How Real Brands Conduct Customer Satisfaction Surveys

The single most important thing to remember about any enterprise is that there are no results inside its walls. The result of a business is a satisfied customer.

Peter Drucker

Have you ever felt frustrated by poor customer service? We’ve all been there – waiting on hold forever just to talk to someone who can’t solve our problem. Those experiences leave us feeling let down and questioning if we made the right choice.

As a business owner, keeping customers happy should be a top priority. But in today’s competitive market, is good service enough? A recent Forbes survey of over 1,000 customers might surprise you. When asked whether they would pay more for excellent customer service, 58% answered “yes.” That number stayed consistent even when the question had a different phrasing.

Customers are willing to reward companies that go above and beyond. But how do you know what you’re delivering? That’s where customer satisfaction surveys come in. Gathering direct feedback is the only way to truly understand your customers’ experiences and pinpoint areas for improvement.

A customer satisfaction survey is a way for businesses to get customer feedback. Companies use surveys to determine what people think about their products or services, their brands, and how they help customers. You can learn what you are doing well and where to improve by asking customers questions.

In this article, we’ll break down how top brands leverage customer satisfaction surveys to take their service to the next level. Whether you’re a small startup or a large corporation, the strategies inside will help keep customers coming back – and even pay more. 

Examples of Real Brands Customer Satisfaction Surveys

Don’t assume that your popularity as a brand will protect you from the consequences of poor customer experiences. You could lose a significant portion of your customers almost instantly. Research shows that in the U.S., even loyal customers will stop doing business with a company they love after multiple harmful interactions – 59% will leave. But 17% said they would walk away after just one bad experience.

Similarly, 32% of customers reported they would permanently end their relationship with a brand due to one single unsatisfactory encounter. The numbers are even higher in Latin America, where 49% of people say they would stop supporting a brand forever following one bad interaction. This reality is why customer satisfaction surveys are so important. By learning how established companies conduct surveys to gather feedback, you can gain valuable insights into improving customer service. 

Airbnb

Airbnb is a company that allows people to book accommodations like private homes and apartments online. Their main customers are travelers looking for affordable lodging options.

There are a couple of aspects of Airbnb’s customer satisfaction surveys that are effective. First, by sending the survey link through email invites to past guests, they can guarantee they only hear from real service users. It helps ensure the feedback is relevant.

Also, when displaying the survey link, Airbnb uses recognizable brand colors. Branding the button in colors people associate with Airbnb creates a strong call to action. This visual cue likely increases the number of people who click the link to complete the survey. Their branded button design’s strong call to action probably helps improve response rates.

Netflix

With over 200 million subscribers worldwide, Netflix has one of the lowest customer churn rates in the streaming industry, at only around 2% each year. This demonstrates Netflix’s commitment to providing excellent customer service.

Netflix leverages customer data and feedback to improve and personalize the viewer experience continuously. Through its recommendation system, Netflix studies users’ watching habits, ratings, and preferences to suggest new content tailored to their tastes. This level of personalization would not be possible without a deep understanding of customers gained over many years of collecting feedback and analyzing viewing patterns.

In addition, Netflix periodically surveys users better to understand behaviors, preferences, and opportunities for enhancement. While it dominates the market, Netflix recognizes the need to stay innovative by soliciting granular feedback from subscribers. It allows Netflix to identify subtle trends and adjustments that keep the platform fresh and engaging for its massive audience.

Slack

While many brands see satisfaction surveys as a checkbox, Slack has transformed feedback into a competitive secret weapon. They prove that understanding users means empowering their voices at every turn.

Slack gathers insights directly from its large user base. Customer input is foundational to their process. Users can offer suggestions within the app and can be confident that leaders will receive their feedback. Co-founders personally review all submissions and provide supportive responses.

When surveying customers, Slack keeps communications brief yet compelling. Invitations note the survey’s exclusivity, implying recipients offer valuable perspectives. A short completion time respects participants, increasing cooperation.

