Best Questions to Ask Customers to Gain Valuable Feedback

Published: July 25, 2019

Questions for customers to gain valuable feedback

Your customers are one of your most important assets as a business. Without them, profits cannot grow, and the concept of expansion becomes impossible. With this realization, your business can communicate with customers to determine what you’re doing right and where you can improve.

Speaking to customers is the first step in the right direction toward implementing effective strategies and improvements.

How to Ask for Customer Feedback

Assuming you know the customer experience inside and out is a huge mistake. When there are ways to ask customers for support, your business has to make an effort to try them. Reaching out for feedback regularly will help your company identify strengths and enable you to correct a problem before it becomes a larger concern.

Engaging the customer in a positive way comes from giving them a platform to share their story. Know why you’re asking for feedback, and develop the best approach based on your audience. Depending on customer preference, this process may happen on any of the following outlets:

  • Social media polls
  • Customer online surveys
  • Live chat options
  • Help centers/customer support
  • Feedback forms

Implementing these tools for customers will allow you to know their thoughts, wants and opinions related to your practice. However, these methods must be accompanied by the best questions to ask consumers.

Asking Your Customers the Right Questions

The most important questions you can ask your customers relate to what you provide. Naturally, you want to know if your business is meeting the customer’s expectations. Use this desire to influence feedback by asking:

  • What can our business do to best serve your needs?
  • What do you like about what we do? What don’t you like? (if applicable)
  • Is there anything we can do better to provide the best experience?

By giving the customer the platform to explain their story, your business can learn from this feedback. Picking up on what your customers would like to see will help you focus efforts accordingly.

Recognizing the Customer Experience

A key component of feedback is discovering how your customers feel when they’re doing business with you. Regularly checking in on customer satisfaction will give you insight on feelings and attitudes. Customers typically file feedback after a negative experience, but you can change this fact by honing in on customers who want to share your service.

Ask your customers the following questions to enhance their experience:

  • Would you recommend our service to a friend?
  • Tell us about a time when you were happy about our service.
  • Would you shop with us again/renew your service?

Seeing Value and Improvements

Feedback gives your business a chance to see why you matter to your customers. Deciphering whether your product, employees, sales or online store is attracting customers will show you where you can make improvements. Your customers value your services for a reason, and you can receive helpful feedback by asking:

  • What values do we provide that keep you coming back to us?
  • What challenges (if any) do you experience when shopping with us?
  • If you choose not to shop with us, where are you going?

Customer behaviors, values and intentions contribute to sales for your business. When you’re conducting surveys, social media polls or feedback forms, remember that you’re nothing without your customers. Seeing what customers value and where they think you could improve will help you to make changes where necessary.

Ask for Feedback — Don’t Just Wait for It

If your business only receives feedback for a negative experience, you have the power to reframe the process. Increasing how much feedback you get and what the customer data tells you comes from providing the proper platform. Feedback is not an optional business activity.

Make feedback outlets easy for customers to find, and your company will be amazed at what you discover. For more information about business solutions and strategies, contact Proactive Worldwide today.