Types of Feedback
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Customer Feedback Management - What to Collect & When To Collect It

Gathering customer feedback management is a powerful strategy we can use to develop our products or services. Here is how to get it and what to do with it.

July 31, 2024
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Customer Feedback Management - What to Collect & When To Collect It


Gathering customer feedback management is a powerful strategy we can use to develop our products or services. Here is how to get it and what to do with it.

Taking our customers for granted is one of the biggest mistakes we can make as a brand.

Not striving to capture the feedback and valuable insights our customers have to share with us is taking our customers for granted.

When we’re looking at ways to manage the growth and success of our business, what we’re really looking at is how to grow our consumer base while keeping as many existing customers content and loyal as possible.

What a customer feedback management strategy does is build us a system that we can use to collect and analyze these valuable insights the customers provide.

In this article, we’ll be uncovering everything you need to know about feedback management systems, the best tools we can use to manage our customer feedback, and how we can use the feedback we’re given to improve the way we manage our business.

What is a Feedback Management System?

Feedback Management System

In simple terms, customer feedback management (CFM) is a process involving the collection and analyzing of feedback. The data we gather from our customers is crucial for informing our decision-making and developing our operational processes.

When we utilize customer feedback in our decision-making, we are making better business decisions. If we can develop a clear understanding of our average customer - their wants, needs, desires, and values - then we can operate our business more effectively. We can adapt our procedures to create a more positive customer experience, develop products that more effectively meet our customer’s needs, and cultivate a culture of shared respect and loyalty between us and our clients.

Types of Customer Feedback

Identifying the different forms in which we receive customer feedback will allow us to better determine what sorts of relevant data we can leech from it.

The main types of feedback are:
  • Positive feedback
  • Constructive feedback
  • Motivational feedback
  • Formal feedback
  • Informal Feedback

Positive feedback in communication relates to the recognition of strength, talents, achievements, advantages, and success. Positive customer feedback can take many forms: good online reviews, recommendations of our business to their friends and family, and continued patronage of our business.


Positive customer feedback


Constructive feedback is any comments or suggestions that ultimately serve to promote success or positive outcomes in any given scenario. When customers give us constructive feedback, that usually means they are invested in our business; they want to see us succeed, and so we should listen to what they have to say. Constructive feedback might not always be positive; in fact, it may tear apart certain segments of our business or elements of our brand. Ultimately, the nature of constructive feedback is to promote positive outcomes - so we should be evaluating the critique we’re given to determine if they have merit.

Constructive feedback comments
Constructive feedback comments

Motivational feedback occurs when you give (or are given) feedback that serves to promote a certain behavior or to build momentum for reaching a desired outcome. For start-up companies, getting motivational feedback from our early supporters and clients can do wonders for our team’s morale. Not only that, but motivational feedback can be used to promote our brand and can be featured in our advertising.


Motivational feedback


Formal feedback is a category of constructive feedback that occurs when documentation, lengthy project overview, or surveying is utilized for the purposes of giving advice or critique. When we hire third parties to review our business processes or gather consumer data for us, we are given formal feedback in the form of lengthy documentation; these reviews often come with concrete analysis already prepared for us, ready to incorporate into our as changes into our product or service.

Formal feedback


Informal feedback is feedback that is given in a spontaneous and unrefined manner.

Companies receive informal feedback constantly - typically in the form of social media posts. Customers use platforms like Twitter to air their grievances with a company in a public setting; platforms like Instagram, conversely, are used to promote businesses and products.

Informal feedback


When you’re gathering data from your audiences, make sure you’re identifying the type of feedback being given.

For a deeper look at how we can categorize our customer feedback, click here.

What are some of the best ways to get Feedback?

The two primary ways we gather customer feedback: polls, and surveying.

A poll is an information gathering tool that allows us to measure consumer opinion. Polling can be used to capture data on a wide variety of topics that pertain to business owners: customer satisfaction, consumer sentiment, and changes in purchasing habits or trends. Conducting polls is a very common and cost-effective way that businesses can gather information from their consumers.

Surveying is the collection and analysis of experiences and opinions from a target audience. Market researchers utilize surveys to gather consumer opinion on everything from consumer sentiment to purchasing habits; this data can then be used to create intimate consumer profiles that marketers can use to better assess their customer’s needs and values.

Polls are often very easy to set up, and can be run very cheaply. There are a variety of platforms in which polling can be conducted for no cost; for example, most major social media platforms have polling software built into their user interface. This kind of polling is very popular with brands, who want to engage with their audiences frequently.

Digital surveying not only allows us to reach our target markets more effectively and at a lower cost than traditional surveying methods - the results we gather can be viewed in real-time, and immediately incorporated into our designs.

There exist a number of different types of surveying questions that we can utilize to uncover important data from our target audiences. If we have a firm understanding of what types of questions are at our disposal, we will be better prepared to extract the insight we need from our research analysis.

We can design questions to gather a wide array of feedback on any number of topics. Some of the most common research surveying types include:
  • Market Surveys
  • Customer Experience Surveys
  • Brand Surveys
  • Product Surveys

What can Customer Feedback Management do for us?

Digital surveying allows us to quickly and affordably engage with our customer audiences on a regular basis. The metrics we gather from analyzing consumer research survey data can be used to design new, effective business solutions and product developments.

Customer feedback management systems allow us to build our research methods around our objectives. We can think of CFM as a way of logically organizing the steps we take and the processes we perform when we are designing a research campaign.

