What are some tips for getting fast customer feedback?

When it comes to improving your business, sometimes you need to move quickly. However, you don’t want to rush into decision-making and risk making the wrong changes, which is why you need to get customer feedback first.

Customer feedback will inform your decisions, help you to optimise your processes, and improve your business successfully. But that doesn’t mean the task has to be slow going. In fact, you can collect feedback from customers in several ways that are almost immediate, giving you the actionable information you need to transform your business for the better – both effectively and efficiently. 

Faster customer feedback

Traditional customer feedback methods are incredibly valuable but they can take longer to yield responses. That’s why these methods, such as online surveys, email contact forms, customer reviews, and social media sentiment, should be paired with real-time feedback methods as well. 

Real-time feedback allows you to identify and resolve problems sooner by connecting you with the Customer Experience (CX) as it happens. This way, rather than constantly trying to catch up, you can get ahead of the issues before they get out of hand. 

Here are a few benefits of faster customer feedback:

• Response rates are higher. 
• Responses are more thoughtful and relevant.
• Follow-up actions can take place sooner. 
• There is less buildup of customer frustrations.

Asking for feedback at the right time

The key to getting fast customer feedback is asking for it at the most opportune time. Not only does live customer feedback generate more relevant responses, but it also encourages customers to respond as soon as they receive the prompt. If you ask for feedback too long after the event or interaction, customers are far less likely to respond at all because, for them, the moment has passed. To ensure you don’t miss out on what they have to say, it’s worth giving them the opportunity to share their insights before the inspiration wears thin.

Channels that enable instant feedback

As more brands seek instant feedback, more and more tools and channels are available to make it possible. If you’re wanting to tap into live feedback, here are the most effective options to look into: 

Live web chats

It’s recommended for most companies to offer live chat on their website to improve every step of the customer journey, including sales, support, and success. Live chat allows customers to connect with the right team member at the right moment, which is particularly important when gathering feedback. 

To make feedback in live chats simpler, we recommend using shareable campaign links. These can be automatically added to web chats and will take the customer to the relevant survey with one straightforward click. This way, customers will get their resolution sooner and your team will know exactly what to act on. 

Order confirmation messages

In the age of online shopping, deliveries are a central step in the customer journey. When selling your products online, it’s best practice to send confirmation emails to your customers as soon as their order comes through. This provides reassurance for customers and helps to build trust with your brand, but it’s also an excellent opportunity to ask for feedback. 

Within your order confirmation message, we recommend including a feedback request via a campaign link. This stage of the Customer Experience is the ideal time to ask about the transaction process, general customer satisfaction, and any customer service interactions the customer may have had. When a customer has just made a purchase, they're likely more open to sharing their feedback with you because they’ve just had a rewarding interaction. 

Order delivery messages

When a customer orders online, they expect to get updated on the progress of the delivery. Most companies will offer order tracking to achieve this and include personalised email alerts at certain delivery touchpoints. When the order is finally delivered, this is the perfect time to ask for feedback about the product and delivery process. 

With a campaign link embedded in the delivery confirmation message, customers can quickly and easily share how they feel about their experience with your brand. For example, you could ask if the product meets their expectations, if it arrived in good condition, or if the tracking process was effective. 

Packaging QR Codes

Scannable QR codes are a simple, easy, and immediate way to direct people to a particular digital tool or site, like a feedback survey. Instead of moving through multiple screens, customers know QR codes are convenient, meaning they’re more likely to use them. Packaging QR codes have the added benefit of being delivered with the parcel - so no guessing when to send the survey email as it arrives right on time!

To gather feedback on your products, you can simply incorporate a QR code into your packaging designs. When a customer scans it, they will immediately be redirected to the right page of your website or a survey, where they can share how they feel about the product. This way, your feedback is more relevant and collected at exactly the right time. 

Customer feedback management

When asking for customer feedback, it’s essential to organise everything in a meaningful, cohesive manner. The core pillars of feedback management revolve around these principles:

• Be consistent and intentional. 
• Adapt to customers’ preferences, particularly in terms of the channels you use. 
• Offer a combination of live feedback and traditional methods simultaneously. 
• Keep surveys short, engaging, and to the point. 
• Implement quantifiable metrics to track your trends across all customers. 
• Use automation and data analytics to simplify the process. 

You need to find a Customer Feedback Management tool (CFM) that does all the hard work for you. A good CFM will have everything you need to be built into its software, giving you the tools and data you need all in one place. 

Ensure your platform is compatible with your current business tools and offers flexible surveys that can be distributed across any channel. Your customers should be your main focus, so your CFM must make the feedback process as effortless as possible. 

The Review Tui software is designed for all businesses, with the aim of better connecting them with their customers. The HubSpot integration, campaign links, valuable metrics, and automatic analytics are seamlessly combined to empower you and jumpstart your customer feedback strategy. 

To learn more about the platform, sign up for updates now or download our Guide to Implementing a Customer Feedback Strategy. You’ll find everything you need to get started today.