Dear customer surveys, Pug DJ here. My human bought toothpaste. It was a quiet transaction. The tube was the correct size, the cashier was pleasant, and everyone returned home with clean intentions. Then the messages began. How was the visit? Would he recommend the store? Did the purchase meet his expectations? Friends, it was toothpaste. Nobody crossed an ocean.
I understand wanting to know whether customers are happy. A business that listens can fix problems and improve service. That is good. But somewhere along the way, ordinary purchases began arriving with homework. A receipt became an invitation, an email became a reminder, and a second reminder seemed worried that we had not yet reflected deeply enough on the checkout process.
The first question asks us to rate the experience from one to ten. This sounds simple until we consider what the numbers mean. Was it a seven because the item was available? An eight because parking was easy? Should we reserve ten for occasions when the toothpaste personally thanks us for our loyalty and offers to unload the car?
Then comes the recommendation question. How likely are we to recommend this store to a friend? I do not know. The opportunity may never arise. My human’s friends have many interesting conversations, but very few begin with, “I urgently need your preferred location for purchasing a normal tube of mint toothpaste.” Some useful businesses simply do not come up at dinner.
The survey promises to take two minutes. This is a brave promise. After several pages about cleanliness, selection, friendliness, value, and whether anyone used our name, we begin wondering whose minutes are being counted. My human has dinner to prepare. I have important business involving a rug. Both schedules deserve consideration.
Here is my proposal. Ask fewer questions, and ask questions somebody can act on. Was anything wrong? Could you find what you needed? Did you receive help when you asked? A short, honest invitation to describe a problem may teach a business more than a long parade of numbers chosen by a customer who is trying to finish quickly.
Also, make participation optional in practice. One clear invitation is plenty. If a person does not respond, perhaps the person is content, busy, or uninterested in turning a small purchase into a relationship. Silence does not require a follow-up campaign. It may simply mean the toothpaste is doing its job and everyone has moved on.
Please treat employees fairly too. Customers should give honest feedback about what happened, rather than punish a helpful cashier for a price the cashier did not set. Businesses should remember that a complicated transaction may involve many factors. A person’s work cannot always be understood by reducing an entire day to one customer’s hurried number.
When service is especially kind, a specific compliment can matter. Tell the manager what the employee did well. When something goes wrong, explain the issue calmly through the proper channel. Useful feedback describes an event and helps somebody respond. It does not need dramatic language, personal insults, or the confidence of a pug reviewing a meal he has already eaten.
We appreciate businesses that care enough to listen. We would appreciate them even more if they also respected the time of the people answering. Sell a useful product, provide decent service, and welcome honest comments. Then let the customer enjoy the purchase. My human now has toothpaste, a receipt, and several unanswered questions about his journey. I would like to rate the part where we stopped receiving questions.
