One In Five Customers Stop Doing Business With You Because Of Your Survey

If your organization sends out surveys, used to send out surveys or plans to send out surveys, then you should read this article.

Some customers refuse to fill out customer satisfaction surveys. Their excuses range from the surveys being too long or too frequent to, well, pointless, because the customers feel that their opinions are not valued. Others are willing to fill out a survey, but you have to do it right. Almost one in five (19%) customers have stopped doing business with a company because its survey was too long.

In our annual customer experience (CX) research (sponsored by RingCentral), we asked more than 1,000 U.S. consumers their opinions on satisfaction surveys. Here are some of the more compelling findings about customers’ willingness to complete them (or not):

· Most people are willing to complete a satisfaction survey under the right circumstances. Only 14% said they rarely filled out surveys, and just 4% said never.

· As mentioned above, surveys that are too long could get nearly 20% of your customers to stop doing business with you—and the odds of getting a long survey filled out aren’t good either. Almost seven out of 10 customers (67%) won’t complete long surveys.

· If you want to lose customers, send them lots of surveys. While “too many” is subjective, 23% of customers said they stopped doing business with a company because it kept sending too many surveys.

· If the experience is good, you have a better chance of getting a completed survey. In other words, good service begets completed surveys—at least 74% of the time.

· If the experience is bad, 42% of customers said they choose not to complete a survey to avoid more interactions with the company or brand.

· Timing is important. You don’t want to wait a week to send a survey. If you send the survey shortly following a purchase or interaction, 84% said they would be more likely to complete the survey.

In addition to the above, we drilled down a little more to understand why some customers won’t complete surveys. One of the main reasons customers are inclined to not complete a survey is that they don’t believe their feedback and opinions are valued. If you ask for a customer’s phone number or email address and they give it to you, it’s important to follow up. At a minimum, an automated acknowledgment lets customers know their feedback was received. At best, a personalized follow-up shows appreciation and that you are “listening.” Consider the following:

· After completing a survey, 72% said they don’t ever hear back from the company.

· Feedback is a gift, but many companies don’t acknowledge that gift. Seven out of 10 customers (71%) assume the company won’t make changes based on their feedback. Once again, no acknowledgment taints the survey experience. Even worse, 37% believe their feedback is not taken seriously.

Surveys can have at least two results. Done right, they give you the insights you need to move your business forward. But, if you get it wrong, you could lose more than just valuable feedback. You could lose customers.

If you want your surveys to strengthen customer relationships instead of straining them, think of them as part of the customer experience. Keep them short, send them quickly and make them count. As you move forward, consider not only how you ask questions but also how you acknowledge and act on the answers. Every survey is a chance to show customers how much you value their input and their business. Surveys are more than a way to get feedback. They can promote positive engagement, build better relationships and create customer loyalty.