I am odd. I like customer satisfaction surveys and if I receive excellent customer service, I don’t mind taking a couple minutes to say so. When I was a claims adjuster, I won quite a few contests by receiving more happy customer satisfaction surveys than anyone else. I gave excellent customer service but more impactful, I asked for feedback.
Fast forward to today, after every new client appointment, my scheduling software emails the client asking for feedback on the office and me. When I get a reply, I often have a moment of nervousness because I don’t like criticism. Who does? Occasionally, a comment isn’t completely positive, but I don’t dismiss what was said. It is so important to hear, reflect on the comment, and analyze it.
Positive feedback helps me know if I’m being effective. I can gauge whether an approach I’m using is adding to the client’s experience. When I receive a comment that isn’t glowing, the client is giving me insight on ways I can adjust to better meet his needs.
Even if you are nervous about what might be said, set up a system to hear from your clients. Give them the means to help you improve and grow because the changes you make in response to feedback will increase your client retention and referral rates.