TECHmarc Labs’ founder Lisa Masiello said “Happy customers are your biggest advocates and can become your most successful sales team”.
Good customer service goes hand-in-hand with sales and profits: 70% of Americans are willing tospend an average of 13% more with companies that provide excellent customer service, but 25% percent of customers willdefect after just one bad experience.
So, it’s no wonder that businesses are turning to customer service surveys to make sure their customers are happy.
What is a customer service survey?
A customer service survey is more than aquestionnaire. It’s a useful method for listening to your customers, to understand if they’re happy or not with your brand, product or services.
When you analyse the results, you can use this customer data to drive better business decisions that ultimately impact the overall customer experience.
These surveys are usually made up of a selection of open-ended questions that encourage detail, and can becreated as online surveysto ensure responses from a geographically wide net of customers across the world.
Learn about Qualtrics Customer Survey Software
Why are customer surveysimportantfor business ROI?
They help you to protect your revenue
Your customer service and overall customer experience can significantly impact your brand’s success. Our research has found that80%of customers said they have switched brands because of poor customer experience, with 43% of respondents saying that they were at least somewhat likely to switch brands after only a single negative customer service interaction. Poor customer service was the most cited reason for switching, meaning that gathering data on experiences through customer surveys is a vital part of ensuring your revenue is protected.
They help you build your revenue
In our research into global consumer trends, we found that customers who rate a customer experience 5/5 stars are more than twice as likely to buy again, with80% of satisfied consumerslikely to spend more. Understanding what makes a great customer service experience and what doesn’t from a customer’s own mouth allows you to make improvements that deliver better experiences, helping you to encourage greater spending.
They help you to continuously learn
Hearing directly from customersabout how your product or service can be improved is gold-dust. You get several ways to gain more sales from the people you want to target. Or they may point out improvement areas, which can help overcome wider customer challenges to purchasing. Either way, you gain valuable information that can help you continuously learn, and improve.
They help you to prove that a reciprocal relationship is important to you
Loyal customers are looking for signs that brands are willing to improve, and customer feedback surveys are one way of proving this. In our research, we found that58%of respondents felt it was very or extremely important that a company follow up for more info or to fix their issue. Closing the loop means not only fixing an issue, but asking about the experience and taking action to improve.
They help you keep an eye on trends
Customer surveys can be used in a flexible way to keep an eye on the market and your current customers’ views. They’re a simple way to gather valuable feedback that is relevant to your specific customer base. You could use one tocarry out market researchat times when you need to know what your customers are experiencing, or what challenges they face. Alternatively customer surveys can be used periodically to check in for customer feedback and improvement ideas. By keeping on top of trends, you can better meet and exceedcustomer expectations.
They help you to build your brand image
When you ask about what a customer thinks, you are perceived as caring about your customer’s experience, and the continued improvement in your product or service quality. Both perceptions help yourbrand imageand lead to customers experiencing positive feelings towards you. It helps to create a relationship with the consumer, andhumanises the brand. With60% of consumerswilling to buy more if they felt cared for by a brand, it’s worthwhile to reach out.
Examples of customer service survey questions
There are many types of surveys and customer feedback questions you can ask to get a pulse on yourcustomer service, so it’s important to define your goals beforecreating your survey.
5 of the best types of customer servicesurvey questionsare:
1. Agent-specific survey questions
The internal employees, or agents, that your customer interacts with acrosstheir customer journeycan create a positive or negative experience. Asking agent-specific questions is important to see where internal agents are meeting your company’s customer commitment. If you uncover specific improvement points,trainand reward your employees to take action on this feedback and boost morale.
Examples of agent-specific survey questions
- Based on your recent interaction regarding (insert incident), howsatisfied or dissatisfiedwere you with our customer support team member?
- How courteous or uncourteous would you say our customer service team member was?
- How knowledgeable or unknowledgeable would you say our service team member was?
