Feedback is part our everyday life, from parents, school, sports/fitness, through to 360 degree appraisals at work. Why then do many companies seem to be afraid of receiving feedback from their most valuable resources – customers? - Reasons behind the “Fear of Feedback”, - Examples of best practice – world class companies doing it right - Using Net Promoter Score® as a measurement tool - Practical ways to deal with positive, negative comments, as well as customer suggestions - Automated processes to help close the loop: strategic and tactical - Feedback on the feedback – examples of how to get back to customers. You can also view the webinar: http://wp.me/pzGbP-x8

1. “Fear of Feedback”
Webinar 29 June 2011
Adam Dorrell Robert Kerner,
CEO Directness Director, Business Development
Adam.dorrell@directness.net CustomerGauge/Directness
July 6, 2011
rob.kerner@directness.net

2. Agenda
• Reasons behind the “Fear of Feedback”,
• Examples of best practice – world class companies doing it right
• Using Net Promoter Score® as a measurement tool
• Practical ways to deal with positive, negative comments, as well as
customer suggestions
• Automated processes to help close the loop: strategic and tactical
• Feedback on the feedback – examples of how to get back to
customers
• Questions

3. What we do: Directness
B2b
customers
• We provide software-as-a-service solutions to help
companies add strong metrics to marketing activities Consumers
– CustomerGauge: Automatically measure, understand
and analyse customer sentiment, using Net Promoter
Score®. Identify and grow your most loyal customers.
– Recommendi: A free tool to help start your Net
Promoter projects
• Trusted by global organisations
– +1 million end-customers measured in 2011 so far
• Company background: hi-tech marketing: Sony, Dell,
Compaq, HP, KPN etc
– Privately funded, based Amsterdam, NL
Selected Clients

4. Feedback – what’s it all about?
• Feedback is something we get all
through life
– School, parents, sports
– 360s at work
• What do we do with it?
– Negative or positive – how to react
• Act on it? Reject it?
• Information
• Choices
• Accept, analyse positively, use for
future decision making (Joseph
Folkman)
• Feedback is about opportunity
• Sometimes it gets worse as you try
to improve…

5. So why the fear?
• Is there a fear?
• No one likes to hear bad news
• Common reactions:
– “It’s not my fault” / Defensive
– “It takes time to fix issues” / Extra
work
– “It’s the way we always do it” /
“Business as usual” stance
– “We always get complaints” /
Complaints
– “I’d like to help, but I can’t…” /
frustration with internal issues
– Legacy - Old memories
• Other reasons
i had to wait for an hour to
– Technically or logistically difficult check-in, because everyone in
the line in froNT of me WAS
– Long surveys turn off customers FOrCED TO PAY FOR THEIR $£@*&$
% HOLD LUGGAGE!
and employees

6. Simple concept:
“How was it for you?”

7. Who is embracing feedback?
• Many companies survey:
– Examples: Avis, Europcar, BA,
Hilton
– Corporate initiative or cultural norm?
• Favourite examples of companies
using feedback
– USAA – changing products as a
result of feedback
– Lego: closely working with
customers, designing product lines
– Philips: packaging, delivery
– Bavaria Film: changing company
culture
– Apple Stores: “feedback as a gift.”

8. A good template for feedback
• Net Promoter® Score:
– Simple 0 – 10 scale: “Would you recommend?”
– Feedback “Why? Or Why not?”
• Open-source standard: Becoming a worldwide standard
• Helps with a “Corporate language”
– Detractors, promoters
– Grows a culture of feedback
http://customergauge.com/2007/05/2-minute-guide-to-the-net-promoter-score/
Net Promoter, NPS, and Net Promoter Score are trademarks of Satmetrix Systems, Inc., Bain & Company, and Fred Reichheld.

