survey results

How to Analyze Survey Results to Identify Improvements

How to Analyze Survey Results to Identify Improvements

Survey Tips

Sending surveys to your customers means so much more than simply crafting questions and sending them out. Your surveys provide you a wealth of information that you can then use to make decisions and changes at your business.

What you do with those survey results is important to your overall success.

In this article, we look at how to analyze survey results to identify improvements.

Study Your Data

Your first step is to analyze the data. Look for your respondent’s answers and compile them in an organized fashion.

Filter your data and separate it so you can analyze the results and then move forward with your own conclusions.

Only once you’ve analyzed and compiled that data can you make conclusions and ultimately a plan of action for improvements.

Present Your Results

When working with your team to identify ways to improve your business, you want to think about your presentation.

There are a few ways to look at your results with your staff:

  • Create a chart or a graph. These are easy on the eyes and great for your visual team. Charts and graphs can help your team identify ways to make your business better in a way that is straightforward and easy to understand.
  • Create a data table when your information is numerical. This is also easy for team members to gather information.
  • Make an infographic. This is another great tool for visual team members. Your staff can easily digest the results so you can get started identifying improvements.

Final Thoughts

The most important thing you can do with your survey data is analyze it, report it, and then act on it.

When you identify improvements, you can work with your staff to make any needed changes so your next survey comes back with very positive results. (tweet this)

Bottom line: analyzing your survey analytics helps you understand your customers so you can improve your products and services.

Surveys can help you get valuable customer feedback. You can then use this feedback to improve your business. Are you ready to get started with your Survey Town account? Start with your account today.

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What to do with Negative Feedback - Proven Steps to Improve

What to do with Negative Feedback – 5 Proven Steps to Improve It

General

Sending out surveys always brings results, some positive and some negative.

While you may find yourself cringing as the negative results pile in, it’s not necessarily a bad thing. You of course appreciate the positive comments because they are reassuring, but the negative survey results are a growth opportunity.

Most business leaders know that negative feedback doesn’t have to spell disaster, and they instead turn it into a positive experience. (tweet this)

In this article, we look at what to do with negative feedback and five proven steps to improve it.

#1: Don’t Let Customers Down

Once your customers have taken the time to complete your survey, you don’t want to let them all down. Show your customers you value their time and their feedback by providing a response.

If you don’t, you show customers their input is useless, and they’ll likely never complete another survey for you again.

What happens after your customers send their survey feedback is the most important part of your survey

#2: Review Your Survey Responses

Gather your team and make sure everyone has read and re-read the customer feedback.

Delegate someone to respond to the negative feedback and someone to respond to the positive feedback.

Discuss together how your staff should handle their responses, especially to the negative feedback.

For starters, they should respond immediately. This isn’t something you want to fester. After all, the last thing you want are negative reviews all over Google and Facebook.

You can improve the customer’s opinion of you by learning more about what they’re upset about, remaining empathetic and showing you care. This is all regardless of whether you think the customer is right or not.

#3: Take Action

As you prepare to take action, it can be helpful to have a template for your employees to follow. Set guidelines and parameters so your staff is well-versed on just what to say.

They should always customize the response, though, so the template is really just an initial guide.

You may find that you can improve your negative feedback with the right response. Customers may even end up sticking with your company because of the way you handled their negative feedback.

Your follow-up is key to keeping the customer and turning them into one of your most loyal ones.

Train your staff to create a response that renames their concern, acknowledges it, and then lets them know how you can remedy it. Always let them know how much you value their input and how sorry you are for the problem.

#4: Review Responses

The next step is setting aside a time to meet with your staff to discuss your negative feedback.

This is so important because it’s the only way you’ll improve your business and your service and avoid negative feedback in the future.

#5: Analyze Your Data

Finally, as you review responses and make a plan for turning things around, you want to really analyze your data.

This means looking where the negative feedback came from. Is it just one department? Is it a particular area of the city or country?

By analyzing the data, you’ll find areas where you might provide more training. Or, you might learn you need to add a staff person because the wait time is too long. You also might find problems with products.

Analyzing your data provides a wealth of information and lets you know where to act.

Final Thoughts

When businesses respond promptly to negative feedback, they benefit. If you ignore, you’re likely to suffer in the form of bad reviews all over the internet.

Communicate with your customers. Try to fix the problem, and once you have, reach back out to those same customers and let them know what you’re doing to fix it.

This means contacting them more than once and showing them that not only did their feedback matter, but you took steps to make sure it didn’t happen again. Thank them one more time and let them know their role in affecting change.

Providing good customer service is vital to the success of any business. So, when you get negative feedback, you want to do everything in your power to improve it.

Surveys help you make the best decisions for your business. Are you ready to get started with your free Survey Town trial? Start with your free account today, and you can upgrade at any time.

