Customer Feedback Management: A Step-By-Step Guide (2024)

It shouldn't be a surprise to learn that 92% of your customers want to read reviews before buying your product or service, making customer feedback management something important in a marketing campaign.

In this article, we’ll dive deep into how you can integrate feedback management into your business strategy to improve your brand’s credibility so that customers get to trust you more.

Plus, we’ll also explore how a feedback management tool can help make this process easier for you. 

By the end, you’ll have actionable insights to get the social proof you need to build trust with your existing and potential customers across multiple channels.

What Is Customer Feedback Management?

Customer feedback management (CFM) refers to all processes involved in systematically collecting, analyzing, and responding to customer feedback to improve your products and services. 

As a company, you might wonder why customer feedback management is important.

83% of customers will feel more loyal towards your brand if you respond to and resolve their complaints.

People have an affinity towards companies that care for them

With the right feedback management tools and processes, you can easily improve customer satisfaction, and build strong customer relationships and brand loyalty.

Here are the main customer surveys and feedback types you can gather:

Quantitative Feedback:

This is the customer feedback you want when you need easily measurable customer feedback.

To get this, you have to collect feedback from a large number of customers with closed-ended questions using polls, questionnaires or surveys.

By using responses from the above formats, you can analyze data through counts or values to get a clear picture of client preferences.

Qualitative Feedback:

Unlike numeric customer feedback data, customers express their opinions or information in words here.

Here again, you can collect these using open-ended questions in your customer interviews and observations.

Later, you can use this information along with quantitative feedback to gain deeper insights into your customers’ feelings and thoughts. 

Unsolicited/Indirect Feedback:

This is when your customers offer their feedback for your products or services without being directly asked for it.

You can gather feedback like this from your contact center's call transcripts, Google Reviews, and social media.

Use this feedback to connect with customers you have never had direct contact with

Solicited/Direct Feedback:

When you actively try to obtain or ask for customer feedback, you solicit feedback from them.

You can gather this type of feedback through focus groups, customer interviews, NPS review surveys, comment cards, and customer feedback surveys.

7 Customer Feedback Management Steps To Follow

In order to manage your customer feedback effectively, you first have to review your current customer feedback management process and use the actionable steps below to improve it.

Step 1: Define Your End Goals For Feedback Collection

73% of customers expect you to understand their expectations and unique needs. 

So, to achieve that, you need to define your ultimate goals and the possible outcomes you're looking for from your customer feedback management process.

For me, defining an end goal starts with thinking about what success looks like for me and how it fits into the bigger picture. What am I hoping to achieve with the feedback—better customer retention, product/service improvement, or something else?

Once you nail down that goal, it becomes easier to guide the process and get the outcomes you need.

Here's what you need to do:

Set SMART goals (Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-Bound)

Set SMART goals to specify why you want to start collecting customer feedback.

For example, I could say this on behalf of an HR agency startup: “Let’s improve candidate placement satisfaction by 35% within the next 6 months by refining our screening process based on client feedback.”

Pick a primary goal

Pick a primary goal so it’s easier for you to maintain focus and align your feedback collection process with it.

For example, if your primary goal is to improve customer satisfaction, focus your feedback collection on specific touchpoints in the customer journey like product quality to pinpoint areas for improvement.

Select a target audience or segment

Select a target audience or segment from which you want to gather this feedback.

Is it existing customers, new buyers, or an entirely new customer segment? Clearly define your audience type. This helps you determine the best way to reach out to them.

Using my previous example for an HR agency, the target for feedback collection would be existing clients. 

Set up Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)

Set up KPIs based on your end goals to measure the impact of customer feedback management.

This could include metrics like

• Net promoter score
• Customer satisfaction score
• Customer retention rates.

For an HR agency, KPIs would be the time-to-fill positions and how satisfied clients are with the candidates they receive.

Step 2: Select A Channel To Gather Feedback

98% of customers prefer to use emails, compared to just 54% who use voice-activated personal assistants.

But this doesn't mean that all your customer segments favor emails over other forms of communication.

