Is it common for businesses to survey their business customers regarding
customer satisfaction, systems integration, and other such issues?

I think we need to survey our customer base, but I'm quite inexperienced
as a marketer and don't know if I'm heading in the right direction. Our
sales people know the customers pretty well, but I would like to have a
uniform view with answers to questions a sales person wouldn't normally ask.

We manufacture a slightly customizable product and sell to 40-50
companies, some being very large. I'm thinking about doing a web or
e-mail based survey.

Good/Bad idea?

Your opinions would be absolutely treasured.

"Ed" <mynewsacct@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:1182p0m6kismg37@news.supernews.com...
>
> Is it common for businesses to survey their business customers regarding
> customer satisfaction, systems integration, and other such issues?
>
> I think we need to survey our customer base, but I'm quite inexperienced
> as a marketer and don't know if I'm heading in the right direction. Our
> sales people know the customers pretty well, but I would like to have a
> uniform view with answers to questions a sales person wouldn't normally
> ask.
>
> We manufacture a slightly customizable product and sell to 40-50
> companies, some being very large. I'm thinking about doing a web or
> e-mail based survey.
>
> Good/Bad idea?

It is an excellent idea. We hired some MBA students to put together survey
and then they produced a report from the results of the survey.

There were statistics both on who are customers are exactly and their
opinions but also some qualitative things -- e.g., specific comments from
customers...

It was very useful. We sent the survey out using email.

--
Robert Anderson

"Ed" <mynewsacct@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:1182p0m6kismg37@news.supernews.com...
>
> Is it common for businesses to survey their business customers regarding
> customer satisfaction, systems integration, and other such issues?
>
> I think we need to survey our customer base, but I'm quite inexperienced
> as a marketer and don't know if I'm heading in the right direction. Our
> sales people know the customers pretty well, but I would like to have a
> uniform view with answers to questions a sales person wouldn't normally
> ask.
>
> We manufacture a slightly customizable product and sell to 40-50
> companies, some being very large. I'm thinking about doing a web or
> e-mail based survey.
>
> Good/Bad idea?
>
> Your opinions would be absolutely treasured.
>

Ed,

Any business that doesn't stay close to its customers is not long for this
world.
This is especially true for a business with a very small customer base -
that's
you!

Before you select a mechanism for the customer survey, I would recommend
that you figure out what you want to know. Then determine who in the
customer's organization can best provide the information. Depending on
the nature of the product, the end users may be in a different department
with entirely different issues from the support users who installed and
configured the product. The people with the best view of ROI may not
be in either of those two departments.

This analysis may lead you to the conclusion that you need multiple surveys,
pointed at multiple parts of the organization. The delivery mechanism will
depend a lot on how well your sales force (and your customer support team)
have identified the structure and players in the customers' organizations.
With such a small group, my opinion would be to do this by surface mail,
coupled with follow-up telephone calls to be sure you understand the
answers - and to thank everyone for their participation.

During my tenure in product management and product marketing of
software, I engaged in a number of surveys. Some surveys were conducted
by outside firms, but the most useful information for my purposes (setting
product direction, positioning, building sales tools, and the like)
always came from direct contact with the customers.

You didn't say what your role in the marketing area was, but if you are in
a product management or product marketing role, I would encourage you to
do whatever is necessary to get into the field and meet with your customers.
I have traveled with sales people, met with customer reps at user
conferences,
and visited customers on my own, and every customer contact provided
some new insight into how the product(s) should be marketed, priced, sold,
and / or used. Plus, you never get a good feel for the roles of the end
user, technician, recommender, and approver until you meet them and see
them in action and hear their points of view on the role of your product
in their company.

As a final note, I would be sure that the head of sales is aware of what you
are doing and is on board with the plan. In some (not so healthy)
companies, sales people get the impression they "own" the customer and can
resent and interfere with customer contacts they don't initiate and control.

Good luck with your marketing.

George King
G.E. King Marketing