|
Tips for conducting Customer
Satisfaction Surveys
Customer Surveys: The Ins and Outs of conducting surveys...
|
|
In a research study published in Harvard
Business Review and conducted by Professor Dr. Paul Dholakia and Dr.
Vicki Morwitz of Rice University, the conclusion was reached that
the simple fact of asking customers how a company was performing by
itself proved to be a great customer retention strategy.
In the study, which was conducted over the course of a year, one set
of customers took part in a 10-12 minute telephone survey and the
other set of customers was not surveyed. |
A year after the survey was conducted, the customers
surveyed were more than three
times as likely to have opened new accounts, were less than half as likely
to have defected, and
were more profitable than the customers who hadn't been surveyed.
Researchers suggested the following rationales for these results:
1. Satisfaction Surveys reinforce a customers desire to be coddled &
reinforce positive feelings.
2. Customer Satisfaction Surveys may increase awareness of auxiliary products and services.
3. Induces Judgments - asking people their opinion can induce them to form
an opinion on
something they otherwise would not have considered.
Ways to Increase Response Rates For Your Customer Survey
In an article written by Jennifer M. Jensen, Assistant Professor,
Department of Political Science
Rockefeller College of Public Affairs and Policy, Professor Jensen lists
ten ways to increase the
response rates for your customer satisfaction surveys.
1. Specifically target your audience.
2. Personalize your survey invitations.
3. Keep your invitation short.
4. Make your first survey page simple.
5. Be clear about privacy protections up front.
6. Send reminders
7. Consider offering incentives - gifts, prizes, etc.
8. Some people just want to share their opinion - so incentives could be
optional.
9. Use graphics strategically to make the survey easy to navigate.
10. Publish your results to survey participants - This can be easily
achieved by collecting email
addresses as part of the customer survey.
Writing Great Questions for Customer Surveys
In an article by Vivek Bhaskaran of QuestionPro.com called "Writing Great
Questions for Online
Surveys" the author lists the following common pitfalls in creating a
great questionnaire
1. Loaded or leading words or questions.
2. Misplaced questions - Questions placed out of order or out of context.
3. Multiple choice response categories should be mutually exclusive so choices
are clear.
4. Nonspecific questions.
5. Confusing or unfamiliar words.
6. Non-directed questions that give respondents excessive latitude.
7. Forcing answers - Respondents may not want, or be able to
provide the information.
8. Non-exhaustive listings - Do you have all of the options covered?
9. Unbalanced scales - Give the responder a ranking scale that makes
sense.
10. Double barreled questions - Don't ask two things at once.
11. Dichotomous questions - Make answers independent. It can
only be one or the other,
not both.
12. Avoid Long questions
13. Avoid Questions about future intentions.
Customer Satisfaction Surveys - Article
Copyright (c) Evergreen Publishing
Contact: admin @ evergreenpub . com |