One of the key elements of any functional CFM strategy is designing surveys that take into consideration the needs and values of your target audience. Keeping your focus on your key customers - those who are most responsible for the success of your business - can allow you to foment a profitable long-term business strategy. It is vital that we are surveying these key audiences of ours in order to capture more of their business.

One of the ways we evaluate the continued success of our business is through measuring our net promoter score. A net promoter score allows us to take a look at how likely our customers are to recommend our business to their friends, family, or other associates. A high net promoter score indicates high levels of customer satisfaction; the higher our score, the more likely our customers are to give our business a good review.

Another way CFM strategy can manifest itself into positive business solutions is through the establishment of a Voice of the Customer or VOC program. A VOC program allows us to collect customer feedback and analyze it readily, so that we may constantly be incorporating the feedback we receive into our designs. This program not only organizes our data more efficiently - it increases our ability to process large volumes of feedback.

Ultimately, there are numerous reasons why we could benefit from incorporating a customer feedback management system into the ways we manage our businesses, gather data, and even the way we cultivate our online following and our audiences.

What are the best Customer Feedback Management tools?

The best customer feedback management tools are the ones that allow us to design and submit surveys so that we may then analyze our data and turn it into actionable, customer centric business solutions. There are a variety of digital surveying solutions and CFM tools out there - but which ones are going to help us to get the information we need that also work for our budget?

Here are just a few of the tools researchers should consider investing in when developing their customer feedback management system:
Survey legend logo

SurveyLegend

SurveyLegend is a powerful digital research tool with many intuitive features that make it an appealing product for marketers looking to improve the quality of the data they receive. Utilizing drag-and-drop elements, surveyors can quickly build sets of surveys that work well across every digital platform - tablets and mobile devices included. The biggest drawback of this website stems from the fact that many of the best features are locked behind paywalls, and the free options can only be utilized for the first three surveys you create.

  • Pros
  • User-friendly design interface
  • Plenty of customization options for changing design elements in the survey
  • Built-in feature prevents users operating from the same IP from voting multiple times and cheating a survey
  • Pricing Options
  • First three (3) surveys are free
  • Pro Plan - $15/month
  • Business Plan - $25/month
  • Legendary Plan - $65/month


Typeform logo

Typeform

Typeform offers some of the most unique and aesthetically pleasing survey designs currently on the market. Surveys are conducted one question at a time, with the next question beautifully flowing onto the page after each pollster response. For those who prefer form over function and are looking to create gorgeous, professional-looking surveys - look no further; if you’re looking for more substantial analytical tools, or are looking to run lengthy surveys with multiple question-sets, then you may want to consider some of the other alternatives on this list.

  • Pros
  • Intuitive integration with other platforms like Zapier
  • Drag-and-drop elements makes reordering and organizing surveys easy
  • Aesthetically pleasing design & UI
  • Pricing Options
  • Limited Free Plan
  • Essentials - $35/month
  • Professional - $35/month, billed annually
  • Premium - $70/month


survicate logo

Survicate

Survicate is a great surveying tool for marketers looking for a balanced, middle-of-the-road alternative for their marketing solutions. With plenty of design options and existing templates to choose from, coupled with user-friendly analytical tools and export features, Survicate stands on solid footing in the digital surveying landscape. The biggest drawbacks of this software stem from the large leap in cost from the free plan to even the most basic essentials plan - making this a turn-off for new users or those who are skeptical about switching to a new platform.

  • Pros
  • Preview what your surveys will look like to users before sending them out
  • Comes with a variety of pre-existing survey templates for different marketing needs
  • Pricing Options
  • Limited Free Plan
  • Essential - $49/month
  • Professional - $99/month
  • Ultimate - $249/month


Ultimately, the best practice when looking at choosing the right CFM tool for your business is to do the research. In much the same way researching our clients gives us the ability to improve their customer journey - doing the research on how we can intimately incorporate a customer feedback management system is going to give us the best results when it finally comes time to send out those customer surveys.

We have given you quite a lot to chew on in this article, so be sure to continue referencing this guide as you’re figuring out a game-plan for developing your customer feedback management system. Utilizing the tips and strategies we have provided to you will guide you as you work to refine your company’s processes, collect feedback, and provide the best customer support and customer service you can.

Helpfull's Customer Feedback Management System Helps Improve Your Customer Satisfaction Metrics

Helpfull is the premiere surveying software for anyone looking to get the most out of their marketing  and customer feedback management efforts. With a vast variety of different question types to choose from, Helpfull surveys can be generated and delivered to thousands of panelists in minutes.


 Customer Satisfaction Metrics

These are just some of the features that make Helpfull a must-have tool for those looking for quality consumer feedback:

  • No Locked-In Price Plan
  • Affordable Surveying Options
  • Create Simple Surveys with Pre-Set Questions, or Design Your Own
  • No Extra Cost For Multiple Questions in a Single Survey
  • Wide Variety of Polling Demographics to Choose From
  • Get Responses & Feedback in Real Time
  • Save Your Favorite Answers for Easy Reference
  • Aesthetically Pleasing UI and Easy-To-Use Interface
  • Easy to Access Prior Surveys



 quality consumer feedback

With Helpfull’s open-ended survey design, users can design visually-striking, multi-question surveys for any occasion!

A simple survey could be all that stands between your company and the renewed success of it’s online marketing efforts.

An intuitive user-interface, coupled with the ability to gather hundreds of consumer responses in just minutes, are just a few of the features that make Helpfull the ultimate tool for any artist, designer, mobile app developer, marketer, or inquisitive spirit.

Refine your marketing - sign up with Helpfull today, and get surveying within minutes!

Types of Feedback