Customer Satisfaction Surveys
What is a continuing customer worth in your business? Many organizations have calculated the answer and have been surprised! Most business owners and managers recognize that it may take up to ten times the effort to secure a new customer as to please an established one, yet resources are continually targeted toward securing new customers.
In some cases, it takes a downturn in the economy or the loss of a large client before significant resources are directed to current accounts. Nevertheless, the most successful firms have realized the cost/benefit advantages of doing a satisfaction check-up on their key customers, ex-customers, or a sampling of all customers.
Since its inception in 1987, The Qualitative Difference has specialized in customer satisfaction research. Our abilities to unearth the most critical drivers to satisfaction, and our capacity to make practical and actionable recommendations have placed us head-and-shoulders above the competition.
While much of our experience in this realm was for Fortune 500 clients such as AT&T, Weight Watchers International and Chase Manhattan, we found that small and mid-sized companies benefit greatly from this research methodology. We conducted face-to-face or telephone interviews and online surveys for business-to-business firms, and employed online, telephone or mail surveys for companies that sell directly to consumers. The method used in each project is determined by your unique needs, your industry, and your budget.
Our reports have confirmed assumptions of top management, and brought to light new information that needed to be acted upon immediately. For example, in one case our research found that the actions of one employee were putting this manufacturer's largest customer at risk! In another case, guidance about marketing and advertising expenditures was provided based on where their best customers initially learned of their products.
Furthermore, customers are impressed with the professionalism of any firm that conducts research. And, when a satisfaction survey is institutionalized as an annual event, it can be used as a benchmark for departments that have direct contact with the customer. These surveys can also function as the "canary in the mineshaft" apprising management of a problem before the damage becomes too great. Or, they can be used to uncover unmet market needs for new products or services.
Based on our extensive experience with customer satisfaction surveys--and online technologies--a corporate check-up can be provided at surprisingly low cost. Annual surveys can be done for a small additional fee once the first-year's survey is created and administered. Since there are great benefits to using the same questions and survey methodology year after year, fees for subsequent years only include the administration, analysis and reporting�not the initial question creation.