Customer feedback is any information provided by your customers, regarding how happy or unhappy they are with anything your business has provided them with.
It may not even always be about the product you offered, it could be the customer service, see of website navigation, or anything in between.
Their opinions are an invaluable resource to improve customer satisfaction.
Customer feedback can be both prompted and unprompted, and positive or negative. No matter what form it comes in, it’s really important to listen to it and take it on board.
Customer feedback can be gained through various sources, the most popular being surveys and online reviews and feedback.
why customer feedback is important
Customer feedback helps improve the products and services your business offers
Market research prior to launching a product or service into the market helps you understand customer needs. But until they have been used by customers, you can’t be certain that what you are offering ticks all of your customers boxes.
It could be argued that customer feedback is almost like an alternative form of market research it gives you a better idea of the way your products or services are being used, the experience they’re having with them, and so on. Only after customers have used what your business offers can you understand, truly, the advantages and drawbacks.
This can then be improved on. Professional knowledge will never outweigh how valuable customer insights are to how strong your offerings are!
Products and services are created for your customers, so it should be created in the closest way possible to what they desire.
Take for example this feedback page. It offers clear, easily accessible feedback from people who have actually used the service, and enjoyed it. As a potential customer, this proves reassuring that you are making the correct decision in your purchasing habits.
it helps gauge customer satisfaction
Happy customers = happy business = happy bottom line.
Financial performance of a business rests on how satisfied your customers are. Will they continue to purchase from you again and again, or will they turn to your competitors? Customer feedback can point you in the right direction of increasing customer satisfaction, in turn improving sales and revenue.
Many studies have shown a strong correlation between customer satisfaction and business performance.
Making sure your customers are happy is a great way to figure out how you can improve on and continue to make them happy.
Whenever we need a solution to a problem in our everyday lives, we turn to our friends and family for their opinions. It’s no different with your customers. Their opinions will allow you to find to whether you are meeting expectations.
Utilising questionnaires or rating-based feedback allows you to predict the level of future satisfaction, and ultimately your bottom line.
it shows you value your customers feedback and opinions
Customers want to feel important. After all, they are the ones keeping your business up and running! By showing to them that their opinion is valuable to you, they become invested in your brand, and everything it has to offer.
When we are listened to, we develop positive feelings about things. And it’s no different with businesses. They feel as if they are helping shape your business, and naturally will feel more attached to it.
Creating stronger relationships with your customers is a great way to develop loyalty.
People generally like feeling appreciated. By taking on board feedback, customers feel like you are actually really trying to offer something which is going to make a difference to the, not just a way to grab cash out of their wallet.
It’s also by far the most cost-effective way to gain new customers and appear a trustful source it virtually costs nothing!
Word of mouth, or face-to-face recommendation, has been proven to be vital in every step of the purchasing cycle.
We trust the opinion of our peers, so it comes as so surprise that over 8 in 10 purchases influenced by a recommendation are influenced by people talking face-to-face.
It’s a reliable source of information for future purchasers
With our lives revolving around social media, we really care about what others do, think or say. This means that consumers don’t trust swanky advertising as much as they used to.
When a previous customer offers an opinion on your products or services, it is a far more reliable and trustworthy source of information for potential customers to use.
Feedback from customers is as equally important to your future customers as it is to you, so incorporating feedback which is easily accessible is a great way to prove how fantastic your offerings are.
data to help with future decision making
In such a competitive environment, business decision cannot be based on guesses as to what your consumers want from your business.
Knowing exactly what your customers future purchasing habits are helps draw data to inform business decisions. It is one of the most reliable sources of tangible data your business can acquire. It allows you to figure out where your money is best to be invested into.
Putting customers at the centre and treating their feedback like it is gold dust, is one of the most effective ways to retain customers and even gain new ones.