Ever had that recurring dream where you’re in a public place, like your office, school cafeteria, or the park and your naked and embarrassed? That’s kind of what it feels like to open yourself up to customer feedback: scary. . . but only at first.
That dream usually means there’s something in life you are grappling with, trying to work through, or are maybe embarrassed by. And although this is usually indicative of something in life you might need to work through, it’s still the dream world and if you choose, you can just strut around in the middle of the city, buck naked and lovin’ it! That’s how we want to feel about taking on customer feedback and we want you to feel that way too. It’s crazy scary at first, but once confronted, and dealt with it’s like conquering a mountain. Better yet, it’s experiencing the freedom to enjoy public nudity (you know, if that’s your thing).
Here at WebPunch we want you to do just that: run free, naked, through the streets preaching love for Customer Feedback. Positive feedback from clients is great. Maybe someone goes above and beyond for a client and if we hear back about it, we follow-up with whoever made that client beam with sunshine. The takeaway with Positive Feedback is to find it, listen and react! Reward them with perhaps lunch on the company or a gift card or even just a note to show our appreciation for their work.
On the other hand, feedback can sometimes be brutal when it is criticism. That’s why gett’n naked can be tough because we know we could be laughed at, criticized, or berated for doing something wrong or even being different sometimes. But that’s the risk we must pay because that criticism is crucial to growth. It takes working through challenges and sometimes embarrassment, in the dream world and real world, to get better. Instead of moping around, feeling exposed, we take it and use it for better.
When we get negative feedback we give it as much attention as a positive review. We make moves to improve a process, have a discussion with an employee, or maybe review a product that wasn’t running as it should. And we think and hope this same mentality is passed on to our clients, especially as they are coming to terms with negative reviews we may alert them to.
Again, upon news of feedback, whether it’s in person, via an online review or a private message, it’s no time to put on a winter coat or put the guard up. Instead, it’s time to get naked and feel okay about it! Take the feedback, both positive and critical (it’s easy to say negative, but constructive criticism is never a negative!) and take action. Reward or praise an employee or team for the good, and remedy whatever was the cause of the critical aspects.
Then take it a step further. Let the customers or client know the changes you’ve made. People get pumped to hear that they’ve made a difference, that the time they spent reviewing or writing to you about a negative experience caused some sort of improvement. Tell them through a private message, review response, or even in the monthly/weekly newsletter, calling them by name, showing off just how comfortable you are improving your business and gettin’ naked!
