Collecting customer feedback is critical for any home inspection business owner. Customer feedback helps connect you to your customers and their evolving needs, making it easier to see what’s working for your business and what areas need improvement. With all the possible ways to assess client satisfaction, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed by options and unsure of where to start. Wondering how to collect customer feedback for your home inspection business? A few simple strategies can help you get started.
As a home inspection business owner, customer satisfaction is your top priority. Building a solid client base depends on the strength of your reputation, the quality of your work, word-of-mouth referrals, and how well the services you provide satisfy your customers’ needs. The best way to keep your finger on the pulse of customer needs is to collect feedback.
Have a Plan
Before determining how to collect customer feedback for your home inspection business, consider why you’re collecting it. Focusing on how you plan to use it can help steer the types of questions you ask and how you solicit feedback. Do you want to highlight positive customer reviews on your website or as part of a social media campaign? Would you like input about ancillary services your customers would be interested in if your company provided them? Knowing why you want feedback from your customers first is the first step. How you will collect it comes next.
Post-Inspection Surveys
Have a strategy for contacting customers through text or email to gauge their satisfaction as soon as they receive their inspection report. You can decide how many questions to include and which to ask, but remember that shorter surveys may get more responses. A few tips to keep in mind for the kinds of questions you should ask include the following:
- Write straightforward, thoughtful, open-ended questions
- Avoid any leading or loaded questions
- Focus on questions that will help you meet your goals
Net Promotor Score (NPS)
The one obvious downside is that the longer an optional customer satisfaction survey gets, the less likely a customer is to complete it. How can you increase the odds of getting a general sense of customer satisfaction? Use a Net Promoter Score (NPS). An NPS involves just one straightforward question: “On a scale of 0-10, how likely are you to recommend our company to a friend or a colleague?” You can average your NPS across all customers to get a general sense of how happy your customers are, but you can use specifics to your advantage, too. Follow up with any customer who rates you at less than a seven. These customers are likely unhappy, and learning what didn’t meet their expectations can help pinpoint potential problem areas. On the other end of the spectrum, keep an eye on any high ratings: if a customer gives you a nine or ten rating, you should keep them in mind to contact directly for testimonials or referrals.
Use Automated Reminders
Using a software program that automates sending a text or email directly after a service can help you stay on top of collecting customer feedback. Automating feedback forms can ensure customers have a chance to provide input while your work is still fresh in their minds. You can schedule automated reminders or follow-ups to request customer feedback with the right software suite.
Harness Technology
Look for what your customers are saying on social media and use your company’s social media presence to answer questions or address concerns in real-time. You can also ensure that your website makes submitting questions, concerns, or reviews easy.
Make Happy Customers Part of Your Marketing Strategy
Ask satisfied customers if they’d be willing to leave you a review. Use positive customer responses or testimonials in your advertising or marketing strategy. Is a customer posting on Facebook about their excellent experience with you or tweeting about the good work your company does? Ask if you have permission to share their posts with your followers.
You might even consider offering incentives for completing a survey or a deal on referral fees, encouraging satisfied clients to share their good experiences with you with others in their circle.
Are you looking for more ways to grow your home inspection business? Check out Inspection Support Network. We offer an all-in-one home inspection software solution, providing everything you need to build, manage, and optimize your business. Plus, our dedicated live support team ensures a hassle-free experience. Contact us today.