The iconic retail visionary Harry Gordon Selfridge is famously quoted saying “the customer is always right.” While this is a statement worthy of some debate, the bottom line is this – in order to be successful, you have to listen to your customer. They will tell you volumes about how your products and services are measuring up to their expectations. All you have to do is listen.
The evolution of listening to customer feedback has taken us from focus groups, to client comment cards, to phone calls, then guided surveys and has exploded with the mainstream adoption of online data such as reviews, knowledge bases and social media. The tools have certainly changed, but the goal of driving the business towards what the customer wants via actionable insight remains the same.
One of the most insight-rich sources of customer feedback is online communities. Companies like Cisco, SAP, EMC and others have all demonstrated a commitment to serving their customers by building relationships using online communities. Whether interacting with each other, with associates from your organization, or simply leaving product reviews or comments, the customer conversations are real and unguided. They provide tremendous insight on many aspects of your business from product design and quality to store layout. While communities are most known for deflecting customer service calls (and the mega-savings associated with that), they also have the potential to boost marketing efforts, increase product knowledge, increase customer loyalty, and uncover problems you didn’t even know you had.