When I was learning to fly, my flight instructor had me go under the hood and close my eyes. This was a large white hood that was placed on my head so I couldn’t see outside. He then repositioned the aircraft and told me to open my eyes and make any necessary corrections. Just flying by the seat of my pants, the plane felt like we were flying straight and steady. Without any other feedback, the plane would have eventually crashed into the ground.
The whole purpose of the exercise was to teach me to put my trust in the instruments rather than just how I felt at the moment. The various instruments offer continuous feedback to help a pilot take corrective action. Ignoring or not monitoring the airspeed, altitude or attitude of the aircraft is pure folly.
Many business owners make the same mistakes within their companies. They tend to run their business by the “seat of their pants” and ignore or not monitor feedback from their employees or customers. Many don’t have a mechanism to get feedback from their frontline employees who deal with their customers everyday and hear their complaints or suggestions. If you aren’t getting continuous communication about how your organization is doing, then your business may “fly” straight and steady for awhile, but it will eventually lose altitude and crash.
Here are four ways to effectively get feedback that will allow you to take corrective action. The first and easiest is to just talk to your customers on a regular basis. Ask them questions to learn how they feel about your company. If you want to be more systematic, you can prepare a few questions for your staff to ask during their interaction with customers. Not only will your employees learn more about your customers, but the simple act of asking questions demonstrates that you care and are interested in their feedback. Questions can also open up a conversation that will allow your staff to build stronger relationships.
Document the answers to look for any trends or reoccurring positive or negative aspects of your business. If you keep hearing the same complaint, then you’d better do something about it because it is what your customers will be telling other people about your business.
A second and more formal method for feedback is to ask your customers to complete a survey or questionnaire about your business. Keep it short and to the point, and give the survey after they have made an order or completed a transaction. To get maximum participation, include the surveys in a drawing for a valuable prize.
Some companies get a little more sophisticated by sending online surveys that automatically compile the results. I’ve received several sales receipts that asked me to go to a website to take an online survey, and after completing it, I was offered a coupon for 10% off my next purchase or some other incentive.
Third, you can have mystery shoppers visit your business and complete an evaluation form that rates various aspects of your business. We’ve conducted over 1,500 mystery shopper visits and I often have my students visit local businesses. Employees who know that a mystery shopper may be visiting tend to provide better service because they don’t know which customer will be formally evaluating them.
Hotels, larger corporations, and franchises often conduct mystery shopper visits to get valuable feedback about how the company is doing. They also have service standards, and train personnel to adhere to those standards. Countries such as Australia and New Zealand have developed service standards for businesses that deal with tourists. Those businesses that adhere to the standards and pass their mystery shopper test are listed in their advertising and are given a star rating or allowed to display a decal that tells tourists they are a quality business.
The last method is more difficult, but it makes every customer a potential mystery shopper for your company and provides valuable feedback on a continuous basis. Provide an online forum where customers can rate and comment on your business. This is available in the U.S. through such companies as eOpinions.com for products and AngiesList.com for businesses.
Allowing all your customers to offer feedback may seem daunting to some businesses who would rather not know what their customers think. However, they tend to be the same businesses that would rather stay under the hood and “fly by the seat of their pants.” Your customers are already talking about your business, so why not let them share their suggestions and comments with you and others. You may discover things that will help you improve or provide better service. Just offering the service alone will keep all your employees sharp and careful to treat each customer with care, since a poor experience could be broadcast online. You can also encourage customers to thank you for excellent service by asking them to post a comment and giving your business a high rating.
Any method you use to gather feedback will allow you to better serve your customers and make improvements that cause them to return and share their experiences with others. Don’t go “under the hood” when it comes to operating your business.
No comments:
Post a Comment