”” border_color=”” border_style=”solid” spacing=”yes” background_image=”” background_repeat=”no-repeat” padding=”” margin_top=”0px” margin_bottom=”0px” class=”” id=”” animation_type=”” animation_speed=”0.3″ animation_direction=”left” hide_on_mobile=”no” center_content=”no” min_height=”none”]
Image courtesy of Paul Townsend
One of the easiest ways to to keep our customers happy is to align our companies’ offerings and mindsets with our customers’ desires. But how do we go about that? The answer is so obvious, so ubiquitous that it’s often overlooked and underutilized: the customer comment box.
Customers know what they want, and if we make it easy for them to communicate those wants with us and broadcast the fact that we are listening, their thoughts and suggestions will start rolling in. Especially if they are provided with an anonymous avenue to provide the feedback, as some people may feel uncomfortable approaching a business personally/directly.
Consider this brick and mortar case:
A small business serving the local community is very popular with mothers of young children. However, their business hours run from 10:00am – 4:00pm. A long time customer realized that the hours were odd, given the customer base who would presumably have children that nap around the opening hour, perhaps older children requiring a school pick up shortly after opening, children napping during the afternoon hours, or children requiring elementary school pick up in the middle of the afternoon hours. She mused that opening so late and skewing the hours towards the afternoon likely prevented many customers from choosing to patronize the business. She wanted to pass along the observation, but there was nowhere to easily do so. Time went by and, sadly, the business went under, due to “lack of traffic”. Had this business had an easily visible and accessible customer comment station, this customer would have provided the owners this invaluable information. Would the outcome for their difference been different had they known this?
Consider this virtual store front case:
A repeat customer of an independent online store had a problem with an item he’d recently purchased, so he called into the service center. His call didn’t go as well as he hoped and he wanted to give some feedback to the company. He also had a few ideas for products he’d love to see it carry. But considering the way his call had gone, he didn’t want to discuss either topic with the representative from his call. Instead, he went onto the company’s webpage and decided to fill out their anonymous form field twice: once with his desired products and once more with feedback on his call. The company was able to implement a new policy within their call center based on the customer’s feedback and also reached out to a distributor to perhaps add to their product lineup.
Whether your company has a physical presence or a virtual one, take a moment to evaluate how easily your customers can provide you with their valuable feedback and make any improvements necessary. After all, nobody knows what your customers want and need better than your customers themselves![/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]