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Why Conducting a customer survey could double your profits!

Written by: Peter Lawless

Article Overview: Customer Surveys are the most inexpensive way of generating profits, which any business could dream of. Companies like IBM used to pay their sales people, a bonus, based on the customer survey rating. But how could they really boost your profits? This article uncovers some of the secrets.

Why Conducting a customer survey could double your profits!

Existing customers are the life blood of every company. They have already bought from you, so they know the value of what you provide. Too often companies are not fully sure of the reasons as to why their customers have made purchases.

In order to successfully market to other similar customers, you should talk to your customers and ask them to tell you why they bought, what the purchase has enables them to do, and how they have put a value on it.

This exercise, properly done, not only helps you get testimonials that you can use in your marketing to other prospects, it also help you with two other key profit generating activities.

* It reminds your customers of what you provide, and encourages them to buy from you again. Customers, who have bought before, are 5 times more likely to purchase again, than people who have not heard of you

* It also gives you the opportunity to ask for referrals. These could be other non-competing companies, or indeed customers or suppliers who they might have.

It is recommended that this questionnaire that follows is conducted either in person or on the phone. People do not respond well to giving this type of information, online, by email or even in written form.

Open the call by telling the customer who you are and checking if they have a couple of minutes. If not, find a time to call back, telling them that you are just conducting a short customer survey.

Assuming they are able to speak with you, ask the following;

* Do you remember using our service and were you happy with it?

* Can you remember, specifically why you used us in the end?

* What did that enable you to do?

* How would you put a value on it?

* Repeat back to the customer, how they answered the last three questions.

* Now ask them if they would mind you if you used that information as a testimonial – tell them you will email them a copy of the wording.

* Since they were satisfied, ask them if they know anyone else who they believe would benefit from
your services.

* Thank them for their time, and finish by asking them if they would like to be on your emailing list, tell them you send out short articles and information bi-monthly.

This is incredibly powerful, obviously it will need to be tailored to your company, but it serves as a template that you can use. It shows them that you care. It also really helps you understand how customers actually use and put a value to your products and services.

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Article Tags: couple of minutes, customer survey, email, existing customers, life blood, marketing, prospects, questionnaire, referrals, testimonial, testimonials



Related Forum Posts
Direct your survey to your website - I just did the survey. Louis, you should consider directing your survey to your website once a participant completes the last question. Right now it goes to the surveymonkey page.
Re: Hi, I'm a new entrepreneur looking for help with research - Naomi, First of all I found several typos in your survey starting with question #4 to instead of do. As for your survey, would you like to go into more detail explaining your objectives? Cheers, Zac
Re: How does an entrepreneur stay energized? - RainMaker, Just wondering what a double double is. Hm?
Re: How does an entrepreneur stay energized? - a solid purpose a great team of people surrounding myself good paying clients a good nights sleep scrambled eggs for breakfast large double double from Timmy's J
Re: Does Anyone have any New Ideas for a Business - You make a good point here Kevin, but if one is really determined to take and idea further and obviously it would have to be a realistic idea then I am sure that there would be some way they could research or find the help they needed even if it meant sharing part of the profits with somebody who can help, provided there were eventually profits to be made. MichelleJ


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