Listening To Your Customers

Do you hear what your customers are saying? Most small business owners probably attempt to do this, but we probably go about it the wrong way. Here are some tips from "Are You Really Listening to Your Customers?" from the SCORE Small Business Blog.

Conduct online surveys. Most people prefer to leave feedback online, so this is a great place to start. Keep your surveys short and to the point.

Call them. To delve deeper than the online survey, pick up the phone to chat with customers. If you're a one-man shop, you might consider calling one or two customers a month, starting with the most frequent. Have a two or three question list and be mindful of their time. Perhaps offer the customer a discount on their next purchase or service as a thank-you.

Do something about it. When you get feedback--either positive or negative--acknowledge it and then use it to improve your business. It does you no good to learn something about your business and then to let that information languish.

These are few simple ways to really listen to your customers. What are some things you do to get customer feedback?

Until next time,

Sarah