Customers are the ones who generate money so you can have a business. Yet there are few formalized programs for reacting to customer feedback. In this presentation I discuss why this is important, how to do it, and how to convince your boss that it's important. Learn more about dealing with customer feedback at http://www.uservoice.com

1. Customer Feedback:
Why it’s important, how to collect it, & how to
convince your boss to pay attention to it.
Evan Hamilton
Community Manager, UserVoice

2. Customer feedback is
important.

3. Customer feedback is
important.
So why are there no formal
processes for it?

4. What We’ll Cover:
1. Why is it important?
2. How can you convince
your boss that it is?
3. What’s the best way to
collect it?
4. Q&A

5. Why Collect
Feedback?

6. It helps you know what your
customers really want

7. It helps you know what your
customers really want
• Doing what people want
makes them happy.

8. It helps you know what your
customers really want
• Doing what people want
makes them happy.
• Happy customers mean
more $.

9. It helps you know what your
customers really want
• Doing what people want
makes them happy.
• Happy customers mean
more $.
• That guy who emails a lot
is not representative.

10. It’s out there

11. It’s out there
• People want to give it to
you.

12. It’s out there
• People want to give it to
you.
• Letting it sit makes
people angry. In public.

13. It’s out there
• People want to give it to
you.
• Letting it sit makes
people angry. In public.
• You listen and deal with
customer issues – why
not feedback?

14. It shows that you give a
#@%!

15. It shows that you give a
#@%!
• You do, right?

16. It shows that you give a
#@%!
• You do, right?
• Customers don’t expect
companies to actually
act on feedback. Stand
out.

17. It’s a great way to keep
people engaged

18. It’s a great way to keep
people engaged
• 60% open rate, 25%
clickthrough…vs 26%
and 5% for regular mail.

19. It’s a great way to keep
people engaged
• 60% open rate, 25%
clickthrough…vs 26%
and 5% for regular mail.
• Brings people back who
never would have
looked at your product
again.

20. Convincing
Your Boss

21. Bosses
aren’t evil.

22. Bosses
aren’t evil.
They just have to worry about the
bottom line.

23. But
customers
are the
bottom line.

24. “There will be spies from
other companies!”

25. “There will be spies from
other companies!”
• You aren’t your features.

26. “There will be spies from
other companies!”
• You aren’t your features.
• Fine, use a private
forum.

27. “There will be spies from
other companies!”
• You aren’t your features.
• Fine, use a private
forum.
• (This never happens.)

28. “We’ll be forced to build
what they ask for!”

29. “We’ll be forced to build
what they ask for!”
• Your customers are with
you for your vision.

30. “We’ll be forced to build
what they ask for!”
• Your customers are with
you for your vision.
• Customers like “No,
because”.

31. “We’ll be forced to build
what they ask for!”
• Your customers are with
you for your vision.
• Customers like
“No, because”.
• It’s not direct
democracy.

32. “It’ll be a time suck!”

33. “It’ll be a time suck!”
• Yup.

34. “It’ll be a time suck!”
• Yup.
• So is filing for
bankruptcy and selling
your Aeron chairs.

35. “If Henry Ford had listened
to his customers, he would
have built a faster horse!”

36. “If Henry Ford had listened
to his customers, he would
have built a faster horse!”
• That’s great feedback.

37. “If Henry Ford had listened
to his customers, he would
have built a faster horse!”
• That’s great feedback.
• The goal is to find pain
points, not solutions.

38. “If Henry Ford had listened
to his customers, he would
have built a faster horse!”
• That’s great feedback.
• The goal is to find pain
points, not solutions.
• Customers experience
the pain. They know.

39. How to
collect
feedback

40. ASK.

41. This is a bad place to ask for feedback.

42. This is better.

43. Avoid the J-
curve.

44. People (mostly) only vote when they like
something.

45. People (mostly) only vote when they like
something.

46. If something sucks…

47. If something sucks…
…people just leave.

48. Just allow upvotes. (And read the
comments!)

49. Low barrier
to entry.

50. Don’t require Yet Another Account.

51. Make it look like home.

52. Avoid the
vocal
minority.

53. These aren’t your most valuable
customers.

54. Voting allows the shy majority a voice.

55. Limited voting further controls the vocal
minority.

56. (Plus, it gives you a great excuse for not
listening to them.)

57. Have an
escalation
process.

58. Feedback is worth nothing if shoved in
the closet.

59. Have a formal meeting where decisions
are made.

60. Votes should probably be part of it.

61. Make sure you have the full context.

62. Come in with issues/pain
points/wants…NOT solutions.

63. Accept that everything won’t be
implemented.

64. Be prepared to go back and say
“no, because…”

65. So, UserVo
ice?

66. There are plenty of
competitors.

67. This is a UserVoice Feedback forum.

68. Here’s how you sign in.

69. Voting.

70. Posting an idea.

71. Status updates.

72. Evan
Hamilton
@evanhamilton
evan@uservoice.com
blog.uservoice.com