You have to review each segment's behavior and preferences for your own company before you select a channel for feedback collection.

Here are the options to choose from:

Customer Interviews

Customer interviews are in-depth conversations that reveal detailed insights.

You can prepare your interview questions and conduct the interview on a phone call or in person. Depending on the type of customer feedback you want, you can include questions that are closed-ended, open-ended, or both. 

Personally, I’ve found that customer interviews help reveal more detailed insights, but they can be time-consuming.

It can also be tricky to find the right time to do it with clients, but when I do, the mix of closed-ended questions for quick answers and open-ended ones for deeper insights makes it worth the effort.

As for the interview questions? I like to tailor them to what I need to learn, whether I’m conducting the interview over the phone or Zoom.

Email Feedback Requests

Automate feedback collection through email using tools like MailChimp, Mailerlite etc.

Create and send these emails to customers at different touchpoints, like when they complete a purchase, abandon their cart, or cancel a subscription. 

Website Feedback Forms

These are embedded on your site and help collect feedback quickly.

Use Famewall to create a customized feedback collection page.

Once your collection page is ready, generate a unique link and share it with your customers to gather feedback.

Personally, I've found this method easy and convenient because it puts the ball in the customer’s court.

It lets them leave feedback whenever it suits them, without the need for constant follow-ups.

Review Sites & Forums

These are platforms where customers review your products or services.

Find the forums and social media groups your customers use, like Reddit, Facebook, or Quora. Use tools to monitor brand mentions.

Alternatively, you can directly solicit feedback on these platforms with the questions which we've discussed before.

In my opinion, this is a great way to engage with customers in a space they’re already comfortable in.

Customer Support Calls

These are direct interactions where your customers ask questions or share their complaints.

You can use platforms like Zendesk to connect your customers with the right agents, offer self-service options, and automate call log reviews. 

Online Surveys

Use this to get feedback that is structured, quick, and easy for both customers and businesses.

Offer your customers incentives, like exclusive offers, or early access to new products/services, to encourage them to complete an online survey.

You can embed these surveys either on your website or send them through emails.

Focus Groups

These are group discussions you arrange to gain deeper insights into customer opinions related to your product or service.

When you organize a focus group interview, establish some ground rules and appoint a moderator to make sure your customers focus on the most important topics in their discussions.

User Testing

Businesses typically use this to collect customer feedback after introducing new features or services to test customer experience.

For example, you can use session recordings to understand how users interact with your website’s new navigation interface revealing pain points like confusing layouts.

Social Media Monitoring

Monitor all the feedback you receive on your social media platforms, groups, communities, review pages and other external social media channels.

Use social listening tools like Mention or Hootsuite to get alerts for both your brand and competitor mentions so that you can compare feedback and identify areas for improvement.

Here's how you can collect customer feedback using social media:

Step 3: Use Customer Feedback Management Tools

The global market for customer feedback management software is expected to reach $28.7 billion by 2031, compared to $8.8 billion in 2021. This massive growth highlights how critical feedback tools are for businesses that are looking to thrive in the digital landscape.

Customer feedback management software streamlines collecting feedback, addressing complaints, and displaying positive reviews.

Plus, it makes it easier for you to track how you're improving your products & services.

Here's how you can do this with Famewall:

• Use the Famewall dashboard to set up your review collection page for each product or service you offer. This lets you organize your feedback by products or services.
  
  Customize each page's color and text according to your brand and add specific questions you want your customers to answer.

• Share the review collection page's link with your customers via email, social media, or post-purchase notifications.
  
  You can plug the link for feedback on specific areas, like your order confirmation email, to gather product quality feedback.
  
  Add an incentive like a discount code in a follow-up email to encourage more customers to leave reviews.
• Use our Collected Testimonials section to review all your customer feedback and decide which reviews you want to publish on your website.
  
  Build a testimonial wall on your website to highlight the most compelling reviews.
  
  You can put them in different categories or product types to make your testimonial wall more visually organized.

• Head to the Testimonial Widget tab in your Famewall dashboard and customize the design to match your brand.
  
