Thank You
A while back, I asked for your votes in the 2025 Global Gurus competition, where they name the world's top thinkers in different business categories.
You came through big-time, and I'm again top 10 on the list of Global Gurus for customer experience. Thank you!
The list for marketing will come out soon. Fingers crossed.
Are You Overlooking the Customer Experience of Customer Feedback?
You know customer feedback is crucial.
You know - and have perhaps heard me say - that unhappy customers are actually your most valuable customers.
You probably have some sort of "voice of the customer" program in place, where you measure customer satisfaction.
But how much attention do you play to the customer experience of gathering that customer feedback?
Very little, I'd wager.
I receive some sort of customer feedback request daily-ish. Airlines. Hotels. Restaurants. E-commerce. Social Media platforms. Insurance guy. Oil change place. And on and on and on.
Almost invariably, the process I must undertake to provide the feedback requested is like crawling through broken glass while holding a milkshake.
Incredibly long surveys.
Surveys that don't work on a phone.
Surveys that give you no indication of how long they may take to complete.
Not to mention pull-downs that won't pull down, buttons that won't click, and fonts that are too small or TOO BIG.
And, because they are sent out by the quadrillion with the exact same graphics and language, many of these feedback requests end up in the email junk folder.
All businesses should seek to maximize participation in customer feedback schemes. More participation equals more data, which increases accuracy and enhances the chance you'll uncover something transformative.
Yet, many organizations fall into the "just one more question" trap when designing these programs, failing to recognize that literally every additional question (not to mention ease-of-use bugaboos) reduces response rate inexorably.
And because it's the path of least resistance, most organizations rely solely on email to collect feedback, forgetting that spam filters are real, and that young customers loathe email like I loathe blue cheese.
A better way, and 5 tips
In the actual POSTAL MAIL (it still exists!), I recently received a postcard from my state representative, asking for feedback on the 2025 Indiana legislative session. Complete with super easy QR code to launch the survey.
I literally cannot believe I'm using postal mail from a low level government official as a sparkling CX example, but here we are.
Representative Pierce did a lot right here, so I made you a list of 5 tips for maximizing customer feedback:
1. Give customers multiple ways to get to the survey instrument
Rep. Pierce has QR code, website URL, phone number(!), and I also got an email with a link.
2. Ask only what you NEED to know NOW
There are countless issues at play in the 2025 Indiana legislature. Rep. Pierce asked 9 questions. That's it. He knows that he can always ask for more feedback down the line.
3. Explain why feedback is important and how it will be used
Nobody wants to take their time to provide ideas that will never be seen. On the reverse of the direct mail piece, Rep. Pierce describes how these constituent thoughts will help guide priorities in the legislative sessions.
4. Make it ridiculously easy to participate
The Rep. Pierce survey is tight, in black and white (better contrast), works perfectly on a phone, and is multiple choice only (except for entering your name, etc.). Ideal design.
5. Allow for anonymity
Here, Rep. Pierce is sub-optimal, because he requires survey-takers to provide name and mailing address. But, he wants to make certain the feedback actually comes from constituents not a Russian bot farm, so it's a valid requirement, I guess. But for you, I suggest making contact information optional.
The way I do it in my research projects is we ask people if they are interested in providing additional, more detailed thoughts, possibly in exchange for an incentive (gift card, or some such). If interested, please provide contact information.
There you go. Five customer feedback best practices that you can put into practice right away. What would you add to that list of recommendations? Let me know!
The Books Report
Last year, I recommended 24 books here in The Baer Facts. But many of you have joined this party in recent weeks or months, and others may have missed an edition here or there.
So, I rounded up 24 of my recommendations from last year in one place, with links to find them online.
Jay's Faves
My new list of recommended tequila brands just came out.
Just go here, drop in your email (different list than The Baer Facts) and I'll send you 83 brands you should know. Great to keep on your phone for restaurants and shopping trips.
More Issues
