Monday, February 09, 2015
Satisfaction barometer: communicate the results to your customers!
As part of your strategy to place the customer at the heart of the organization, you set up a real-time barometer to measure customer satisfaction.
Once your system was up and running, you drew up a corrective action plan following analysis of the results.
At the same time, you've circulated the results to your staff to rally them around your strategy. Communicating these results not only helps you to improve the quality of your services, but also to deal with dissatisfaction in a reactive way.
How about communicating with your customers now?
Why communicate the results of the satisfaction barometer to your customers?
Clearly communicating the results to your customers is essential if you want them to keep sending in their feedback.
While for a long time companies preferred discretion to public exposure of the sources of their customers' dissatisfaction, we can see that the trend is now reversing and that companies are being proactive on this subject.
By communicating the results of your barometer, you can deliver a number of messages:
1) Making the survey a reality
Sharing the results is a way of presenting the corrective actions implemented following your satisfaction survey.
It's an opportunity to show customers that their opinions are taken into account in a general way.
2) Listening to and valuing the customer
"You've spoken, we've listened" is the message your customers get when you get back to them after they've spoken.
When your customers respond to your survey, they want to express their needs so that you can assimilate them.
Today, as part of your satisfaction measurement system, it is possible that only customers who are alerted or requesting a call-back are likely to receive a message from you following the survey.
By presenting your action plans to your customers, you show that they are important, and that their opinion contributes to improving your services.
Use your results to optimize the customer experience and engage them in your approach. It's also about generating enthusiasm to encourage your customer to take part in further surveys.
3) Transparency
Honesty is the key to maintaining a relationship of trust and exchange with your customers. Show that you accept feedback, good or bad. The aim is to build a foundation for improving your services or products. This is an opportunity to take stock and thank customers for their participation in the survey.
4) Brand image
Show the company's commitment to improving its services and satisfying its customers. By communicating, you want to show customers that you're not wasting their time, but that they're making a real contribution to improving your services.
Similarly, a company that takes the time to respond to dissatisfaction following a survey will give an image of listening and consideration towards its customer.
What communication tools do you have at your disposal?
Point-of-sale display
Display the results and/or measures taken following your survey directly in your points of sale (e.g.: a recurring remark concerns the welcome in store: highlight it at the time, allowing customers to see first-hand the improvements that have been made).
The Speedy garage group awards its best centers each month in the "Customer Satisfaction Trophies". Centers ranked in the top 3 (out of 460 garages) are awarded a trophy, which they proudly display in their garage.
(Find out more :Speedy crowns champions of customer satisfaction)
Annual email campaign
Integrate your communication directly into your emailings or customer newsletters. You can also make it a recurring feature, analyzing a point for improvement in each issue.
Adaptation in the questionnaire
Display a message at the end of your questionnaires to let your respondents know what actions have been taken.
The MMV vacation club brand informs its customers at the end of the questionnaire about improvements made in its club hotels: changes to the breakfast menu, activities for teenagers... (Questionnaire 2013)
Publication on the Internet / in the press
Make the communication of your survey results a communication component in its own right: consider publishing a page for your customers. This has a double impact: in addition to reaching the respondents to your survey, you show a positive image of your company.
As part of its "Fast" satisfaction survey, Lafarge Group communicates the results of its satisfaction survey through a brochure presenting the results, the Group's strategy and its commitments for the future...
Conclusion
Communicating the results of your satisfaction barometer is the key to making your company's Customer Centric strategy a reality for your customers.
Don't wait to prepare your results communication strategy!