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5 Reasons to Integrate Survey Results into Your CRM

5 Reasons to Integrate Survey Results into Your CRM

Survey Tips

A CRM (customer relationship management) platform is a vital centerpiece to your business.

Why? In our digital age, the business that builds relationships is the one that succeeds. The best way for you to set yourself apart from the competition is by using your CRM to interact with your customers.

And, when it comes to meeting the needs of your customers and providing the best products and services, you have to know what they want. One way to learn about their needs is through surveys.

So, instead of leaving your survey results out there on their own, you can send the information to your CRM.

In this article, we look at five reasons to integrate survey results into your CRM. When you do this, you can add this info to your CRM to enhance the service you provide your customers.

First, let’s look at customer feedback.

Why Feedback is Important

Before we get into the importance of integration, we want to discuss why surveys are so important to the customer service experience you provide your customers.

Feedback is vital to understanding the desires of your customers and to learn how they feel about you. It’s nearly impossible to improve your customer experience if you don’t ask people what they think.

Asking for input means you can take action quickly.

Because feedback is so important to your success, it doesn’t help you to keep it outside of your CRM. Enhancing the customer experience means seeing the big picture, and that’s best done through integration.

Now let’s discuss why you should integrate your survey results into your CRM.

#1: You Get Immediate Feedback

Integrating your survey into your CRM software gives you more power to convert leads into customers.

For example, if someone contacts you through your website, you can set up an automatic survey to learn more about them. Once you get this feedback, you can qualify the lead based on their survey responses.

#2: You Get to Know Your Customers

Let’s say you use a survey platform like Survey Town, and you have a CRM. If you integrate them, you have access to all of your customers’ information in one place.

For example, you may have a website lead, Bob Smith. You have the info he requested on your contact form. He may have even made a purchase from you, and that information is in your CRM.

You sent out a survey last week, and Bob Smith completed it. Because you have an integrated system, you can see his data in your CRM and use it with the other data to reach out to him and provide him with just what he’s looking for.

Or, conversely, if he hasn’t made a purchase yet, you can send him a survey to learn more about his needs.

#3: Provide Better Customer Service

Your customer just purchased several items from you. Then, you wait about two weeks, and you send them a survey to get their feedback on your products/services.

The survey responses land in your CRM, and you have all the information you need to reach out. This is especially helpful if the comments are negative.

By having this leverage, you may keep bad reviews off social media and Google because you can respond faster.

An integrated system lets you respond to negative experiences and provide immediate solutions which is a win-win for everyone.

#4: You Reach Qualified People

You can use your CRM data to conduct better surveys. For example, if you send a survey on its own, you may not have a way to tie it to a person. But, if you integrate your CRM, you have a better chance of reaching qualified people who give you great feedback.

Customer feedback surveys and customer relationship management systems are uniquely intertwined.

They pack a powerful one-two punch when it comes to building customer relationships and improving their satisfaction.

#5: You Get Your Staff Involved

Another benefit to integrating your survey results and your CRM is the help it provides your employees.

This integration gives your team members the ability to handle leads in a more informed way which in turn helps them convert more of these leads into paying customers.

If closing sales is your goal, integrating your survey results into your CRM is a must-do.

Improve Your Systems

We’ve looked at some ways this integration helps with your customers, but let’s also look at how it helps your business.

When you tie the two together, you simplify your processes. Everything lands in one place, and you aren’t spending time importing lists or manually sending out survey emails. Your integrated feedback and CRM solution does all of this for you.

When you can see your survey results along with the purchases and contacts each customer has had with your business, you have more insight into what works and what doesn’t. (tweet this)

This also helps your sales team and your customer service team because all of the info is in one place.

To Conclude

Marketing in today’s digital climate is all about the customer. You want to get them the right information at the right time, and you want to make sure you’re meeting their needs.

To do this, you may already be sending surveys which is terrific. Increase the power of your surveys by integrating them with your customer relationship management system.

By integrating, you’re also streamlining your systems. This makes your data work harder and allows you to build strong customer relationships.

Combining your survey feedback and your CRM helps you personalize your customer messaging and your marketing targeting.

You can send custom surveys that are tailored to happy as well as unhappy customers, again enhancing the relationship.

Bottom line – your goal is connecting your target audience with your products and services. To do this you not only have to know what they want, but you have to build a relationship.

Integrating your survey results into your CRM helps you connect everything together so you can grow a strong business.

Surveys help you make the best decisions for your business. Are you ready to get started with your free Survey Town trial? Start with your free account today, and you can upgrade at any time.

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What is an NPS Score, and Why is it Important

What is a NPS Score, and Why is it Important?

