6. A Chat Functionality on Your Website
There’s no better feedback than feedback from someone who is in the midst of shopping. Adding a chat functionality will allow two things: first, people with a question will message you, which enables you to start a broader conversation; and second, some chat products actually allow you to “interrupt” someone’s experience. Asking, “Is there anything we can do to help” will get folks to open up!
– Aaron Schwartz, Modify Watches
7. Focus Groups
When customers are sitting together and talking about features and their experience with your product, you have their full attention and they usually come up with great ideas. The key is to ask open-ended questions and have them discuss the problems they face with your product and in their general day-to-day work to help you identify where to focus your energy.
8. A Personal Conversation
Give your customers the chance to express themselves directly in person. While this method isn’t really scalable, it’s the only way to truly understand the customer’s pain point and how it needs to be addressed. Don’t sell to the customer or be defensive; just listen and ask questions. It’s your job in soliciting feedback to be a question-asking sherpa who helps the customer express him/herself.
– Brewster Stanislaw, Inside Social
9. An Ongoing Conversation
Make feedback an integrated part of regular conversations with clients, and show them that their comments are taken seriously and have a real impact on improving the product. By giving customers a vested interest in providing feedback, it will be easier to keep those channels open when you are actively seeking evaluation down the road.