9. Make the survey short!
• Respect the customer’s
time
• Keep it short
• Use your CRM system to
help you segment
customers beforehand
– Customers hate telling you
information you already
know.
• Aim for a high response: 25
– 50% of customers

10. Learning:
Fast Response / Empowerment
• Learnings from CE Company A:
– Fast responses are more impressive than
delayed perfect fixes The agent that I spoke to at the call
centre was friendly, professional
– Pro-active communication within 24 hours and helpful and talked me through
(one business day) of customer response various options to try to resolve this.
Unfortunately the problem could not
– Empowering agents to fix issues is less be fixed at this time but the agent
expensive than complex escalations transferred me to the internet
customer service who quickly
– Generally, agents “do the right thing” if trusted: arranged for a replacement phone
and for collection of the faulty one.
“what can I do to make it right for you right This was delivered within the
now?” agreed time frame and the delivery
driver was kind enough to wait for
• Training issues, guidelines me to check the contents of the box
(as advised by the XXXXXXX
• Agents all tracked on NPS, goodwill agent) which was appreciated….,
I'm happy to say that I have
• Relevant to your company: received an excellent customer
service experience regarding this
– Push responsibility down the chain issue with the faulty phone.
(42095938)

11. Acting on Comments
• Best practices:
• Get regular feedback
so you can manage it:
Daily/weekly is best!
• Classify comments to
help prioritise issues
• GET COMMENts to the
right people
• Act on customer
feedback – within 24
hours
Problems! Suggestions Praise
Service issues Service Testimonials
Logistics Logistics Improvements
Returns etc
FINANCE
WEB

12. Learning:
Spread the load of “fire-fighting”
• Key learnings from CE Company A:
– Improvement happens when everyone is
involved.
– Breakdown the NPS number by department
– Ensure departments deal with relevant issues
– Get comments/issues to right people
– Team effort to clear issues
• Relevant to your company
– Retail: Push comments out to stores, managers
to action
– Call-centres: Assign comments to a group:
“hopper”. Track progress

13. Best Practice: Automatically Close the loop
• Make sure you
respect the
customers time
• Put in place
systems to help
you close the loop
• Keep your
promises to
customers “we’ll
get back to you”

14. Segmenting Customers by NPS
Detractors cost
money
Promoters are profitable

15. Learning:
Segmentation
• Learnings from CE Company B (limited call
centre resource)
– Not all customers are the same: 7% customers
drive 50% revenue.
– Identify key customers early in process – On some current XXXXX blackberry
especially retention customers deals, for the same monthly contract
that i pay, customers receive 200
– Discounts not needed, but taking them minutes, so why can't i receive the
seriously is. same deal. i have been a XXXXXXX
customer for 13 years and have
• Find ways to delight them, ask opinions never ever changed to another
supplier, so come on reward the
• VIP line in call-centre people that remain loyal year after
• “Thank you for your business” letters year.... 2766437
– Empower senior agents (reward)
It took over a week to effect delivery
– SWAT team for VIP issues (rescue) to a retail store and communication
was not up to the usual XXXXXX
• Relevant to your company: standard. I feel that XXXXXXX have
been cutting corners recently and as a
– Organise internally loyal (10 years) customer, I expect
much better. 2799363.
– Tag customers (or use CustomerGauge)

16. Quantify the feedback
• Organise feedback by
“tagging” it
• Understand the weight
of issues by value,
impact on NPS, number
of customers
• Can be done in a
spreadsheet
• Or automated with tools
like CustomerGauge

17. Publish the good news
• Use customer testimonials on external sites
• Use internally
• Thank customers – gets them involved!

18. Something to aim for…
• USAA
insurance/bank
• NPS 87
• 20 testimonials
a month
– 300+ on website
*Source: http://www.bizjournals.com/sanantonio/news/2011/02/21/usaa-named-a-leader-in-customer.html#ixzz1Fdd7haXR

19. Lessons: Fear of feedback
1. Communicate the program – Opportunities for
company to get better
– Learn from customer, motivates staff
2. Fast is better – quick fix, acknowledgements
– Respond in 24 hours
3. Proactive actions impresses customers
– better planning time for you and call centre
4. Segment to prioritise and identify important
issues
– Use NPS to benchmark
How did we do?
5. It’s not extra work – customers will call in anyway
– Or worse, they defect. recy.me/a1p8
http://
– Automation is key to productivity gains
6. Thank customers, and go public
– Actually make some improvements then tell them!
• Resources: info@directness.net