“We don’t want to provoke complaints. It damages our image!”
This sentence comes up more often than you might think. Companies are afraid to actively ask their customers for negative feedback. Better not to wake sleeping dogs, right?
Wrong.
An online store for sporting goods sends out a review email after every purchase. But the wording is so optimistic that only positive responses are expected: “How satisfied are you with your new equipment?”
Customers obediently give 4-5 stars, some write “Everything is great!” The company is happy. At the same time, however, silent returns and customers who simply don’t come back are piling up. Why?
What’s going wrong here?
The dissatisfied customers didn’t even get the chance to express their real problems. The question was too superficial and too positively worded. Those who are really frustrated (e.g., because the sizes are wrong or the delivery took too long) simply don’t respond. Or they give a mediocre rating without comment.
The result: the problems don’t go away, they just become invisible. And that’s much more dangerous for your image than an honest complaint.
The truth about complaints:
Complaints are not damaging to your image, they are an opportunity!
When a customer complains, they are showing you exactly where you can improve. They are investing their time to help you. And best of all, studies show that customers whose complaints are taken seriously and resolved are often more loyal than customers who have never had a problem.
The real damage to your image occurs when customers don’t vent their complaints to YOU, but in Google reviews, on social media, or among their friends. Then you no longer have any control and no chance to limit the damage.
How can you do better?
Actively ask what isn’t going well. Give your customers a safe space to be honest. And show them that you take their criticism seriously and are working on it.
At TEMA-Q, we have over 35 years of experience in getting honest customer reviews (even when there have been unpleasant experiences). Our CX studies are designed to uncover the real problems so you can solve them before they damage your image.
If you want to know what your customers really think (even what they wouldn’t say on their own), let’s talk!
Take a look at our LinkedIn profile at https://www.linkedin.com/company/tema-q/ to gain exciting insights into the world of customer and employee experience in the future.
If you have any questions about these or other topics, or would like a live demo version of ClaralytiX via video conference, click here to make an appointment or contact us.