No matter what type of business you run, feedback will always be a very important part of its success. Think about it. These days, people are only too happy to express how unhappy they are with the businesses they feel wronged by. Between Yelp and the myriad of social media platforms that enable people to voice their concerns, the feedback your company receives likely comes fast and free.
This is a good thing. Consider how quickly you can make changes by simply listening to what your customers have to say. You get free advice – as hard as it may be to take – giving you ample opportunities to improve your brand. People love it when they are heard. It shows they are valued by the companies doing the listening. Implement changes based on the feedback you receive and you will only make your customer base grow.
The feedback given within your place of business is just as valuable.
When your employees inform you of what customers have to say, it should foster more opportunities to make improvements. But you have to give feedback as well. As a business owner, one of your chief roles is to help your workers improve by offering helpful tips. Not everyone likes to give feedback and that’s understandable. You don’t want to hurt feelings. But, as adults, constructive criticism should be expected – all in the name of doing better.
Be positive when delivering feedback. In a recent blog covering this topic, we advocated for the use of the “sandwich technique”. This is a feedback practice where you “sandwich” your constructive criticism in between two comments of praise. Your job is to help your workers improve. Being mean won’t accomplish that. So be mindful of your tone and use of language when delivering your feedback as well.
Be clear about why you are delivering the feedback.
For some, receiving feedback feels like being judged. Naturally, this isn’t a good feeling. Always inform your employees that you value them. Providing feedback is not a judgment call on your part. It’s simply a requirement that will help the business to flourish as a whole. Remember that you aren’t commenting on a person’s character, but rather wish to share some tips to help improve his/her performance.
Being clear means pinpointing specific incidents that you would like to see bettered. The following example shows clarity in what was done and what should be done going forward. “On your last call, you told the person to hold on. In future, remember to ask for permission before placing your callers on hold.”
Could you use some help providing feedback to your team?
Please call us at 1-888-MELOTEL and ask us about our excellent feedback tool, the Monitor Whisper Panel! The “Monitor” feature allows you to listen to both parties on any given call undetected. The “Whisper” feature lets you subtly drop in to the phone calls to coach your phone agents.
In the event an interaction requires supervisory intervention, you can quickly barge in to immediately assist on the call. This helps you to resolve any pending issues your rep may be unable to fulfill, while still maintaining the overall customer experience.