Slack also streamlines the process. A prominent call-to-action button optimizes engagement. The clean, impactful design focuses users on purpose – helping Slack elevate its product.

Slack cultivated trust and leadership by authentically prioritizing what matters most to clients. Their approach demonstrates how brands prosper when community and constant learning blend seamlessly. Listening with care and acting on understood needs cements loyal relationships that allow both parties to thrive.

Standard Practices in Conducting Surveys

There are several standard practices to ensure the effectiveness and reliability of the data collected. Here are some key considerations:

What Are Common Types of Questions You Can Ask?

You can ask various questions depending on the information or interaction you’re seeking. Here are some common types of questions:

Demographic Questions

Customer demographic questions can help provide helpful context for understanding survey responses. When asking for customer information, respect privacy and ensure participation is optional. Some demographically relevant questions to consider include:

• What industry does your company operate in?
• What is your job role or position at the company?
• Approximately how many employees does your company have?
• In what country is your company headquartered?
• Approximately how many locations does your company have worldwide, if applicable?
• How did you first learn about our company or services?
• In general terms, what goals do you aim to support by using our products and services?
• If relevant to your business model, what type of subscription or renewal schedule works best for your company: monthly, annual, quarterly, etc.?

Product Usage Questions

Understanding product usage is critical to ensuring customer success. Feedback in this area can provide insights to improve the customer experience. Some product-related questions to consider include:

• Approximately how long have you been using our product/service?
• Before using us, what other options did you consider and why?
• How often do you utilize our product/service features in a typical month?
• In your experience, does our product/service help support your business or work goals? If so, how?
• Which aspects of our product/service functionality do you find most useful?
• Are there any areas of the product/service experience that we could improve? If so, how?
• If you could suggest one new feature, what would it be, and why would it be beneficial?
• Overall, how would you rate your satisfaction with our product/service so far?
• How likely would you recommend our product/service to a colleague?

Customer Support Feedback Questions

Gaining insight into support experiences presents opportunities for improvement. When requesting feedback from customers, ensure that the tone encourages constructive dialogue. Some questions to consider:

• Thinking back to your most recent customer support interaction, how would you rate the experience overall?
• Did you feel the support representative was able to help you promptly?
• In your experience, did the support representative demonstrate knowledge to understand and address your needs?
• Was the issue successfully resolved to your satisfaction during this contact?
• Did you feel the support representative treated you helpfully, politely, and respectfully?
• Have you interacted with our support chat/website? Was it easy to find the information or assistance needed?
• What else, if anything, could we do to enhance your future support experiences? Your suggestions allow us to improve support for all customers continuously.

Platforms Used for Distribution of Surveys

Let us look at some great platforms you can leverage to distribute your customer satisfaction survey:

Chisel

Chisel offers a powerful yet intuitive solution for distributing surveys that helps product teams understand customer needs and gather valuable feedback.

As any product manager knows, obtaining valuable customer insights is crucial but can be challenging with limited time and resources. Traditional survey methods are often inefficient, while various tools don’t integrate seamlessly. This is where Chisel shines through its unified Product Discovery pillar.

Within the Chisel platform, teams can easily design customized surveys and questionnaires targeted to their specific audience. Whether existing users, potential customers, or other stakeholders, Chisel streamlines the data collection process, ensuring that it captures valuable voices from existing users, potential customers, or other stakeholders.

Insights are immediately captured and connected to the relevant features or initiatives for quick action.

Moreover, Chisel enables building multiple survey types into an appealing interface, such as ratings, comments, and prioritization. It encourages higher participation compared to plain email surveys or online forms. You can analyze responses with helpful charts and views to spot trends and gather a complete picture of what’s important to customers.

Chisel also expands the audience beyond traditional circles by bringing insights from existing customers through native integrations with partners like Salesforce. You uncover new potential by reaching target segments on platforms integrated with Chisel. This 360-degree view of customers fuels the most impactful innovations.

