Listening takes on many forms and we should learn to exercise as many as possible in order to maximize the feedback we receive from our customers.
This feed back should be analysed, prioritized and utilized to modify our business strategies.
Feedback from customers effectively applied can also result in new ideas, improved ways and overall better customer service.
Ways of communication we need to tap into:
- In person - direct communication either to the owner or employees
- Word of mouth - comments to friends
- Complaints - negative feedback to create awareness or action
- Surveys - this is generally initiated by the business or other interested parties
- Social media - these can reach a far larger audience
- Reviews and ratings - scoring given via many channels
- Buying decisions - a very strong form of feedback disclosing preferences
- Recognition and awards - praise is generally earned and is another very strong form of feedback
The list above is not exhaustive but clearly shows that we can get customer feedback via many channels.