The gift of feedback
Kids are brilliant at it. Only recently did my four year old tell me I need to go for a run as my tummy was getting too big. The elderly are also quite adept at it. Many years ago, I can remember my grandma commenting on a new haircut. “Why have you done that to yourself (shaved your head)? You look like an over-inflated football”. Retail and consumer businesses are constantly seeking feedback in order to improve their offerings. Trip Advisor has built a business out of customer reviews.
So why, in professional services, are large numbers of firms and individuals within those firms, still reticent to seek feedback from their paying customers?
In this instalment of Three Things, we look at overcoming some of the common reasons provided for not asking for feedback and demonstrating the power that continual customer feedback can provide to an organisation. Enjoy.
Excuse #1. “They are busy people. I don’t want to waste their time”.
You’re 100% right. People are very busy. That’s why, when you demonstrate you want to improve service delivery through feedback, they will likely bite your arm off to participate. A feedback session with you may allow your customer a small window of opportunity to reflect on the service(s) being provided, not only by your firm but also other suppliers.
Feedback can also be gathered in increasingly efficient ways. It’s worth asking your customer how they best want to deliver their feedback. Face to face? Zoom call? Quick survey (MS Forms, Typeform or similar)?
Excuse #2. “I have a great relationship with [client name]. If there was something wrong, I’d know about it”.
Not necessarily in our experience and definitely not if the something wrong is you! Similar to personal relationships, business relationships can ebb and flow over time. Customer organisations and the people within them can change meaning that a previously strong chemistry can become diluted. Many people find giving constructive feedback to an individual they are working with hard and so duck the situation, or worse, find an alternate supplier.
Providing an independent feedback mechanism allows the customer to feel comfortable in speaking with someone who is removed from service delivery. It also removes the tendency for the doer to concentrate feedback solely on their specific area of specialism rather than the entirety of the relationship.
Excuse #3. “What if the feedback is bad”?
People rarely voice this excuse as it is written above. However, in our view, this is the single greatest unspoken barrier to asking for feedback. And yet, it also happens to be the most important reason for conducting feedback at all.
Firstly, we’re assuming that the feedback will be bad. However, what if it’s good? Or excellent? Feedback has the ability to really boost your brand through the use of public review tools and/or customer testimonials. But, as the old saying goes, “If you don’t ask, you don’t get”.
Secondly, if the feedback is bad then at least you’ve caught it early and can take steps to remediate the situation rather than lose the customer to a competitor. In our experience, customer frustrations are usually minor and can be fixed with a little focused effort.
Finally, once the feedback has been received and actioned, watch your relationship grow and blossom with your customers. Why? Because you’ve demonstrated that you care. It’s as simple as that.
