Surveys

[Frequentflier]

Do your companies send customers surveys about service that's been provided? Mine does that once a year. I contrast that with what seems like a growing number of companies that send a survey after every service event. In the past 60 days, I've received surveys about new tires I've purchased, pizza deliveries, oil changes, chat sessions with online customer service representatives (like Home Depot, Amazon, cable/internet provider, etc.).

 

I used to answer the surveys because I know, being a manager, that feedback from customers can be very helpful. What I've noticed with many though is that the employee will tell me that I'm going to get a survey and how much they'd appreciate 9's or 10's on it. Likewise, when I've answered a couple that there could be improvements, I get a call within a day from the employee themselves (almost aggressively) about the fact they didn't get 9's or 10's.

 

I think its poor management that companies seemingly over emphasize the survey results to employees which leads to an interaction with a customer that the company would be better off avoiding.

[+ not2rowdy]

Ohhh… pet peeve.

 

Yes - I get the damn things all the time.

And, frankly, it irritates me.

Especially the ones that attempt to put in the guilt factor for not giving 9-10’s.

 

To me it comes across as the company being insecure about itself.

It is about their self-gratification - not customer satisfaction.

And using the guilt trip card of “gotta get 9-10’s or I’ll be banished to lube pit” is a despicable tactic.

 

I don’t respond to them anymore.

 

If it’s brought up during the purchase I say upfront it's very unlikely I will respond to any survey. And I will unlikely give any 10’s - ever - because I think there is always room for improvement. And I say if I have a problem, I will make contact and seek a solution. In some cases by saying this I haven’t even received their cookie cutter email - maybe because non-responses also count against them.

[rvwnsd]

Do your companies send customers surveys about service that's been provided? Mine does that once a year...

 

My employer contemplated putting survey invitations on transaction receipts and printing them when a customer opened a new bank account. Cooler, smarter heads prevailed and the idea was nixed. Our support desk sends a survey after every call, which I always complete. My most recent encounter (well, encounters: it took 4 calls to get my network password unlocked) and the resulting survey response prompted a policy and procedure change.

 

...I contrast that with what seems like a growing number of companies that send a survey after every service event. In the past 60 days, I've received surveys about new tires I've purchased, pizza deliveries, oil changes, chat sessions with online customer service representatives (like Home Depot, Amazon, cable/internet provider, etc.)....

 

I get bombarded by surveys all the time. Some of them are structured such that constructive feedback can be provided. Choice Hotels has a pretty decent survey. I provided some honest feedback about a stay in Palm Springs. My money was refunded and I was offered a free stay after they renovated the hotel. However, most surveys are structured in a way that the feedback is practically useless because the respondent is not given the opportunity to explain why they provided a given answer.

 

...I used to answer the surveys because I know, being a manager, that feedback from customers can be very helpful. What I've noticed with many though is that the employee will tell me that I'm going to get a survey and how much they'd appreciate 9's or 10's on it.

...

 

Oh, I hate when employees say that. It does not happen very often where I live, but it does happen occasionally. The last time someone said that I asked to speak to the manager and asked her why they allowed their employee to say that. She was dumbfounded. I told her that being asked to give 5 stars was making me lower my rating by two stars.

 

...Likewise, when I've answered a couple that there could be improvements, I get a call within a day from the employee themselves (almost aggressively) about the fact they didn't get 9's or 10's....

I can't believe the company disclosed your identity and phone number to the employee when discussing survey results. That sounds like a violation of a privacy policy. That's when you call the company's consumer affairs department or office of the president and rat out the employee.

...

I think its poor management that companies seemingly over emphasize the survey results to employees which leads to an interaction with a customer that the company would be better off avoiding.

 

Yeah, I have a hard time imagining that your satisfaction soared after that little phone call.