Survey Tips

For businesses who like to know what their customers think about their company, the NPS Score is an important tool.

But, you may ask, “What is a NPS Score, and why is it important?”

In this article, we look at the NPS Score survey and how it can benefit your business.

What is the NPS Score?

NPS stands for Net Promoter Score. It measures customer satisfaction.

This score comes from the Net Promoter Survey, and it’s a really simple, one question survey.

All you do is ask your customers this question: “How likely are you on a scale of 0-10 to recommend our (name of business/products/services) to your friends, family, or colleagues?”

This is what your answers mean:

  • Those who choose between 0-6 on the scale are called detractors.
  • People who answer with a 7 or 8 are neutral or passive to your business.
  • Respondents who choose a 9 or a 10 are your promoters.

To get your NPS Score, you subtract the percentage of detractors from the percentage of promoters, and you have your answer. You completely ignore those who answer with a seven or eight.

The higher your score, the better you did.

Why is it Important?

Overall, the Net Promoter Score is important to your business because it provides a big-picture look at your customer loyalty. (tweet this)

You can see how this separates you from the competition, and it helps you see where you can improve.

The NPS Score also shows you how specific departments in your company are doing so everyone is getting equally high scores.

Plus, if you use the NPS Score, and you use it as a key indicator of how well your company is doing, you’ll see it helps drive your business growth as you work to improve your score.

For example, if your first score is under eight, and you make a plan for improvement, you can resend the survey six months later and see if your score grows.

The NPS Score Works

We like the NPS for many reasons, one of which is that you can gauge company success by this score.

Those people rated as promoters (score of nine or ten) are much more likely to be repeat customers. You are in essence closing the funnel because you are locking in future business.

So, by aiming for a promoter rating, you are helping ensure your success.

In addition, we like the score because it lets you know if you can count on word of mouth.

Hands down, word of mouth referrals are the most important piece of your marketing strategy. Word of mouth is better than any marketing strategy you can come up with.

In our hyper-digital age, people want to know what others think. They even trust the word of strangers. So, the more promoters you have promoting your business, the better.

Because you value the NPS Score, you can work hard for your nine or ten scores, and if you do, you’ll know that the referral is right around the corner.

Best practices are to track your NPS Score on a regular basis, compare the results over time, strategize for improvement and continue to evaluate the data.

Final Thoughts

The business environment is increasingly crowded, and it’s more important than ever before to not only get new customers but retain your current ones.

The best way to increase your business is to keep your customer base so happy that they’ll share how much they like you with friends and family.

The Net Promoter Score is the best gauge of customer satisfaction and one you can use to determine how content your customers are with your products and services.

Bottom line – the NPS helps you understand if your customers would recommend you to others. If your score is under eight, you’ve got some evaluating to do.

A low score means you need to have frank discussions about your products, customer service, and overall processes. Your goal is to get your score to nine or ten.

If your score is already a nine or ten, you still want to have a strategy session to make sure you carry on and provide for your customers, so they continue to sing your praises.

Surveys help you make the best decisions for your business. Are you ready to get started with your free Survey Town trial? Start with your free account today, and you can upgrade at any time.

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Understanding Your Survey Results

Understanding Your Survey Results

Survey Tips

You’ve done your due diligence and created a simple, data-rich survey, and the results are pouring in.

Now what?

It’s time to review your survey responses. In this article, we look at understanding your survey results and how to move forward with them.

Display Your Results Visually

The human brain processes visual images 60,000 times faster than it does text.

So, take your data and put it into an image-based format. Think tables and graphs. This makes it easier not only for you, but for the rest of your team, to interpret the results.

Consider tables when looking at precise numbers or when you have just a few comparisons. Use graphs and other imagery when you have more to compare.

Ignore the Outliers

Once you have your survey data in a visually appealing format, you can concentrate on the high points. This means look at the biggest trends and for the initial discussion, ignore the outliers.

At first glance, you’re after the big picture of the data. For example, 15 respondents answered a question the same way, while two people didn’t. Save those outliers for a later discussion because they might even be mistakes.

You don’t want to miss the big picture because you focused on the smallest survey responses. (tweet this)

Use the Data Wisely

Let’s say you conducted a survey, and you wanted 100 responses, but you only got 10.

If your survey was about something as important as a major product change, you might want to send out a few more surveys a respectable time apart to be sure the data is correct.

If you do this, consider revising your survey and asking the question in a new way to elicit more responses.

Once you find your survey data correlates with one another, you can feel safe moving forward with your business change.

Final Thoughts

The best surveys are simple and specific with data that you can take action on. They begin with a well-crafted survey and end with a thorough examination of your survey results.

Finally, before you create your survey, write down its purpose along with what you think you’ll find. Then, you’ll have better results and something to compare them to.

