Creating effective customer satisfaction surveys can be somewhat of an art, but just because you need a sophisticated understanding of bias and question placement doesn't mean your queries should be equally complex. In fact, when it comes to survey questions, simple is almost always best.
Using simple language and sentence structure can help eliminate the possibility that respondents will misinterpret your questions – or even understand them a little differently than the next participant. Eliminating variance is always key when it comes to arriving at results that can be viewed objectively.
Simple questions should use the most basic language possible, and you should avoid overly complicated sentence structures. Keep sentences short and direct, and avoid the use of double negatives or passive voice. Additionally, try to avoid any idiomatic phrases, as these can confuse any potential ESL respondents and even register differently with some native English speakers.
Finally, it's important to also stay consistent with your language. Once you choose a phrase (such as "strongly agree" versus "definitely agree"), stick to that wording throughout the entire survey to avoid the possibility of variance or confusion.
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linkedin Depending on who you ask (and what kind of situation they're in), having a real person assist you can either be a major help or a hindrance – hence why so many businesses employ both IVR solutions and live agent services. However, simply providing both options isn't always enough. Businesses need to understand what the optimal balance would be of the two – and how exactly they should be employed.
For example, Southwest Airlines attributes much of its high-ranking customer satisfaction success to the level of care its employees exhibit. According to AdAge, the airline has earned a name for going above and beyond in that department, keeping sick children company on flights and even approaching and reassuring frazzled-looking travelers as they attempt to make their flights on time. However, much of the airline industry is slowly turning to mobile apps and other technology to eliminate the need for passengers to even speak to a human prior to boarding their flights.
Obviously, there are many people who would prefer to streamline this stress-inducing process as much as possible, but going too far in this direction would also destroy the potential to make those real human connections that have made some airlines so successful. If you're considering similar changes to your operations, consider using customer satisfaction surveys to see which areas of your customer service are most helpful or frustrating to your clientele. The results will often provide a strong indication as to whether you should provide more (or less) live agent interaction to your customers.
In a recent Consumer Reports satisfaction survey of major retail chains across the United States, Costco took home the winnings thanks to its unusually high score for both its website and its brick and mortar store, according to MSNBC.
The satisfaction feedback actually recognized Costco as the only store out of the 10 chains surveyed (Costco, JCPenney, Kmart, Kohl’s, Macy’s, Meijer, Sam’s Club, Sears, Target and Wal-Mart) to earn an "outstanding" score for merchandise quality at its online and physical store. The only thing customers didn't like as much about Costco? Well, the long lines for starters, as well as selection and service, which garnered fairly average scores.
Many businesses often have trouble reconciling their online and brick-and-mortar personalities, especially in a way that really hits home with consumers. If you feel like there's a discrepancy in this department when it comes to your satisfaction scores, it might be a good idea to have customers rate each separately and to weigh their responses in terms of likes and dislikes of each. The lesson is that survey results are often indicators of issues that require more study or even a different survey efforts. This is more often the case in industry-wide benchmarking surveys which cannot get the granular level of each participants’ issues.
Recognizing the need for change is one thing, but knowing how to implement it is another. The results of customer satisfaction surveys can seem easy enough to interpret at first glance, but taking the time to carefully consider the implications and diagnose the problem correctly can make the difference between a successful process improvement campaign and another year of poor results.
One company that recently made the right moves in response to its satisfaction feedback is R&R Marketing, a wine and spirits distributor in New Jersey. According to Integrated Solutions for Retailers magazine, the company was having issues with order mistakes and damages. It responded by implementing digital pen technology to help employees efficiently alter invoices and not have to scan them all manually – as well as notifying drivers of a delivery issue before they've finished their rounds for the day.
For some companies, making technological upgrades could very well be the solution they need to respond to low-performing areas effectively. Other areas of process improvement could include better training, quality assurance checks, new standards for customer service and improvements to one's product line. However, you won't know what to do until you ask the questions. Are you asking the questions?
Consistency is not just something that will surely lead to improved customer satisfaction scores over time – it's also a trait you should employ in your customer satisfaction surveys to ensure you get the most reliable, useful answers possible.
When it comes to developing an effective survey, consistency is what will allow you to compare your scores across multiple queries in an apples to apples fashion. Maintaining the same rating scale, for example, will prevent uncertainty when it comes to understanding whether an 8 out of 10 score was the same as a 4 out of 5 score in a different category.
