Believe it or not, some of your most valuable customers might be the folks who spurned your brand or service and ran instead to the arms of a competitor. Sound crazy? In the past, maybe so. Research traditionally required teams of people, months of process and tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Today, though online survey sites and social media are opening up troves of invaluable insight into what makes customers and potential customers tick — especially in relation to whatever it is your selling or offering. Just as important, a well-designed, brand-coherent survey can be a whole lot less interruptive than traditional survey techniques. Done right, it can even be fun and enjoyable, a subtle way to emphasize your brand’s personality or points of difference.
For example, we’re partnering with online survey resources like Survey Monkey to open up veritable gold mines of information for clients like you. Survey Monkey provides the technical infrastructure and incredible reach necessary to launch a smart, effective survey. For our part, Ulrich | MaHarry helps design the content, tone and graphic look of the survey. Together, we make the customer survey experience as fun and enjoyable (and brief) as possible, while also ensuring accurate and timely results.
If you go it alone.
If you’re in the market for insights into why folks love (or don’t love) your brand, drop us a line. If you want to go it alone, make sure you connect with a credible resource. As with most fast-growing internet disciplines, there are plenty of shady outfits brimming with promises, offers and deals that are literally too good to be true. We’re fans of Survey Monkey, as we mentioned, but you can check in with the Marketing Research Association, a credible outfit that’s been around for six decades, to review its member roster.
When it comes to designing a survey, you’ll be naturally tempted to pick your high value, high frequency customer. But don’t stop there! Take our advice, as well the guidance of experts like Tweaky’s Julie Gozali, and be sure to capture insights from the four customer groups you need to be talking with:
- High spending customers: Why do they buy so frequently? How did they find you? How does your brand or service benefit them most?
- Lost customers: Why did they reject you? What could you have done differently? What features or benefits do you lack? What did they prefer your competitor? How many friends and peers favor your brand? Your competitors’ brands?
- New customers: How did they find you? Why did they choose you? How much time or consideration did they invest in choosing you?
- Refund customers: Why do they want a refund? How did you let them down? Are they switching to a competitor? Which one?
For a deeper look into survey design, be sure to read Julie Gozali’s post. QuestionPro has a useful guide, as well.