Negative feedback – why we should all embrace it It’s human nature, we all hate negative feedback. A moan from a client about fees, amendments to a document we thought was perfect, comments on our skills or being told that top just doesn’t suit you, any of these things can ruin my day.
Our response to criticism or complaints is often to become defensive or retaliate. I’d like to suggest an alternative approach which could really help you in business and your personal life. Welcome negative feedback, seek it out and embrace it because in all of those grumbles and complaints from clients there are clues to what clients really want, what they value and how you can service them better and keep them for longer. 1. Feedback tells us a lot about the giver Our first reaction might be to say ‘oh, well, they are just never happy’, or ‘what do they expect given the circumstances?’. But with these thoughts we’re not really putting ourselves in the other person’s shoes. If you can do that you might realise that the feedback is valid and there might be simple ways you can rectify the problem. For example, a common gripe about firms of solicitors and accountants is that they don’t return calls quickly enough or appear to ignore emails. Now, when I speak to my clients in this field they have any number of good reasons why this might be the case, often because they have nothing new to report to a client and are planning to call back when they do or that the client phoned four times in one day and had been told they were in Court. Put yourself in the shoes of the person who’s called four times in one day. They must be anxious. They clearly feel they need help. How would you feel and what would make you feel better about the situation? A quick call or email from the lawyer in between meetings to say they have got the messages and will call back tomorrow at 9am? An opportunity to speak to someone else in the firm who might be able to set their mind at rest? An opportunity to explain their concerns, perhaps by sending an email and a promise of when that will be looked at and a response delivered? If you’ve set expectations up front about how quickly you will be able to respond to clients and clarified why sometimes you will be unavailable for whole days clients will normally respect this. In the case where a professional doesn’t get back to the client because they have nothing new to report, they are ignoring the needs and expectations of the client. Lack of, or slow response is one of the most common causes of complaint to the Solicitors Regulation Authority, yet it’s so easy to put right. Firstly set up clear expectations with the client, tell them when they can expect the next contact from you and make sure you stick to the time given or tell them why you can’t. Use email – it’s a quick and cheap way to keep clients informed, especially when there is nothing new to report. Agree regular times when you will catch up, this can be particularly useful with clients who need a lot of time and attention. Book time in the diary and encourage them to gather together relevant documents or email you their thoughts to be discussed at that time. Hopefully techniques like this can meet the needs of the client whilst also being practical for the professional. 2. If they grumble they still care Whatever you do, don’t feel badly towards the people who grumble. In the main these people still care, they want you to put things right and they want to continue buying from you. It’s the ones who don’t complain and instead just walk that you need to worry about because you have no opportunity to learn why. If I have a bad meal in a restaurant on holiday for example, where I’ve no intention of ever returning, I probably wouldn’t bother to complain. If there’s something wrong with a meal I eat in my local village pub, I’ll tell them. Why? Because I want to eat there again. I want to give them an opportunity to learn from my experience and I don’t want them to get a bad reputation, go downhill and eventually close leaving me nowhere to drink on a Friday night after a long week at work! Your clients should be the same. They want you to do a good job for them, they don’t want to have to find another accountant, solicitor, IFA, trainer or consultant. The other important factor with complainers is that if you can put things right for them, to their satisfaction, they can become advocates. I’ve written before (Exceptional service reaps exceptional rewards) about how you can turn a really bad customer experience into a positive one resulting in positive exposure and PR. If my local pub responds to my comment about the soup being too salty or the lamb being over cooked and the next time remembers I like my lamb pink or tells me the chef’s approach to soup making, I feel cared for, I’m more likely to eat there again and tell others about my positive experience. 3. It’s an opportunity to improve systems and processes Very often negative feedback is not about the core product or service you are delivering. Instead it’s about the peripherals, the way the service is delivered (whether the receptionist greets me with a smile or a scowl, whether the telephone is answered in a professional manner and so on) or the timeliness of the delivery (am I kept waiting in my local pub without explanation, do I expect a respond from my solicitor next day when he’s expecting to call me next week?). By reviewing and analysing this negative feedback you have an opportunity to improve the client’s experience, without necessarily changing anything at all about your product or service. Instead it gives you clues as to how your systems and procedures can be improved. It’s your chance to get better and in the highly competitive environment we all work in where client expectations are elevated by the 24/7 web enabled choices they are given by the likes of Amazon, we need all the help we can get. If the complaint is about the service or the product itself then that’s useful information for when you do a product review, are developing any new service offerings or want to sell more to your existing clients. People complain about the things that are important to them. These are not always the same as the things that are important to us as product or service suppliers. And people pay for the things that they want, and will often pay more if it’s delivered in the way they prefer. So listening carefully to your clients’ feedback – both positive and negative – can put you in a strong position to sell more, charge more and keep growing your business. Until next time, here’s hoping you don’t get too many complaints in the next month, but if you do that you are able to capitalise on them. Further reading:
Written by Teresa Harris, Second Opinion Marketing. Teresa is an independent marketing consultant working with professional practices, small businesses and public sector bodies to develop effective marketing plans which achieve their business objectives. As a marketing coach Teresa works with new marketing managers and small business owners to enhance their marketing performance.
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