How to Develop a Customer-Service Survey
Companies develop customer-service surveys to measure their customers' satisfaction with the customer-service department. The key with customer-service surveys is to determine in advance what attributes you want to measure in the survey. For example, you may want to ask customers how they rate your customer-service department's professionalism or courtesy. Ask customers to rate various attributes on a scale of one to five, for example, to better guage your results.
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Objectives
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Companies usually have certain objectives when conducting customer-service surveys. For example, customer service may be a problem area in your company. The survey may be a tool that you use to improve the performance of your customer-service department. Whatever the case, company managers should meet in advance to establish these particular objectives.
Size
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One important consideration in developing a customer-service survey is sample size. You must include enough customers in your survey to adequately represent your customer base. One way to ensure an adequate sample size is by using a sample-size calculator, such as the ones at Surveysystem.com or Customerinsight.com. Plug the approximate size of your customer base in the population section of the sample calculator. For example, an Internet-based company may have 10,000 customers. Therefore, 10,000 would represent the population. Estimate your customer population if you do not have an exact figure. Decide whether you want a 90, 95 or 99 percent confidence level. A 99 percent confidence level will increase the reliability of your results. However, 95 percent is usually adequate. Enter your information to calculate how many surveys you should conduct.
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Types of Surveys
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Determine what type of customer service survey you want to use. The type of survey you use is also called the methodology. Common types of surveys include phone, mail and Internet surveys. Each type of survey has its advantages. You can obtain relatively quick results from a phone survey. Phone surveys also allow you to better screen potential respondents. A mail survey can help you garner more comprehensive information. Internet surveys are easier and cheaper to administer.
Questions
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There are many potential questions that you can ask in a customer service survey. Ask customers how satisfied they are with the timeliness in answering questions, or how well they resolved a problem or issue. You should also ask the customers how likely he or she is to purchase your products again. Additionally, use a variety of scales in your questions. Scales pertain to responses that you want your customer to answer. For example, a jewelry store could ask customers if they are "very," "somewhat" or "not at all satisfied" with their in-store customer service. Companies should ask customers to compare their customer service to competitors, too, according to Entrepreneur.com.
Considerations
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You should conduct customer-service surveys on a regular basis, instead of just once or twice per year. Regular surveys will allow you to immediately correct inefficiencies in your customer-service department. Quick corrections to customer-service problems can lead to greater sales and profits.
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References
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