SurveySparrow

SurveySparrow simplifies survey distribution with its intuitive interface, diverse question types, and advanced features. The platform’s robust reporting and integration capabilities enhance data analysis, while customizable surveys adapt to various professional contexts. 

Its responsive design ensures optimal user experience on all devices, revolutionizing feedback collection. With SurveySparrow, effortlessly reach a broad audience, transforming the distribution of surveys and gaining insights.

MailChimp

MailChimp facilitates survey distribution with its user-friendly interface and customizable options. This versatile multichannel tool offers a drag-and-drop design, diverse question types, and mobile-first features for visually appealing surveys. 

Real-time analysis provides instant access to valuable data. Distribute surveys across different channels, export results, and integrate seamlessly for efficient survey management. MailChimp streamlines distribution, making gathering insights and driving actionable results easy.

What Is the Ideal Frequency to Conduct Surveys?

The frequency with which you conduct surveys is an important consideration. You want to collect relevant data regularly to track how responses may evolve. However, surveying participants too often risks survey fatigue and low participation rates.

When determining frequency, it’s best to consider the length and type of survey. For shorter questionnaires with 5-10 questions, a monthly or bi-monthly cycle allows for regular inputs while keeping the time commitment minimal. It reduces the burden on respondents.

In contrast, space out surveys with ten or more questions further. A quarterly or biannual frequency is preferable, as it lessens the workload associated with lengthier surveys. Frequent, lengthy questionnaires risk quickly dampening participation due to fatigue.

Another strategy is question rotation, where only a sample of the total questions gets included in each iteration. It maintains interest while spreading questions across multiple touchpoints. It may enable more regular surveying without overburdening participants.

Testing different schedules with a pilot group can provide valuable insight into what frequency drives the best response for a given audience and set of topics. It’s also important to consider how survey cycles align with organizational rhythms like seasonal business fluctuations or program evaluation periods.

Analysis and Utilization of Survey Results

The net promoter score, or NPS, constitutes a crucial metric that brands examine while analyzing survey results. It gauges customers’ likelihood to recommend the brand to others. However, calculating the ROI of customer experience efforts poses a challenge.

More than 62% of businesses struggle to calculate the ROI of their CX efforts. As many as 70% lack awareness of the impact of customer experience (CX) on their bottom line. Additionally, 60% lack knowledge about how much each NPS driver costs them or the potential ROI they could have gained if they had addressed these issues.

Correctly measuring NPS is essential because improving it can help drive revenue growth. 

According to research from CustomerGauge, a tenfold increase in NPS score correlates with a 3.2% increase in upsell revenue. Additional studies have also linked higher NPS to increased financial performance. For example, a 2005 study from the London School of Economics found that a 7% increase in NPS correlates with a 1% increase in overall revenue.

Philips Lighting Group further demonstrated this connection when they correlated fluctuations in NPS at the account level with annual revenue growth and decline. Their research showed that accounts with an increased NPS experienced average revenue growth of 70%. In comparison, those with a declining NPS saw a 24% decrease in revenue.

Clearly, effectively measuring metrics like NPS is crucial for understanding customer satisfaction and its impact on the bottom line. Let’s take a closer look at NPS and what it indicates. A high NPS shows that customers love the product or service.

Additionally, metrics like the customer effort score evaluate how easy or difficult it is for customers to place orders, get support, and more.

Brands don’t just look at the numbers, though. They carefully read through all the comments too to understand the sentiment. Are customers mostly saying positive things or complaining? Analyzing sentiment helps identify problem areas that need fixing. The survey feedback is organized into positive and negative themes so brands know what’s working well and what could use improvement.

Once brands understand the whole picture from the survey data, it’s time to take action. After all, what good is customer feedback if you don’t do anything with it? Implementing changes based on what customers say is so important. 

Brands use survey insights to enhance their products and services by adapting them according to what users want and find challenging. They also look to improve the overall customer experience by addressing complaints and increasing customer satisfaction.

By genuinely listening to customers through surveys and acting on that input, brands can strengthen their offerings, build loyalty, and gain a competitive advantage. A continuous feedback loop leads to stronger customer relationships and long-term growth when done right.