Additionally, it's important to try to stay consistent with the kind of language you use. If you designate a certain ranking as being "highly disagree," stick with that phrase throughout the survey. Referring to the same ranking as "strongly disagree" might have similar connotations, but it might trigger a slightly different response in survey participants.
Finally, remember that tracking your progress over time partially relies on your ability to administer surveys at regular intervals. Soliciting surveys in a randomized fashion introduces new variables that might impact how you read your improvement or decline in a certain category.
Businesses that administer well-crafted customer satisfaction surveys – and take the results seriously – are taking an important first step in the right direction. However, simply intending, and even trying, to improve based on customer feedback isn't always enough to ensure real, lasting change.
"As a customer, I don't really care how hard they try," writes Paul Glen in Technology Spectator. "I'm concerned with how well they succeed. If they offer me flawless service and great prices without breaking a sweat, I'm thrilled. If I'm treated to long lines and high prices from earnest and overworked staffers, I'm not a happy customer. There are no good grades for effort."
When companies try but to no avail, it's usually an indication that they've interpreted their survey results the wrong way, or that they've implemented the wrong measures to try to correct low-performing areas. If your business sees little to no improvement after launching a process improvement campaign, it's a good sign that you might want to go back to the drawing board and start over. Consider soliciting your customers for the types of changes they'd like to see.
Red Roof Inn has secured its position as top economy hotel for a second year in a row thanks to its performance on the ReviewMetrix(TM) Consumer Satisfaction Index. The hotel chain outpaced its competitors when it came to customer service, and as a result, it is maintaining dominance over other businesses.
It's notable that Red Roof Inn didn't just earn the highest overall loyalty measurement. The hotel chain earned the highest marks across all categories, including location, service, value, cleanliness, rooms and overall ranking.
Red Roof Inn is but one example of a franchise that has used its customer satisfaction surveys to expedient ends and learned to really listen to its customer base. By taking customer feedback into account when developing plans for process improvement – and then maintaining the features that contributed to past successes – businesses can maintain a streak of high satisfaction earnings and keep getting better all the while.
Earning high marks on customer satisfaction surveys is rewarding enough on its own, but when businesses have a certain recognition of achievement to strive for, success becomes even sweeter.
Take Quest, a technology management company serving Fortune 50 companies and small businesses, for example. Cisco recently awarded Quest a Customer Satisfaction Excellence Gold Star for its pre and post-sales support and outstanding customer service. Cisco awards companies on the basis of Gold, Silver and Premier Certified partners as a means of distinguishing its most high-performing subsidiaries.
Such accolades can bring more business to a company, but recognition doesn't have to be the only award a well-performing business receives. Many companies thrive on the incentivization of earning a title they can promote in an advertising or marketing campaign, or even a sign in their window announcing their status as having the "best customer service in town." The desire to maintain their position will only continue to motivate personnel in the years to come. Measuring your performance has many different payoffs.
Examining an overall customer satisfaction score is often not enough for companies looking to get the whole picture when it comes to their customer service. Being able to recognize inconsistencies can provide valuable insight that can, in turn, lead to major service improvements.
One of the easiest way to recognize a lack of standards among your customer service staff is when your customer satisfaction surveys reveal a wide range of customer sentiment. Oftentimes, businesses will see results with a discernible trend, with the majority of respondents answering that they had an "excellent" experience, a slightly lower number saying that they were "satisfied" and an even lower number saying that they had a "moderate" perception of the business, for example.
If you determine that your customer service staff aren't upholding the same standards across the board, it might be time to implement a new training program or set new checks and balances to ensure your customers receive a comparable experience no matter who they speak to.
Virgin Mobile recently tied alongside Verizon Wireless for being the top-rated 4G provider in the non-contract and full-service categories, respectively. The way these companies address their clients played an integral role in shaping the overall customer satisfaction score, as owners of these technologically advanced devices report spending more time interacting with customer care departments due to the complexity of the product.
According to the satisfaction research, Verizon performed best in its IVR department, especially with phone interactions that begin as an auto-response communication and then transfer to a live agent. As for Virgin Mobile, approximately one third of customers used the online chat function to resolve their issues – these users were typically more satisfied than others. Satisfaction ranked 749 for the online chat function, 734 for the website, 721 for direct email and 664 for online user forums.
The way in which customers get their needs met has a major role in how they ultimately feel leaving the interaction. Figuring out how often your customer service portals are being used can not only give you a useful statistical breakdown – it can also give you a clue regarding what techniques are working best for your clientele, and the necessary insight to apply those features to your entire service across the board.
