How are you doing in your customer’s eyes?

How often do you ask your clients how satisfied they are with your company’s performance? Giving them a way to provide you feedback is a great way to collect important information that can help you improve your products or services. It can also provide you with additional opportunities.

There are several ways to do this and the nature of your business will lend itself more towards some and less to others. One thing any business person can do is ask. When you are speaking to your clients, ask them some of the questions listed below. Be sure to listen carefully to what they say and then take notes after or right away if it’s appropriate. How you act on this information is another way to provide value to your customer and separate yourself from your competitors.

If you are a retailer, you can provide your customers with a simple form that asks a few questions. Make it simple for them and they are much more likely to fill one out.

If you have a website, you can have a customer satisfaction survey. Not a five minute survey, just a few well thought out questions that they can answer in a minute or so. You could also consider a user feedback e-mail address where they can e-mail you additional input if they are so inclined.

Ultimately, you must come up with the questions that will best serve your purposes. To get you thinking, here are some questions you could consider asking:

– How satisfied are you with the solutions provided by our company?

– How satisfied are you with our sales people?

– Will you continue to do business with us? If not, why?

– Are there additional products or services we could provide that we do not currently offer you?

– Would you feel comfortable recommending us to others?

Make it a habit to ask these questions whenever the opportunity presents itself. It’s a great habit to get into that can open some doors to new opportunities. Never underestimate the experience and wisdom that some of your customers may have. They can give you insights and ideas you may never have come up with on your own!

© Gil Namur, 2009