MacGyver, the American secret agent able to solve complex problems without breaking a sweat. Always resourceful, he can find his way out of any jam using the tools at hand. Do you have what it takes to be the MacGyver of your business’s customer experience? Let’s find out. #1 You always encourage feedback. Customers are...
MacGyver, the American secret agent able to solve complex problems without breaking a sweat.
Always resourceful, he can find his way out of any jam using the tools at hand.
Do you have what it takes to be the MacGyver of your business’s customer experience? Let’s find out.
#1 You always encourage feedback.
Customers are already sharing their opinions about you, especially online.
But you know that providing them with internal feedback opportunities is a safer and more productive way to keep track of what they’re saying.
If they’re talking about you anyway, you might as well hear, learn from, and profit by what they’re saying.
#2 You’re not afraid to ask.
Customers will complete your survey if they see it will, in some way, improve their experience.
In fact, 83% of consumers have already completed at least one or, in many cases, three to four feedback surveys in the past 12 months, with 70% claiming they want to help companies improve.
#3 Especially younger shoppers.
Younger customers, in particular, are looking for a superior experience.
64% of Millennial shoppers say they’re more likely to make repeat purchases with brands that ask for their opinion.
Therefore, you routinely engage Millennials after a purchase, knowing this is critical to keeping them as customers.
#4 You minimize obstacles to completion.
You understand that achieving a 100% survey completion rate is not necessarily a valid goal in and of itself.
A more valid goal is to collect feedback from a representative sample of customers, making sure that everyone who wants to respond has an equal opportunity to do so, that there is nothing preventing them from sharing their insights.
#5 And optimize for mobile.
68% of marketers use mobile surveys to engage customers since not doing so means missing out on one of the most effective ways to interact with them.
You understand that for the many Americans mobile is the primary means of accessing the internet, so not interacting with them via mobile is a big missed opportunity.
#6 You remember that less is more.
More than half of all customers say they will not spend more than three minutes filling out a survey, a possible reason why 80% of them admit to having abandoned a survey halfway through.
You keep customers engaged by asking fewer questions and allowing for shorter responses.
#7 You ask the right questions.
You start by asking yourself what you need to know, why, and limit your questions to the absolute essentials.
Your goal is to improve business decisions so you only ask questions which deliver actionable insights to create positive change.
#8 And avoid leading questions.
Asking a question like, “How quickly did we resolve your problem?” assumes you have actually solved the problem.
You don’t assume anything.
Leading questions like this run the risk of frustrating or even alienating a customer.
At worst, they can seem manipulative and dishonest.
#9 You use basic but effective metrics like CSAT, NPS, or CES.
Depending on your need (or needs), you know that any of these metrics will provide a good starting point for measuring satisfaction.
Whether you want to measure post-transaction happiness, overall customer satisfaction, or identify top reasons for customer dissatisfaction, one of these is sure to work.
#10 You show customers their feedback matters.
Customers probably won’t mind giving you feedback but they do want to see evidence that what they think has actually led to some kind of improvement or innovation.
A major customer frustration is when a company asks for feedback but remains unresponsive to their expressed needs and wants.
#11 And don’t forget to say thank you.
You show your appreciation.
They are, after all, helping you become better at what you do.
#12 You invest in a good CRM platform.
Customer relationship management software makes it easier to track all customer interactions, encourage feedback, and keep all of that information in one place, increasing your ability to provide each customer with a more relevant, personal experience.
#13 Because you know you need a good CRM platform.
Many businesses use, on average, 35 different data-gathering systems, with little to no integration.
Lack of system integration often cripples any efforts to provide better customer support and, therefore, stifles the potential benefits customer feedback and data could provide.
#14 You don’t take customer opinions for granted.
Customer insight is so important that, as of 2015, an estimated 89% of businesses are competing on customer experience, with customer feedback a crucial component of providing that experience.
Designing a customer experience without their insights increases your chances of delivering an experience which isn’t particularly relevant.
#15 And one last thing. You can handle the haters.
Unfortunately, no matter what you do, some customers aren’t going to show you any love.
When you ask for feedback, you realize that you are opening yourself up to every criticism under the sun.
But you stay positive and don’t forget that everyone has had an unhappy customer or two.
Your job is to make sure you have done – and will continue to do – everything you can to provide the best experience to as many customers as possible.
So, do you pass the test? How MacGyver are you?
