10 reasons for the business mum to get client feedback

As a small business owner, getting feedback from your clients is something that is often overlooked.

However getting feedback from your clients or customers is absolutely essential, no matter what business you are running.  And if you’re putting off getting client feedback, then you DEFINITELY need to do it. What’s putting you off? Are you scared of the responses? Do you know you have an issue? Far better to get it sorted than let it linger.

Ten reasons that you need client feedback

1. Improve your product or your service. Your service might be really good but what if your clients gave you an idea that could turn your business from good to brilliant! Imagine how powerful that could be. Imagine how much more successful your business would be.
2. Client satisfaction. It is important to measure client satisfaction – do your clients like your service? Do they like your products? How much do they like you? Enough to keep them from visiting competitor services? You should be aiming to improve client satisfaction but first you need a mark in the sand, a starting point.
3. Improve the customer experience. By asking for feedback, you will gain valuable insights in how to improve the experience that your customers have.  Happy customers will share their positive experiences.
4. Customer retention. When we shop for a product or a service, we will look at several factors including price, location, ease of purchase … but more than anything we buy from people. Feedback allows you to improve the customer experience thus increasing your customer retention.
5. Better business decisions. It is so easy when you are running your own business, to make decisions based on gut instinct or feelings. Get customer feedback, and your business decisions can be based on data, not just feelings. I’m not saying that feelings aren’t important too, however when you are running a business, you need to take decisions seriously. The wrong decision can have a significant impact on the growth or success of your business.
6. Identify brand ambassadors. Find out who your raving fans are and these will be your brand ambassadors who will refer you to their friends and acquaintances.
7. The feel good buzz. Everybody likes a compliment. It will give you a real boost when a customer praises you, your product or your service. It will give you confidence that you are providing a good service.
8. Pinpoint recurring issues or problems. Often customers will overlook one niggling little thing just to buy from you. But think how much more your customers will love you if you just fixed that one thing that is annoying them. But you’ve got to find out what that annoying one thing is first. Ask your customers.
9. You can only manage what you measure. If you don’t measure it, you can’t manage it. It’s that simple. As well as measuring sales, repeat business etc, you must measure feedback.
10. Loyalty. Show that you care. Your clients or customers want to know that you care about them. As I have already said, we buy from people, and your customers will be more likely to be loyal if they feel that you genuinely care about them.

I have shared ten reasons for getting client feedback.  In a next post, I will share ideas on how and when to gather that feedback.

What do you think? How important is it to get client feedback? Have you made any changes to your business or the services you offer as a result of client feedback? Please do share.

If client feedback is something you’ve been putting off, here’s a special offer you can’t refuse. Join me Thursday 30 April for a half day workshop to Get It Done!  Identify what feedback you need, how you are going to get it, and create the action plan to Get It Done!