  You can choose between a grid or carousel display and click Publish Widget to generate the embed code.
  
  Use the carousel display for your home page for dynamic review scrolling to capture your visitors' attention without cluttering the layout or slowing down the page.

• Paste the embed code into the HTML section of your website. Simply drop the code into a custom HTML block on your product pages.
  
  Your testimonials will be live within a few seconds. Plus, you can integrate the reviews into email campaigns or social media posts to further boost conversions through social proof.

Follow along with this video to implement this today:

Step 4: Categorize & Analyze Customer Feedback

Only 4% of your dissatisfied customers will actually share their feedback with you.

This staggeringly low number makes it obvious that you should give a lot of importance to any positive or negative feedback you receive.

Here's what you can do:

Categorize your feedback

You can categorize your feedback by product/service-related issues, usability complaints, feature requests, opinions, and suggestions so it's easier for you to spot which review will be most useful.

For example, looking at usability complaints or feature requests can be a good way to guide product/service improvements or prioritize new feature development.

Analyze customer feedback

You can analyze customer feedback with sentiment analysis, clustering analysis, and keyword tracking to spot any recurring issues or patterns and plan fixes accordingly.

But don't limit yourself to focusing only on negative reviews for your improvements. Also, focus on positive reviews to enhance what's already working for you and your customers.

Prioritize feedback

Prioritize feedback based on frequency and impact.

Address the issues that come up most often or have the biggest impact on customer satisfaction.

Then, expand or promote existing products/services that consistently receive praise. You can also hire a customer experience analyst for deeper, expert insights into customer feedback.

Step 5: Respond To Customer Feedback

You can turn 83% of your customers with complaints into loyal followers with rave reviews for your brand by responding to and resolving their complaints.

This is why having some protocols for all positive, neutral, and negative feedback is a crucial part of any customer feedback management process.

Here's how to do this:

I. Address negative feedback professionally and promptly.

Acknowledge the problem and apologize to them for their bad customer experience.

Explain what you're currently doing to minimize the issue and offer a quick solution for the time being. 

II. Add a discount code for their next purchase

Use discount codes to encourage them to purchase again.

This shows empathy and your commitment to resolving their issue.

Also, avoid defensive responses and focus only on solutions. Reassure your customers that you're working to fix the problem.

III. Engage with positive feedback

Feedback is important because that directly engages customer attention as well.

Respond with a thank-you message and encourage them to share their customer experience with others or on social media with a strong CTA.

This strengthens your brand's word-of-mouth marketing. 

IV. Ask for clarifications

It's best to ask for clarifications on any neutral feedback you receive.

Request the customer to share more details to understand their experience better.

This is your chance to turn neutral customers into happy ones. So, be polite and open-ended in your request, like "We'd love to hear more about your experience so we can improve."

V. Acknowledge Customers' Feedback

Send automated responses to your customers thanking them for sharing their customer experience as soon as they leave feedback.

Make sure you do this right away, and that no feedback goes unnoticed.

Personalize your responses with the customer's name and mention the specific product or service they reviewed. 

Step 6: Measure The Results

Only 36% of your customers will share their good or bad experiences with you or others.

This low number means most customers aren’t giving feedback, leaving you unaware of potential issues.

Without an effective customer feedback management system, you risk missing valuable insights and could face business losses as a result. 

To avoid this, track key metrics and measure the impact of your feedback management process. 

Here's what you need to track:

• Customer Retention Rates: Find out how your feedback efforts impact retention. For example, track repeat purchases after you implement improvements based on customer feedback.
• Customer Satisfaction (CSAT) Scores: Measure how happy your customers are after your interactions with them or after you address their concerns and resolve their issues. You can use surveys at the end of your chat with them.
• Net Promoter Score (NPS): This will give you an idea of how likely it is for your customers to recommend you to others. Add a one-question survey on your website or emails to measure this metric. 

Step 7: Identify Any Flaws Within Your Feedback Management Process & Reiterate 

91% of customers will never return after a bad customer experience. This is why it's crucial that you create an efficient customer feedback loop that builds long-term loyal customers—even if they've had a bad customer experience. 