Surveys help you make the best decisions for your business. Are you ready to get started with your free Survey Town trial? Start with your free account today, and you can upgrade at any time.

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How to Survey Your Customers

How To Survey Your Customers “Where They Are”

Survey Tips

Many of our customers ask us, “How do I get more responses from my surveys?”

One of our suggestions is to make it as easy as possible for respondents to access and complete your survey.

To help you get more responses, we look at how to survey your customers “where they are.”

First, let’s look at why it’s important to stay in touch with your current customers and their satisfaction levels.

Customer Retention is Vital

In today’s busy, ultra-digital world, it costs at least five times more to acquire a new customer than to retain current ones. For some businesses, the cost of losing a customer amounts to several hundred dollars.

While that doesn’t sound like a lot for one customer, imagine the cost for every five customers you lose – well over $1000.

This is where the customer survey comes in. It allows you to measure customer satisfaction, fix problems in your business, and ultimately retain more customers.

Now let’s look at how to survey your customers where they are by integrating surveys into your daily business activities.

Use Surveys During the Sales Process

We think this is one of the most effective ways to survey your customers and find out more about their interactions with your business.

By integrating customer satisfaction surveys into your sales process, you meet customers right where they are. You can send your survey post-purchase through your email list, or you can even link it from your checkout pages. (tweet this)

It’s advantageous to survey your customers early in their sales cycle during the sales process because it’s fresh in their minds. It also shows your customers that you truly care about customer service.

Early surveys tell your customers their satisfaction is important to you. It pays to let your customers know you are willing to go above and beyond to handle any issues or problems.

Send Surveys Multiple Ways

You know your business best, so you probably know the best avenue for sending surveys. If you don’t know, it’s time to learn where your customers spend their time.

Is it on email, in your app or on their phones? The good news is that you can survey them in any of those places.

Email provides a chance for highly qualitative feedback. Why? This is because the people who respond to email surveys usually care because they are invested in your brand.

These folks are likely to take your survey one step further and even provide answers to your open-ended questions.

Using surveys through your website or mobile app often provide higher response rates, although your responses might not be of the caliber of your email ones.

Customers will usually answer your questions, though, and are less likely to opt out.

When you send surveys out through SMS (text messaging), you’ll find these are an effective and immediate way to interact with your customers.

Text messages beg for a response, and you’ll find your customers more eager to answer short, specific surveys.

Bottom line – it’s not about which method is better. It’s about which channels are the best for your customer base. Where are your customers? Know the answer to this question and meet them where they are.

Review Responses Regularly

We often see businesses who get excited to send surveys, spend a great deal of time crafting questions and putting the survey together, only to shelve their results for “another day.”

Best practice says you should review your customer surveys on a schedule and on an ongoing basis. For example, set aside 30 minutes to review survey data and results at your monthly staff meetings.

By dedicating yourself and your entire team to reviewing customer surveys on a regular business, you create a customer-service oriented culture at your business.

It helps hold everyone accountable, and it gets your team onboard with improving customer service at your business.

In addition, by reviewing survey data at staff meetings, you might find that your team can identify specific customers and elaborate on why they responded the way they did.

For example, if a customer gave you bad rating, or if they left comments, you can discuss this with your team to learn more about any problems and how you can keep them from happening in the future.

You can also use this information to brainstorm on ways to solve problems, and oftentimes respond to customers to try to repair any damage.

Do be careful when sharing survey results with your staff to not make them uncomfortable with the results. Your survey review sessions shouldn’t be “blame games.”

Stay open to listening to your staff members while coaching them to provide better customer service.

Review Surveys with Customers

For businesses who have relationships with their customers and provide a long-term service or product, it can be helpful to meet with them at least once a year to discuss survey results.

This provides you the ability to meet with your customers in person to discuss their survey responses and dig deeper into any issues that may exist.

Go through their answers to learn more and improve your process. You might find that this review process coupled with the initial survey smooths ruffled feathers and may prevent customer loss.

Final Thoughts

You already know that listening to your customers and meeting their needs is key to your success as a business.

Customer surveys are a terrific way to learn more about how your customers feel about you, so you can use the data to improve your company.

But, perhaps you are struggling with how, where and when to survey your customers.

The best way to solve that problem is to survey them where they are. This might be a pop-up survey on your website at the right time in the customer journey, it might be a post-purchase email or a link on the checkout page. Perhaps it’s a text with a link included.

With more options than ever before, you can meet your customers needs and your own by surveying them where they are.

Increasing your response rate gives you a clearer picture for managing and improving your customer service while at the same time improving retention and raising profit levels. 

Surveys help you make the best decisions for your business. Are you ready to get started with your free Survey Town trial? Start with your free account today, and you can upgrade at any time.

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