We all know that listening is an important business skill. However most of us are guilty of not listening to what our customers are telling us. Do you really want to understand what your customers want and why they buy certain products or services? Why not ask them for a customer feedback meeting and listen to what they have to say...
Before you start your feedback meeting with your customer(s), make sure that you have prepared for the session. It is helpful to run off a report that shows which products or services the customer has bought in the past. Write down what you want to achieve from the meeting. Do you want to understand why the customer bought from you? Maybe you want to understand more about their needs so that you can cross sell additional products or services to them (and to similar customers). Read through your list of questions before the meeting and be prepared to listen and to take notes.
If you are going to engage in client feedback make sure you are actively listening to what your customers are telling you during a session. Active listening means, as its name suggests, actively listening. That is fully concentrating on what is being said rather than just passively hearing the message of the person you are in engaged in conversation with.
Active listening includes things like making good eye contact, nodding / body language and saying things like, “I understand” or “yes, tell me more about that”. This type of feedback shows that you are engaged in the conversation and you want to hear more of what the other person has to say.
If you want to spend time listening to what your customers have to say about your firm’s products or services, do so in the right environment. It can be difficult to listen to another person when your phone is buzzing, there are lots of other people around or there is lots of traffic noise, etc. When you remove all of these distractions and find a quiet place to sit down and listen, it makes the whole process much easier and shows care and consideration towards your customer.
When asking customers to provide some feedback, it can be difficult to avoid interrupting. A little bit of self-control goes a long way. Avoid being defensive and try to take negative feedback as constructive criticism rather than a personal attack.
Remember, no business is perfect and you can’t improve if you don’t listen to the negative things that your customers might have to say about your firm. The aim of the exercise is to shine the spotlight on them, not you.
Before you start your feedback meeting with your customer(s), make sure that you have prepared for the session. It is helpful to run off a report that shows which products or services the customer has bought in the past. Write down what you want to achieve from the meeting. Do you want to understand why the customer bought from you? Maybe you want to understand more about their needs so that you can cross sell additional products or services to them (and to similar customers). Read through your list of questions before the meeting and be prepared to listen and to take notes.
If you are going to engage in client feedback make sure you are actively listening to what your customers are telling you during a session. Active listening means, as its name suggests, actively listening. That is fully concentrating on what is being said rather than just passively hearing the message of the person you are in engaged in conversation with.
Active listening includes things like making good eye contact, nodding / body language and saying things like, “I understand” or “yes, tell me more about that”. This type of feedback shows that you are engaged in the conversation and you want to hear more of what the other person has to say.
If you want to spend time listening to what your customers have to say about your firm’s products or services, do so in the right environment. It can be difficult to listen to another person when your phone is buzzing, there are lots of other people around or there is lots of traffic noise, etc. When you remove all of these distractions and find a quiet place to sit down and listen, it makes the whole process much easier and shows care and consideration towards your customer.
When asking customers to provide some feedback, it can be difficult to avoid interrupting. A little bit of self-control goes a long way. Avoid being defensive and try to take negative feedback as constructive criticism rather than a personal attack.
Remember, no business is perfect and you can’t improve if you don’t listen to the negative things that your customers might have to say about your firm. The aim of the exercise is to shine the spotlight on them, not you.
