Ask clients - but be ready for the truth
On a recent business trip to the UK I stayed at a hotel in Whitehall. It's a nice hotel that's steeped in history. It's comfortable for me because I've stayed there before. I know how to get around London when this particular hotel is at the centre of my travel plans.
But this time something different happened ...
Two things actually. On a couple of mornings, the restaurant breakfast that I'd paid for couldn't be provided without a significant delay. They were just too busy. Then after checking out, and in a rush for the airport, the porter kept me waiting for "his" cab to arrive rather than hail one from down the road. After 10 minutes, I walked down the road myself and found a cab.
Both events were annoying, but not fatal to the hotel's brand reputation. But then the remarkable email arrived asking my opinion. "Could I take five minutes to complete a short web survey?"
I did.
Interestingly, the survey asked all the wrong questions of me. On a scale of 1 to 5 they scored a 3.5 average. I don't think they got the real picture, they got the scene as they hoped it would be. They did redeem themselves with a space for free-form feedback and I told them both stories, as I have described them here.
The good news for the hotel chain is that they wouldn't have known my frustration if they hadn't actively asked. I long ago stopped filling in the surveys on the desk on nearly every hotel room in the world. None ever acknowledged my input anyway. I imagined a huge heap of unopened survey forms in some dimly lit underground hotel laundry room.
There are three lessons from this (not unusual) traveller's tale:
1. We assume our performance is above average
When you make the dangerous assumption that your services are average or above average, the need to ask your clients for feedback vanishes like a light fog in direct sunlight. The truth is that your best friends often won't tell you how bad things really are. They will however, tell other people - friends, clients and colleagues about your service. Ask questions, conduct a survey, analyse and then do it all again. Never stop.
2. Don't let your bias show through
When constructing a survey, don't let your bias show in your questions. One of 5 specific questions my hotel asked me was to inquire if the water temperature in the shower had been suitable. Of course it had. It's one of the few hotels I've stayed at where you can set the water temperature (in degrees Centigrade) on a dial in the shower. They are obviously proud of it and want to mark it out as a point of differentiation. But would a better question have been to ask, "If you were to change one thing about the bathroom, what would it be?" Much more useful information could be collected when viewing the question from the client's perspective.
3. Wherever possible, survey by telephone
You can learn a lot more by telephone than you can through a written survey or web survey. Certainly your investment in conducting one-on-one conversations will be greater ... but the rewards are far, far greater.
> When talking on the phone, you can hear the intonation the written word lacks. I'm sure you've played the game that tries to express as many meanings as possible from the word 'great'. Yet there is only usually one meaning when the client types "g-r-e-a-t" into the web survey.
> When asked to rate the service on a scale of 1 to 5 on a written survey, who says that my scale is the same as your scale? I might be familiar with backpacker hostels in Outer Mongolia - hardly the criteria by which to judge a London hotel.
> Telephone surveys also send the message to your client that you care enough to request their opinion in person.
> You can dive deeper into an issue when on the telephone. You can't ask a follow-up question on a written survey.
> You'll generally get a better response rate on the telephone. My experience is well over 80 percent will agree to your request. With written surveys you are doing well if you receive half that response rate.
A final thought. Never ask - in writing, online or by telephone - "What don't you like?" You are asking your client to admit that they made a mistake in selecting your product or service in the first place. Just like you and me, your clients want to feel good and look smart.
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