Customer feedback management is an ongoing process. So, after you review the results in the previous step, you should continuously identify gaps or flaws within your process to make the necessary updates.

Here's what you have to do:

Review and update

Review & update your feedback strategy at least bi-monthly to keep up with emerging trends and reach your customers where they're most active.

For example, customers who are active via email may only be available on social media platforms after 6 months. But you won't know this unless you review and update your strategy.

Train and educate your employees

Train & educate your employees so they know how to handle each type of customer feedback. They can easily track and categorize feedback from various channels with Famewall to identify recurring trends.

Train them on how to review feedback on the Famewall dashboard to quickly spot patterns in customer issues or praise and take action to address or enhance those areas.

5 Benefits Of Using A Feedback Management Tool To Collect Customer Insights

Review your overall business goals to see if any of the following industry-specific benefits of a customer feedback management tool apply.

1. Career Development — Enhancing Customer Experience

A smooth customer experience is vital to help job seekers and employers connect more effectively in the career development space.

This is especially crucial in this industry because job seekers expect quick, intuitive access to job opportunities. Plus, employers look for streamlined ways to manage applications.

Famewall can help platforms like Prosple and Handshake identify critical areas where users struggle, like navigating job boards or understanding application processes.

These platforms can start analyzing customer feedback to streamline their interfaces and make it easier for job seekers to connect with opportunities and employers to manage applications.

2. Health & Wellness — Improving Product Offerings

If you’re in this industry, a customer feedback management tool lets you gather insights on product efficacy, user experience, and desired features.

Use it to identify trends like ingredient preferences or packaging concerns. With this, you can refine formulations, tailor offerings, and address customer needs for better overall health outcomes.

Famewall can help platforms like Green Supply and Vital Proteins identify areas for improvement in product offerings, like flavor, efficacy, or packaging. 

How?

These businesses can collect and analyze customer feedback with the feedback software to quickly pinpoint what resonates with their customers and make data-driven adjustments to enhance product satisfaction thereby increasing retention.

3. Fitness Products — Tailoring Supplements

Fitness companies like Transparent Labs have the need to continually adapt their supplements to meet evolving customer goals, like muscle gain or fat loss.

Personalization is crucial in this industry because customers expect products tailored to their unique fitness needs. 

These businesses can leverage customer feedback to refine their formulas to match specific outcomes, helping them stay competitive and foster long-term customer loyalty.

Famewall can provide fitness brands with detailed customer feedback by categorizing testimonials based on fitness goals.

This would help them make precise adjustments to their formulations and marketing strategies to meet customer expectations.

4. Senior Safety — Enhancing Product Usability

Usability is of the highest importance in the senior safety industry because seniors rely on products that are easy to operate in emergency situations.

If you implement feedback-driven improvements, you can create products that meet this critical need, directly impacting safety and user satisfaction. 

Senior-safety platforms like Medical Alert Buyers Guide, which test and review senior safety products, also benefit from collecting feedback through Famewall.

They can use this feedback to improve their platform’s interface to make it more user-friendly for seniors with limited mobility or tech proficiency. 

5. Dropshipping — Refining Product Selection

Digital marketplaces like Whop and AppSumo can use customer feedback to refine their product selection, focusing on the tools or groups that deliver the most value.

Offering a wide variety is key, but refining those choices based on real customer input boosts satisfaction and keeps the platform competitive.

They can use Famewall to focus on high-demand offerings and optimize partnerships. This will help the platforms attract quality users and increase their competitive edge. 

Conclusion

Review your current customer feedback management practices to find gaps within your processes. Go back to our actionable steps and identify the ones that are the easiest for you to follow.

But remember, feedback management is an ongoing process. So continuously monitor and adjust your strategies to align with evolving customer needs and guarantee long-term satisfaction.

To get started, go with Famewall. Use our platform to quickly and easily collect feedback, display it on 30+ platforms, and find ways to improve your products/services.

Try Famewall for free to start collecting feedback & testimonials from customers with a simple link & display them as social proof on your websites without writing any code