Turning Feedback into Growth: The Power of Listening to Customers

Transforming complaints into business growth and triumphs

Sometimes the best feedback is a complaint because it shows us how to be better.

Customers come to your brand or service looking for the solution you can provide. Sometimes they are oblivious to other related issues that you may be able to resolve, once identified. And sometimes they in turn show us gaps in our offerings. Although your first inclination might be to get offended, try to embrace the criticisms and the questions so you can reap the rewards when each is addressed.

Turning critiques into revenue streams
Here’s an example. In the spirit of the holidays, our family farm grew a “you pick it, you cut it” Christmas tree farm. And while customers came strictly because they wanted a fresh-cut tree for the holidays, many first-time customers also needed other items, like tree stands. Once we identified repeat patterns in requests for advice, we began selling tree accessories like tree stands. Eventually, we added an entire building to house ornaments and home décor as well as free treats like hot chocolate, cider and cookies. The additional revenue was great, but it shed light on another area for improvement.

Like many rural areas, the farm was plagued with slow and unreliable internet. As a result, we were always a cash (or check) and carry operation. However, that limited the business to the amount of money people had with them. Many customers lamented that they wished they had brought more cash with them. Naturally, we were motivated to find a solution. We soon did, with offline payment processing for secure credit card transactions without Wi-Fi. We considered ourselves lucky that our customers were vocal about our weak points so we could identify solutions that would grow our business.

Addressing problems to satisfy and retain customers
The business relationship is often one of continuous “Solve my problem. Thanks. Now I have another problem.” Sometimes businesses get frustrated, skip the “thanks” part, and simply look to other potential customers with the same initial problem. That is a very limiting outlook and requires a lot more effort to constantly seek new customers while never fully satisfying the ones you currently have. As a result, some will look elsewhere. This leads to leaky bucket syndrome: you have to fill the bucket with new customers faster than the ones leaving and can never pause, or the bucket becomes empty.

That is why complaints and questions should be regarded with high esteem. If we listen, customers tell us exactly how to keep them and how to grow our business. It really is the best feedback even if it doesn’t always feel like it in the moment.

So be sure to listen and address each complaint. Give them each some consideration, even if they sound unconventional. You never know where it might lead. Below is real customer feedback from our Christmas tree farm customers that made us re-evaluate offerings.

• A customer brought his own electric chainsaw, which we don’t allow, and then asked to borrow an extension cord to reach the tree he wanted, some 150 yards away. It made us realize that we needed to invest in hand saws to loan to those who don’t have the proper equipment.
• A man wanted a tree of the “natural forest kind,” fully equipped with a bird's nest and “maybe even some eggs still in it.” He felt his wife and kids would like that. In the moment, we responded by explaining that we didn’t feel comfortable specifically seeking out trees where birds or other animals had made a winter home. However, this interaction showed us the potential to include faux bird nests in the gift shop for those looking for the natural touches of the forest.
• The biggest question/complaint – and we hear it every year – is that the fields aren’t paved. Unprepared customers don’t always appreciate walking through the fields and kneeling to cut their tree. The solution? We offer plastic grocery bags as makeshift shoe and knee protectors.

It’s important to listen to your customers, especially when they complain, but you do need to consider the costs to make them happy. While that last complaint has the most scale, paving a farm would make it… well, not a farm and it would be cost-prohibitive.

Challenge the status quo
Never be afraid to challenge yourself by asking if there is anything that can be done now or in the future to make a complaint a growth opportunity or a value add to increase loyalty and goodwill towards your brand. At R+K we are always asking the same question.

We asked why our client’s strong brand with excellent performance was suddenly losing ground in the marketplace, with competitors making a land grab for their business. Our client wanted to dramatically increase media spending, but surveys revealed the real issue was a retail one that marketing wouldn’t fix. We recommended a massive reduction in media spending. You can imagine the client’s surprise. Our client set to work on a dealer incentive program to address the retail issue while we refocused marketing efforts on a different product line to retain overall category share until that program was in place. Without understanding the root cause of the problem and being brave enough to confront it, we would never have found the right solution.

If you are looking to grow your business, see how we have helped others by checking out our case studies, and get in touch to start a conversation about how we can help you meet your business goals.