What Do Your Customers Think? Ask Them!

A business owner asked me about a new product she was considering selling, something that current customers as well as new ones might want.  She said, “What do you think?  Will my customers like this?”  I’m the wrong person to be asking.  She needs to ask her customers, since they are the ones doing the buying.

Asking customers can help you improve your small business in a variety of ways:

• New products/services. Like this business owner, you can find out what people think of new items you want to offer.
• Prices. You can also find out what people will pay for something.  This one’s a little tricky, since people won’t always tell you honestly.  I have tried this, and found that the best time to ask about price is when someone has first used a product and expresses satisfaction.
• Customer service. Asking your customers what they think of your customer service keeps you on your toes.  I just got off the phone with my cell phone provider, and I did a short phone survey afterward letting them know what I thought of the service (it was very good).
• New ways of “packaging” products/services. Ask customers what they would like to see.  How would they like products bundled? Would they like to see certain products together in a special?  Would they like you to change the way you offer your services to make them more convenient?
• Hours and availability. Ask people what hours they would like you to have, or how  you can be more available to them.  Asking about hours is another tricky area, because everyone will tell you something different and you can’t be open 24/7/365.  But if many of your customers would like evening hours, you could arrange to be open a couple of nights a week to see what happens.

Don’t forget to promote the changes you have made and make it clear that they are a result of customer feedback.  If people see that you value their opinions, it will increase their satisfaction and they will be more likely to comment in the future.

How to Ask. Before I get off this subject,  I should say there is a right and wrong way to ask.  Make your customer survey or questionnaire simple, short, and easy.  If it’s not all three of those, people won’t bother.  One page, no more than 4-5 questions, and fill in the blank is the best way.  Or use an online survey like SurveyMonkey or Zoomerang if you have an online business.

Give Incentives. You might want to give people an incentive to respond. One of my favorite restaurants periodically surveys customers and they give a free dessert when you turn in the questionnaire.

You can’t guess what people are thinking.  Don’t try.  Ask, and you will find out what you want to know.

Image: sxc.hu