Collecting and acting on omnichannel customer feedback is absolutely vital for any business that wants to thrive in today’s market.
Companies need to keep in mind that price and product are no longer the leading way to get a loyal customer base. Customer experience is now the predominant factor in whether someone wants to repeat their business with a brand. A PWC survey found that 73% of all respondents pointed to customer experience as an important factor in their purchasing decisions. They also found that 43% of consumers would pay more for greater convenience.
Customers can offer some wonderful insight on how to improve the customer experience. This in turn improves the company, as it receives more business from happier customers. Satisfied customers also lead to a better customer satisfaction score (CSAT). The key is having a multi-channel approach, which allows customers to connect with a company through different mediums other than just the phone.
Here are some of the channels that can allow consumers to give feedback for businesses.
1. Social media
With well over 3 billion people on social media globally, it is easily one of the best ways for customers to give feedback. According to the Sprout Social Index, 31% of people prefer to leave feedback about a product or service on social media. Also, 47% of customers have a more favorable view of brands that respond to questions or complaints on social media.
The major benefit of social media is all the different platforms that are available for people to communicate through. Some of the top platforms used are Facebook, Instagram, Youtube, Twitter, LinkedIn, and TikTok. Brands can also keep up with what people are posting by searching for any mentions of the brand’s name.
2. Text messaging
SMS text messaging has the potential to give many people access to a company. The majority of people have a mobile phone nowadays and they are constantly checking them throughout the day. People tend to respond more often to text messages than random phone calls too. It’s very easy for a company to shoot someone a text and engage with them on a platform that is convenient to them.
It also gives people a chance to think about their answers and respond on their own time. A phone call may put them on the spot or be ill-timed. Companies just need to be aware that they should send texts during the day, when people are more likely to respond, and send short messages to keep their attention and not waste time.
3. Email
Email still very much has its place in the world. Global email users added up to about 3.9 billion individuals in 2019 and that figure is estimated to grow to about 4.3 billion individuals in 2023. It is a channel that allows people to give much more detailed feedback, again on their own time. Customers can receive personalized messages and also respond with lengthier messages than they could on social media or over text.
Brands should always respond to email inquiries and also respond in a timely manner. Email etiquette, such as this, shows the customer that the brand values their thoughts and opinions. It also makes it more likely that customers are going to feel heard and want to continue buying from the brand.
4. In app
Naturally, with all those people owning mobile phones, they are going to be downloading apps, or applications. Companies that have apps can very easily embed feedback forms and solicit users to respond as they go about using the app. There are different ways to solicit that feedback, as well. For example, company’s can set forms to pop up at a certain point as people are scrolling through the app or after they have met certain action criteria.
Feedback forms can allow users to give a simple star rating, type out a response to a question, select from pre-generated responses, etc. Brands just need to be sure to strike a balance of when and where. It can be off-putting to have a pop-up appear multiple times or seemingly almost as soon as someone opens the app.
5. Webchat
Providing webchat is both excellent customer service and an opportunity for customers to express themselves and let the brand know how they are doing. If a customer service representative is on a live chat with someone to help resolve an issue then the customer can be quickly prompted for a rating or general thoughts about the transaction at the end.
People can get immediate help as a problem occurs and customer service representatives are able to see what exact issues people are having. This also helps increase the chances that the person will stay on the website and continue to engage with the brand. It’s really a win-win for both parties’ interests.
6. Polls and surveys
While polls and surveys are a little old school, they are still very reliable methods of collecting feedback. Polls and surveys can also be sent through other channels, such as email and text messages. Customers can leave anonymous feedback and either answer short open-ended questions, give ratings, or choose from multiple choice answers in response to questions.
Of course, these are not all of the channels that can be used to receive feedback from customers, but merely some of the more commonly used. Omnichannel allows customers to seamlessly submit feedback through their preferred channel. So, the company benefits in the end.