This article is taken from the October 2011 edition of the RMS Newsletter.

Customers have always been the backbone of any successful business. Therefore, it makes sense that a business should ensure its customers’ happiness. After all, happy customers supply repeat business, greater opportunities for cross and up-selling, word of mouth recommendations, as well as other forms of verbal support, which is increasingly important in the age of social networking.

How do you determine whether your customers are happy or satisfied? You ask…

Many organizations measure performance through satisfaction surveys – the questionnaire on the table during a dining out experience; a clerk directing a customer to a website upon completion of a sale; phone calls asking about your favorite radio stations. This is the ultimate measure of success as it provides direct feedback from the customer. And it’s not just about learning what your customers think; it’s about acting to improve their perceptions. Customer satisfaction measurement is a vital management tool, if implemented effectively, to learn how the front line staff is interacting with customers, how customers feel you could better serve them and whether your organization is missing the mark in one or more areas.

Conducting satisfaction surveys, whether online, through mail, or on the telephone, then using that information to set clear objectives and detailed action plans for process improvements is key to maximizing your return on investment. It can be the difference between meeting your bottom line and falling significantly short of expectations.

Interested in measuring your customer experiences using market research? Contact Sandy Baker, Director of Business Development at 315-635-9802 or by email at SandyB@RMSresults.com.  Visit our website by clicking here.