Common pitfalls to avoid when surveying customers
Net Promoter is the industry standard (not just for the print industry) for measuring customer loyalty. It provides a benchmark to be able to quantify customer loyalty along with actionable insights to be able to protect and grow the business. Whether you use Net Promoter Score or any other customer satisfaction survey, or if you’re considering, here are four common pitfalls to avoid:
1. Do nothing with the results
Client feedback should be treated like gold and action needs to be taken with that information. With just the score and nothing else, chances are the score is going to go down on the next one.It also impacts future response rates – if a client invested the time (even if it took less than 1 minute to respond). If they do not see anything come from their input, they won’t respond the next time.
2. Not following up and thanking every single contact that responded to the survey
Many understand the importance of following up with a detractor (someone that provided a rating of 6 or below). The NPS survey helps to learn the ‘wrongs that need to be made right’. Without ‘making it right’, those clients are likely going to find another provider.
The promoters (those providing a rating of 9 or 10) are important too. They can be leveraged in many ways to help grow the business.Use the opportunity to verify the testimonial and ask for a referral. Not following up with those is a huge lost opportunity.
The most overlooked group are the Passives (those with a rating of a 7 or an 8). People think they are satisfied. Actually, they are on the fence.If asked, they will share what it will take for them to be a Promoter in the future. And if they receive no follow-up, and there is something wrong, in the next survey they could be a Detractor.
3. Thinking a transaction is a relationship
NPS is about a client’s overall experience. While their overall experience can be impacted based upon a single interaction or Moment of Truth, Net Promoter Score surveys are best done all at once on a regular schedule versus on a transaction-by-transaction basis (which are typically more about customer satisfaction based upon a particular transaction). The two shouldn’t be confused.
4. Not sharing the results internally
Whether the overall score is good or bad, there are going to be some responses where specific individuals in the organization have made a positive impact in the eyes of the client. Those should be celebrated!
There will also be other challenges uncovered. Trends can be identified relating to a gap in service from a particular team, or specific product line. It can range from a single contact still not having received that order that was placed 2 months prior to a series of bad experiences in a certain region.
Getting your Net Promoter Score shouldn’t be the end-goal of performing a client survey. It rather is a starting point and how useful it becomes depends upon what you do with the gold bricks provided by your customers. Take the first step and contact us to schedule your survey today.