- How effective or ineffective would you say the service team member’s communication was?
- Did you feel confident in your agent’s ability to help you?
- How much did you feel our service member wanted to assist you?
- What can our employees do to get a 10/10 service score?
- Did the agent handling your issue show empathy toward your situation?
2. Channel-specific survey questions
Include channel-specific questions on a customer survey to assess which customer support channels are the most effective, and which channels need to be revised.
Your goal might be to have customers’ questions answered on the first attempt for a positive experience. The questions you ask will help you identify positive patterns or gaps in knowledge.
Examples of channel specific survey questions:
- Was this your first interaction with the [name of channel]?
- Would you use this channel again, based on your experience today?
- Were you able to locate what you were looking for on the channel?
- What other channels have you used in the past?
- Which specific channels do you like to use? (Customers can choose from options like live chat, call center, mobile app, etc).
- How could we improve [name of channel], in your opinion?
3. Customer Effort Score (CES) survey questions
Customer effort score (CES) survey questions understand how much effort the customer exerted to get their questions answered. The idea is that customers are more loyal to a product or service that is easier to use. CES surveys can be used immediately after interactions orspecific touchpoints, like a product purchase or an interaction with customer service.
With the quantitative and qualitative data you gather, you can set goals, measure your performance over time, and see where you need to improve. The answers can tell you if a customer situation has been resolved, or if you need to take action toclose the feedback loop fast. They can also help you understand whereyou stand among the competition.
Examples of questions on customer effort
- On a scale of ‘very easy’ to ‘very difficult’, how easy was it to interact with [company name]? What made your experience like that?
- Were you able to accomplish your goal today?
- If you needed to interact with an agent to accomplish your goal, did the agent fulfil your expectations?
- Did the service agent contact you to let you know your issue had been resolved?
- Is there anything else you’d like to share that could make your experience better?
4. Customer satisfaction survey (CSAT) questions
Customer satisfaction (CSAT) surveys are used to understand your customer’s satisfaction levels with your organisation’s products, services, or experiences.
The questions can help understand your customer needs and understand problems with your products and/or services. A customer satisfaction score is a key metric when evaluating your performance with your customers. Continually collecting customer satisfaction score data can be helpful in understanding what you’re doing right for satisfied customers.
Rating scales are used to measure changes over time, and gain a deeper understanding of whether your business is meeting thecustomer’s expectations. Segmenting your satisfied customers and unhappy customers by creating customer satisfaction surveys helps you to spot trends and reasons behind a particular customer satisfaction score.
Examples of questions used in customer satisfaction surveys
- Overall, how satisfied were you with [company name or brand]?
- How often do you typically use our products or services? (A ‘Daily’ to ‘Do not use’ scale works best here)
- Based on your recent purchases, please rate your satisfaction with [a service or product attribute, like its value, purchase options, onboarding experience, etc]
- How would you rate your overall satisfaction with the [product/service] you received? (A Likert scale question between 1-5, with 5 being ‘highly satisfied’ and 1 being ‘highly unsatisfied’, works best here).
- How does the product or service help you achieve your goal?
5. Net Promoter Score (NPS) survey questions
TheNet Promoter Score(NPS) survey question measures customer perception based on one simple question (below). It then provides customers with a chance to respond using a Likert scale from 0-10.
The beauty of a Net Promoter Score is that it requires only a simple question, andit’s simple to calculate your final NPS scorefrom the results; by subtracting the percentage ofdetractors(people who responded with score between 0-6) from the percentage of promoters (people who responded with scores of 9 or 10). You want the final score to be as close to 100 as possible.
Long-term, this question can help you monitor positive change by measuring when detractors become promoters, which indicates that more of your customers have a higher appreciation for your brand.
Example of a recommendation-based question
- How likely is it that you would recommend [Organisation X/Product Y] to a friend or colleague?
- How likely is it that you would recommend our customer service to a friend or colleague?
