December 18, 2023
Closing the Feedback Loop: How to Do it Right
The feedback economy and the urge of people to get heard are growing. How much? Let's judge from a couple of facts
Barclays estimates that optimizing for the Feedback Economy could yield a 3.2 billion dollar opportunity in the next decade in the UK alone. —Barclays, 2018
91% of people believe that companies should fuel innovation by listening to buyers and customers, compared to only 31% who think they should hire a team of experts. — SurveyMonkey research, 2019
One of the most important aspects of customer service is making sure customers feel heard and valued. This is known as closing the feedback loop.
When you close the feedback loop, you are ensuring customers feel like you’re listening to them and they are having a positive impact on your business. This gives them a sense of ownership, and you don't have to worry about your customer jumping on the next economical or the next best alternative in the market. In this blog post, we will discuss how to close the feedback loop in a way that will make customers happy and improve your business!
What is Closing the Feedback Loop?
Closing the feedback loop is the process of responding to customer feedback and then taking action based on feedback. This can be done in several ways, but the most important thing is to make sure customers feel heard and their input is valued.
The goal of closing the feedback loop is to create a two-way conversation between businesses and their customers. This way, businesses can take the feedback they receive and use it to improve their products or services. At the same time, customers feel appreciated.
When it's streamlined, the feedback loop process looks a little something like this:
- A customer has a problem or suggestion
- They reach out to the business through channels like social media, email, or phone calls
- The business responds and takes action to fix the problem or implement the suggestion
- The customer is happy with the response and continues to be a loyal customer.
It's important to note that not all feedback needs to be acted upon. In some cases, it may not be possible or practical to do so. The important point here is customers get a feeling as if they are getting heard and that your business is considering their suggestions.
Closing the feedback loop is also not just a one-off event. It's an ongoing process that should go on without interruption. This way, businesses can stay on top of customer feedback and make sure they are always taking action to improve their products or services.
Closing the feedback loop is also not just a one-off event. It's an ongoing process that should go on without interruption. This way, businesses can stay on top of customer feedback and make sure they are always taking action to improve their products or services.
Why does closing the feedback loop matter?
There are several reasons why closing the feedback loop is important.
#1 You show you are open to positive feedback & changes
First, it shows customers that you care about their experience and you are willing to make changes based on their input. It can help build trust and loyalty among your customer base.
#2 You identify bottlenecks early
Closing the feedback loop can help you identify problems early on and fix them before they cause too much damage. When you have a system to collect customer feedback, you can quickly identify bottlenecks and take care of them.
#3 You constantly improve what you have up your sleeves
Taking action based on customer feedback can help you to improve your products and services, making them more likely to be successful. When you listen to your customers and you are willing to change your product based on their input, it helps you continuously improve your offer.
#4 You care about the whole experience
It’s not only about the product – it’s also about the complete experience. By closing the feedback loop, you show that you care about every step of the customer journey. This can help to build loyalty and trust, as well as improve your chances of success with your product
How to Close the Feedback Loop Right
Now that we know why closing the feedback loop is important, let's discuss how to do it in a way that will benefit your business.
Set Up a Team
The first step is to set up a team that will be responsible for closing the feedback loop. This team should be composed of people from different teams or units within your company and representatives from your customer base. This will ensure that all voices are heard and that everyone has a stake in the process.
Customer support would be a great place to start with. Assembling your team members, with some members from the product (if you have it), sales, and marketing team.
Get Customer Feedback Right
Make sure that you are collecting customer feedback regularly. This can be done through surveys, phone calls, focus groups, or any other method that allows you to hear from your customers directly. It's important to collect feedback from a variety of sources so that you can get a well-rounded view of the customer experience.
And if you’re looking for one tool that will let you effortlessly collect feedback in one place, check out FeedBear!
Our app helps you get all your feedback in one idea board where customers can vote, and have discussions with each other and your team. Once they upvote or leave a comment, they automatically get emails with each ticket update - effectively closing the feedback loop.
