Perhaps no form of market research provides a better return on investment (ROI) than a customer survey. All customer surveys involve several components and we'll lay out all 3 in this post today but before we get started, let's dive into why customer surveys offer such a strong return.
Benefit 1: Low cost
Because you'll be reaching out to your own customers and not buying a list or finding participants to take your survey there are many cost advantages.
Benefit 2: Quick turnaround
Depending on the methodology you choose (online is always faster than phone or mail), you will begin receiving feedback almost immediately. This means you have actionable data right away.
Benefit 3: Quality data
Since you are reaching out to customers who have a prior relationship with your brand, you are likely to obtain a higher response rate than a blinded survey. More responses equals higher reliability.
Using a customer survey offers several benefits to your organization. Now let's cover the 3 components of the process.
Component 1: Customer Survey Set Up
The first component of a customer survey involves setting up the process. You'll have a few choices here. Do you want to conduct the survey one-time or build a regular customer feedback program? Do you want to conduct the survey via email, website, phone, or mail? Do you want to conduct the customer survey in-house or use a third-party customer survey firm?
These are all questions you'll need to answer first. From there you will begin building out your objectives and key questions you want addressed in your customer survey. Create your key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure and build the survey questions around these goals. Make sure your language is unbiased properly worded. Poorly designed surveys will produce unreliable data.
Component 2: Customer Survey Data Collection
Now that the survey is drafted, designed, and finalized, you are ready to collect data. This could involve programming the survey and sending invitations via email to your customers. It may involve posting a link on your website. It could also mean printing, assembling, and mailing customer surveys. Finally it might involve printing out phone numbers or dialing a list through CATI.
You should review the initial data as it comes to ensure quality, question comprehension, and response rate. With a customer survey, case management becomes a priority. As an organization you can use the data immediately to address problems, correct issues, and follow-up with customers in addition to all of the value you receive from your measurements.
Component 3: Customer Survey Reporting
The final component of a customer survey is the analysis and reporting. You have a few options here. This can be compiled into a topline summary report, infographic, or in-depth comprehensive report. The analysis and reporting is where the true value lies with customer surveys. Here you can break the data down by key customer segments: age, gender, income, spend level, types of products or services, etc.
Contact Drive Research
Drive Research is a customer survey company which serves a variety of industries across the country. Our customer survey clients span from New York to California.
Interested in learning more, receiving a quote, or requesting a proposal for your customer survey?
Contact Drive Research at [email protected] or call us at 315-303-2040.