Whether you’re a business that’s just starting or has been in the game for years, investing in a robust customer feedback system is in your best interest.
It demonstrates to your clients and customers that you care about what they have to say and can also have enormous benefits for you and your business.
Why Implement a Customer Feedback System?
The most significant advantage of a customer feedback system is that it can help your business’s growth and reputation. By listening to customers and what they say about your business, you can fine-tune your products and/or services to suit people’s needs better. Y
ou can also showcase your business’s willingness to adjust to better match customer expectations. This shows that you will accept and improve if you mess up or do something inefficiently. This can significantly enhance your business’s reputation and make you grow.
Customer Feedback Systems Help Customer Retention
When you’re trying to grow your business, you want first-time customers to stick around and keep coming back for more. Marketing strategies can take a lot of effort to reach new customers. The last thing you want is for a new client or consumer to try out your business and never return.
Customer feedback systems allow consumers to share their experiences with your business directly. You might ask them a simple “yes” or “no” question, such as “Were you happy with your purchase?”.
You might get a little more creative and ask them to give a detailed response about their experience. It doesn’t matter what kind of customer feedback tool you decide to implement – what matters is that you’re showing your customers that you are willing to listen to what they have to say.
Customers who feel heard by a business are likely to stick around and become loyal customers. This is one of the main reasons why you hear so much about the importance of “mom-and-pop” shops.
Many people like the sense of community they get from walking into their local hardware stores and having a direct relationship with the owners and employees. Knowing that your suggestion to stock more paint options might lead to actual change is a good feeling for customers.
The same goes for interaction with negative interactions – if your customer has an issue while interacting with your business, they will often want confirmation that it will be looked into.
Some customers don’t interact with customer feedback systems, even when they have a problem. That means that when those individuals do decide to say something to a business, it’s a big deal to them.
Your company reaching out to make things right can leave quite an impression if done professionally. If you also manage to fix their issue, you’re much more likely to have secured yourself a loyal customer.
Customers Know More Than You Think
These days, consumers know a lot about different websites, stores, and the shopping experience. Online shopping is no longer as intimidating as it once was, and customers know their way around a virtual shopping cart.
Research shows that 82% of consumers will look up a product before deciding on one to purchase, and almost half will check out the reviews. If a business sells a shoddy service or product, it will find a way to let people know.
However, customers aren’t just informed – they’re also very willing to share. The field of usability testing is growing, showing enormous potential in letting businesses know just how they should adjust things on their site to improve things.
A product feedback system can be your business’s built-in usability testing, as customers can give suggestions on changing things directly.
If you’re wondering how people might feel about a new website layout or product you just started stocking, then ask. Having a system in place means people can tell you whether things feel more efficient or a product doesn’t perform as well as its previous iteration. You can use reviews to improve your business in many ways, so get started sooner rather than later.
Other Customers Want to Know What People Are Saying
If 45% of consumers read reviews before buying a product online, then consider how many consumers read them before checking out an insurance site. If your business provides a valuable or essential service, then people will want to know how the process went for other people.
A customer feedback system means you don’t have to find out people hate what you offer from the reviews – you can hear it directly from them.
Several customer feedback systems layout information in different ways. If you want a star rating, then you can go with that – if you want to know whether a customer simply enjoyed interacting with your business or not, those systems exist too. However, detailed customer insight can tell you what to change and what reviews to showcase on your website.
You can be sure that there will be some customers checking out the negative reviews for your business – if there are any. Knowing about customer complaints immediately after they happen gives you more time to make things right. In business, you want to address a problem directly – never ignore it!
Thinking About Posting a Fake Review? Think Again!
Speaking of paying attention to issues, fake reviews are a no-go. While it may be tempting for a new business to fill up its review page with well-written reviews from professional writers, there’s nothing worse than falsifying your legitimacy. The same goes for if you have many negative reviews due to a recent scandal or one terrible event.
Fake reviews are pretty easy for consumers to identify. Plus, they’re pretty unethical. You don’t want it to get out that your business filled up your app or website with false information.
Creating a Customer Feedback Loop
One of the best ways to put your customer feedback to good use is by creating a customer feedback loop. This customer experience strategy considers customer reviews, suggestions, and opinions to help perfect their products and/or services.
A customer feedback loop is not only based on a level of mutual interaction between the customer and user but a desire from the company to put customer satisfaction first.
There are four stages of a customer feedback loop:
- Collecting customer feedback data
- Analyzing positive and negative feedback
- Applying customer feedback data
- Close the loop and following up with customers
There are many ways a company may choose to collect customer data for a feedback loop, including conducting a survey, using a feedback form, or other customer feedback software.
Final Thoughts: The Benefits of a Customer Feedback System
While a customer feedback system may give a platform to a potentially unhappy customer, the benefits of this customer service strategy far outweigh the negatives.
A customer feedback system gives companies actionable insight into their products or services. It considers all user feedback to create a better customer experience – and as a result, improved customer loyalty!
If you’re ready to start getting more genuine, 5-star reviews, contact Review Rabbit today to find out how we can help grow your business.