Do you think you know what your competitive advantage is, or have you heard it straight from the people that bought from you?
Finding out what people love about your business is just one of the reasons why you should survey your customers. And by that I don’t mean sending them a long census form – just a question here or there, or even better, a structured feedback process where you ask what they thought of your product or service every time they buy.
The answers to your questions will provide you with tremendous insight into their experiences with you, your staff, your products and your services. What’s important to realize is that these answers will not be the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth – they are perceptions.
And that’s one of the main reasons why you should get into communication with your shoppers; perceptions are inherently personal, so there is no right or wrong. By knowing what people think and feel about your business you can find out which elements to emphasize in your marketing and business practices, and which to try to fix.
Once you have established communication channels with your customers you can try to steer them towards taking action by asking them questions like “would you refer us to your family and friends?” Just asking that question may spur them into action, resulting into a new lead for your business.
Surveying your customers can be a great way to deepen the relationship with them. You can incentivize their feedback by attaching a draw or free giveaway to your questions. Software allows you to systemize this process, and tracking the response rates; by reviewing the statistics you can attempt optimizing things.
“You don’t know what you don’t know,” but by asking questions you can get to know your clientele better – starting today.
For more information: contact your web developer, or website optimizer Nardo Kuitert at www.asknardo.com or 519-787-7612. Nardo has written the On The Web column on behalf of the Centre Wellington Chamber of Commerce since 2006.