Organize and Centralize Your Customer Feedback
Once you have collected customer feedback, it's time to take action. This means creating action plans that address the problems and concerns that were raised. Be sure to involve your team in this process so that everyone is on the same page.
Having a central place like FeedBear where all of the customer feedback is stored can be helpful in this regard. As long as everyone knows where to find it, they can easily refer back to it when needed.
Respond to Customers
Let customers know what you have done. This can be accomplished through surveys, phone calls, or any other channel that allows you to get in touch with customers directly. Be sure to thank customers for their feedback and let them know how you are taking an action on their feedback.
Creating a system for responding to customer feedback shows that you are committed to making changes and that you value your customers' input.
With FeedBear, you can be sure that every customer that created a feature request, commented, or voted will get notified about any changes made according to their feedback. We’ll send them an email on your behalf!
Categorize Feedback
One way to make sure you are taking action on the most important feedback is to categorize it. You can do it by urgency, impact, or any other method that makes sense for your business.
By categorizing feedback, you can prioritize the issues that need to be addressed first. If you don't have time to address all the feedback, you can at least make sure that the most important issues are being addressed.
With FeedBear, you can use our feedback boards to organize all of your feedback. Once you know what you want to create, you can put it on a product roadmap, which you can also create in FeedBear.
Prioritize Action Items
Once you have categorized your customer feedback, it's time to prioritize the action items. This means creating a plan for how you will address the most important issues raised by customers.
Be sure to involve your team in this process so that everyone is on the same page. Design a workflow that makes sense for your business and make sure that everyone understands it.
Assign Action Items
After you have created a plan for addressing the most important customer feedback, it's time to assign action items. This means assigning specific tasks to specific team members. Be sure to include deadlines so that everyone knows when the task should be completed. By assigning action items, you can ensure the feedback loop is closed on time.
Execute Action Plans
It's not enough to simply create action plans - you also need to execute them. This means taking the necessary steps to fix the problems that were raised by customers. Be sure to keep your team updated on your progress and thank customers for their feedback once the issue has been resolved.
When you take action on customer feedback, you are closing the feedback loop and making sure that your customers feel heard. This can go a long way in building trust and loyalty among your customer base.
Communicate with Customers
Make sure you let your customers know what their feedback means to you and how you plan on using it. This will show that you are committed to making improvements based on their input. It will also help to build trust and keep them coming back to you for future business.
To make sure you are properly communicating with customers, be sure to create a process. This can include sending out surveys, making phone calls, or any other method that allows you to get in touch with them directly.
Document Customer Communication
Make sure you document all customer communication. This includes everything from surveys to phone calls. This will help you keep track of what was said and how you responded.
It can also be helpful to refer back to when you are making changes based on customer feedback. By documenting customer communication, you can be sure that you are properly closing the feedback loop.
Close the Loop to Open a New One
You can't have just one feedback loop open all the time. You have got to close one loop to open another. This is what makes the customer's feedback and transforms it into an actionable task for your organization.
It is a process that requires commitment from everyone in the company. Only then can you provide customers with the best possible experience and turn them into lifelong fans of your brand.
Monitor your Results
Make sure you are monitoring the results of your actions. This will help you see what is working and what needs to be improved. It can also help you identify new areas for improvement. By monitoring the results, you can be sure that you are constantly improving your customer experience. Beginning your next feedback loop will be easier than ever before.
Closed Feedback Loop Examples
One of the best examples of closing a feedback loop is FeedBear. Using our app, you can create a feedback board where customers can leave bug reports, feature requests, and general feedback.
Every time a customer interacts with anything on your idea board, they automatically sign up for all future updates about that piece of feedback. That means that once you move a feature request from a feedback board to a roadmap, they get an email.
It’s an effortless way to close the feedback loop. All it takes is encouraging your customers to participate.
Summary
If you follow these steps, you will close the feedback loop in a way that benefits your business. Customers will feel heard and valued, and you will be able to take action on the most important issues. This will improve the customer experience and make your business more successful.
The best way to get started is by using reliable feedback software, so make sure to sign up for FeedBear today! You can use our free trial and find out how easy it is to close the feedback loop, once you start with the right foundations.
