In the profession I am, I often interact with brands much more than the average Customer would.
Frequently, I find myself reaching out to an organization simply to offer them feedback, not necessarily because I need help. Usually, it’s after I’ve had an interaction in which I have needed help that I’m moved to ping them just to give them some of my thoughts.
After all, I often think that if you’re (as a brand) not willing to hear people who are directly offering you feedback (rather than simply responding to a survey you’ve sent out for your own purposes), why are you ever bothering with “VoC” anyway. So, sure, I’ll reach out to a brand and give them some thoughts on how their processes are impacting their Customers.
My husband laughs at this, seeing me as Grandpa Simpson outside yelling at clouds, or some Karen demanding to ‘speak with a supervisor.’ But in reality, it’s partly a professional responsibility, and in fact, an obligation… most Customers won’t really go out of their way to offer feedback figuring (likely very justifiably so) that it’ll simply fall on deaf ears. Again, you’ll say that your Customers’ feedback “is important to us!” But do you actually walk that talk?
Okay, in fairness, I have the added incentive of the fantasy of some company replying to me with, “Wow, Z. That’s incredible insight. I don’t suppose you’d like to take us on as a client to help us out with improvements to our operations and systems with the goal of improving our Brand Alignment?” I’m still dying for that day to roll in. And I’ll make sure to get back to you about it if it does.
But often even I, someone who feels a professional obligation to help brands out—if only as a price I’m to pay to karma and the Universe as a whole—sometime recognize the futility of the gesture.
When I consider the average Customer, though…someone who doesn’t, you know, do this for a living…I think: Do they even bother? Sure, I imagine they relish the opportunity to give a brand zero stars after a terrible encounter, and follow it up with a piece of their mind. And I know plenty of folks who are downright eloquent in the online reviews when they are pissed off. But would any of them, out of a sense of generosity (and, sometimes, for that matter, a genuine affection for the brand in the hopes of helping them out) contact them and recommend how they could improve? I don’t mean complain. I mean actually offer thoughts. Often I’ll go out of my way to do so when I have a particular long-term emotional tie to a brand.
When brands blithely say that “Your feedback is valuable to us,” but then do nothing with it, who would invest the time and effort it takes to actually offer it? Even if asked?
Does your brand actually welcome feedback? I don’t mean, do you have mechanisms to receive and collect it. I mean, do you demonstrate that eagerness by taking action when you’re given this invaluable gift of reflection?
And…do you ever lament a dearth of feedback? Perhaps you’d prefer a higher response rate to your surveys, but maybe you just want more insight. Either way, if you want to encourage more feedback from your Customers, the best way to demonstrate its value to you is to actually use it and make changes based on what you’ve learned.