In Chisel, users can link Surveys to audiences segmented using customer attributes. This feature enables gathering more specific feedback from the right customers. Chisel’s reporting feature facilitates sharing survey insights across the organization, ensuring proper visibility and action.

Chisel’s Feedback Portal can publish features gathered from surveys to collect additional feedback. Private customer portals are also useful for obtaining direct feedback from target audiences. Insights captured through surveys can then further get validated.

Chisel AI empowers product managers to accelerate product discovery and feedback collection at scale, from both customers as well as internal team members.

Chisel’s collaborative tools enable the association of survey findings with initiatives/features and the tracking of their implementation status via Releases, Kanban Boards, and custom features. This process closes the loop from feedback collection to real product impacts, helping organizations maximize the utilization of customer survey insights.

Lessons for Your Business

Customer satisfaction surveys are a powerful tool for gathering customer feedback. Still, their actual value lies in how businesses utilize that feedback. By analyzing survey results carefully and taking targeted actions, companies can better understand customers and make improvements that increase satisfaction.

Identify Areas for Improvement

Large brands recognize the significance of customer feedback in driving continuous improvement. They leverage surveys to pinpoint areas requiring attention, prioritize issues, and develop targeted action plans. For instance, Amazon actively identifies weaknesses in its product recommendation algorithms through feedback, dedicating efforts to strengthen those aspects.

Address Negative Feedback Promptly

“Your most unhappy customers are your greatest source of learning.”- Bill Gates

That is why successful companies respond to customer complaints promptly and sincerely, working diligently to resolve issues. They delve into the root causes to prevent recurrence. A notable example is United Airlines, which swiftly improved customer service following a well-publicized incident. Listening to critics and implementing corrective measures helps build trust.

Celebrate Positive Feedback

Acknowledging and celebrating positive survey feedback is crucial for boosting morale. Disney, for example, highlights commendable comments to celebrate staff achievements in maintaining high customer satisfaction. Similarly, Starbucks rewards employees who contribute to excellent customer experiences, fostering a dedicated, customer-focused culture.

Analyze Trends for Insights

Industry leaders like Netflix and McDonald’s go beyond merely collecting survey data. They analyze trends over time to gain insights. Netflix’s longitudinal analysis helps optimize the user experience by revealing evolving needs. McDonald’s segments feedback demographically to cater to unique preferences within subgroups. Understanding changing trends informs informed long-term planning.

Apply the Lessons

Systematically analyzing surveys for actionable insights is essential to enhance your business continually. Identify weaknesses and celebrate successes to motivate teams. Address shortcomings promptly while acknowledging improvements. 

By comparing feedback over time, you can recognize evolving customer expectations. Applying these lessons from industry leaders systematically will undoubtedly contribute to heightened customer satisfaction.

Key Takeaways

While customer feedback provides insight, truly understanding needs requires action. The most successful companies see surveys not as checkboxes but as opportunities to enhance the customer journey. They dig deeper than just likes/dislikes to uncover why. Only then can meaningful improvements be made.

New approaches may be needed if current survey efforts lack depth or impact. Take inspiration from innovative strategies – personalize survey experiences, make participation effortless, and clearly show how input was applied. Demonstrate that we truly value customers’ perspectives. The right process can develop deeper loyalty while proactively addressing minor issues.

Chisel understands this well. Their unified product management platform seamlessly captures feedback, aligns roadmaps, and includes all voices. By integrating discovery, planning, and collaboration tools, Chisel empowers real understanding and innovation that solves customers’ problems. They recognize excellence as continuous, not destination-based.

Click here to learn how Chisel can strengthen perspectives, alignment, and customer-loved delivery. As expectations rise, mediocrity risks loss to competitors prioritizing experience. 

Your brand can stay ahead by continuously learning from and acting on satisfaction surveys. The choice is yours – will you get to know your customers better or risk losing them to a company that will? The time for change is now.