Client Feedback – How do you do it? (3 of 6)

by | Apr 1, 2019

Last month we looked at how you can get engagement and buy in from your organisation. This month it’s about how do you actually do it?

Our experience suggests that, to get the most from client feedback, there are four key areas you should pay attention to:

  1. Questions. Craft your questions carefully. Don’t waste time on bland general questions: this is your chance to get under the skin of the issues and test any hypotheses you may have about client service.
  2. Survey or conversation? Surveys can give you a good overview of a situation. However if you want to safeguard or grow important client relationships you will need to talk to your clients. It is personal conversations that will give you deep insights and detail of the actions you need to take. If you focus these conversations towards strategic areas of your client portfolio this will have a direct impact on your business.
  3. A skilled interviewer. An experienced interviewer will know how to probe a client’s responses, and won’t be drawn into debate or defensiveness. An objective, third party interviewer will demonstrate your commitment to getting the real story, and your client may well find it easier to be frank with them.
  4. Good notes and reporting. Good notes and reporting are more valuable even than an audio recording of the conversation. A good interviewer will write notes that add to your understanding and clarify the connections between the points the client is making.

These pointers will help you make a start on gathering your client feedback.
Next month we’ll take a look at what happens next – taking action.