Social Sharing block
Regular readers of my column know that I abhor surveys that don’t provide some type of incentive or discount on a future purchase for completing the survey. I realize that I may have discussed this subject ad nauseam, but have you noticed that every store, restaurant, gas station, doctor’s office, car wash, and video store have jumped on the survey bandwagon?
As the former director of the Michigan Quality Council from 1993 through 2003, I understand the value of surveys. During those years, we encouraged organizations to conduct surveys to gather information on the needs, wants, and expectations of their customers. We provided feedback reports to various organizations in the state about their level of quality and customer service and then we solicited their feedback on the value of our reports. So as you can see, I understand the value of surveys.
But it seems we have reached a point in our culture where surveys are almost out of control. Every receipt we receive now comes with a survey. And if your receipt does not contain a survey, more than likely you will receive a phone call from the merchant.
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Comments
Working On Your Decaf Vanilla Latte
Bill,
I'll make sure to offer you a decaf vanilla latte if I ever get the urge to conduct a survey...in the mean time I'll keep responding to store/restaurant employees that approach me about surveys that I've been instructed to not participate until Bill gets his decaf vanilla latte!
Sandra Gauvin
http://CurrentQuality.com.
Another thing that might induce me to complete a survey
Right on, Bill. I too feel inundated these days with "Tell us how we're doing" surveys and the like. But I have yet to see any accompanying text that tells me what they will do with the information I give them. So why should I toss my valuable opinions into a black hole?
.
Now, supposing I saw something like this on my next receipt:
"Please complete these questions and give us a suggestion on how we can improve. Your suggestion will be posted on our website (http://www.neverneverland.com) and will be answered personally by one of our managers with the authority to do something about it, not some $7.25 per hour clueless customer service rep. In addition, we have posted a chart that tracks and trends the previous 12 months of customer service data, and since our executive bonuses are tied to customer satisfaction, you can be sure we're very interested in providing you the best possible experience when you visit us."
.
That would give me a lot more incentive to invest my time. (A coupon would be nice, too.)
Jeff
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