How to do informal research
We’ve put together a few ideas and tips on how to get started.
Collect feedback and run surveys
Talk with your users at the right times to ask them gently for feedback. Chat with retailers and suppliers. Make sure you note down your feedback. Doing this helps you work out how to improve your services.
Even if your organisation is growing fast, you should always keep in touch with users yourself. This helps you know if you’re still meeting their needs. Free online tools like SurveyMonkey and Google Forms are a great way to collect feedback.
If you take customers' email addresses at the point of sale, this may help. You can then ask them for their views every so often. Keep your surveys short and anonymous. You could even offer prizes, to encourage people to take part. Note that if you collect this type of data, you must keep to government rules. Check the GOV.UK site for more information.
Be on the look-out for issues
Watch for even the smallest signs of unhappiness. People will often stop buying from you, rather than complain. Try asking people what their ideal would be. Ask them 'If you could change one thing about our products/services, what would it be?' Then work towards meeting it.
Track sales records and look at your data
Look at your accounts. Compare year on year, month on month. What are the seasonal trends? Is there a product in long-term decline? If so, why do you think that is?
Review what you've learnt at a fixed time each month. Discuss it with your team and see if you can draw conclusions and agree on what to do next.
Use customer feedback
We share feedback all the time, everywhere. It might be on social media, through review sites, or by adding comments to your own website. People do look at those reviews when they decide what and where to buy. A bad review might make them go elsewhere.
Feedback can help you see gaps in your service and improve what you do. But it only takes a few harmful comments to start putting people off your brand completely.
Not all negative feedback is fair, but removing it isn't really an option. This makes it look like you’ve got something to hide. At the same time, if you only have hundreds of 5-star reviews, people will become suspicious. If someone is constantly leaving you unfair feedback on a review site, most review sites will allow you to submit a report. Check on their sites and contact them to find our more.
Search for and deal with reviews
The way you handle one complaint can show everyone what your organisation is like. If you don’t address criticism, it looks like you have no answer, or don't care. Tackle comments head on, express regret, and state what you’ve done to put things right. Regularly check in on sites with reviews. This will show that you reply promptly to issues and work to resolve them.
When you connect online, a little authenticity goes a long way. Start by showing you care about the person making the complaint. Make a connection with them, show your personality, and add a touch of humour if appropriate. When we're tapping away at a device, it's easy to forget this is just two people talking to each other.
Remember, when you talk to someone, you speak for your organisation too. Everything you say or do will reflect on how people see your organisation. So be warm and friendly, yet professional. Posts on social media are more relaxed, but do avoid gossip, slang and over-familiarity.
Turning a negative into a positive
It’s no fun reading criticism of your hard work, but there are lots of ways you can turn negative comments into a positive. You can use comments to improve your profile. Those who complain but had their comments handled well could turn out to be your best supporters.
