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  • 1.  Best questions to ask B2B customers about their experience

    Posted 01-15-2015 02:30 PM

    Hi all.

     

    We are in a strong reengineering phase right now and are examining all aspects of Operational Excellence.  To that end, I don't want to reinvent the wheel if I can avoid it.  I'm hoping others may have some examples of best practice questions to ask in CSAT surveys (beyond NPS, which we already gather).

     Basically our current version looks for input regarding the experience of implementing our solutions.  We ask them to respond based on four aspects:

    1. Meeting project expectations and customer goals
    2. Completeness of project documentation
    3. Knowledge of the support resource provided
    4. Timely communication, response and follow up

    Historically, we've rated these on a 1 to 5 scale (1 best).  Originally the team was using an averaged rating, but we've at least moved from that to setting a "pass/fail" line (target is x% of interactions must rate 2 or higher for example).

     

    Does anyone here have other approaches in mind?  Or different questions that would better get to the heart of the customer experience?  Wide open to thoughts and suggestions.

     

    Kind regards to all.

    ------------------------------
    Kevin Williams
    Director - Customer Excellence
    American Express
    Hebron CT
    860-5301067
    ------------------------------



  • 2.  RE: Best questions to ask B2B customers about their experience

    Posted 01-16-2015 02:16 AM

    Hi Kevin

    This an interesting subject area. In terms of any research, there is always an interesting balance between trying to establish an understanding of what the business needs versus what it is that the customer really wants to tell you about. 

    The questions you ask make sense from the business' perspective, however the scale is always a tough one. A five point scale is simple; however it poses challenges in terms of the '3's and what you do with them. Have you ever considered moving to the NPS scale so that you can create congruence between these questions and the NPS question?

    In terms of the other questions, the way we have handled this in the past is to carry out VoC research (qual., qual to quant [conjoint], quant. and analysis) to understand what exactly are the customer expectations of greatest relevance across the journey touchpoints (establishing a relevant journey framework in advance) and then measuring then in terms of performance and importance. This way you can then understand what the organisations' pain points and moments of truth are. 

    Following on from the VoC, you then have a solid understanding as to what should be included in the CSAT on an ongoing basis. 

    How's life at AMEX? I worked there 6 years ago and have recently been talking to a couple of areas of the business here in the UK. Memories are flooding back! 

    Please contact me if you'd like to discuss.

    Kind regards 

    ------------------------------
    Ian Williams
    Director
    Jericho

    +44 207 099 1950

    ian@jerichoconsulting.co.uk
    ------------------------------


    Original Message


  • 3.  RE: Best questions to ask B2B customers about their experience

    Posted 01-16-2015 10:13 AM

    Hi all,

    Thanks for the reponses so far.  The good news is for the most part they touch on discussion areas we've had in the past so we're talking about the right things!

    As far as the scale goes, we've been in a cultural battle on that front.  The scale is used for performance metrics, so it is a highly personal issue for the teams involved.  We've argued the pros and cons of 3/5/7/10/11 points scales ad nauseum, and at this stage it's unlikely I'll be able to sway them from the current 5 point structure.  It was quite a bit to get them to accept the NPS question as it's own metric, and to move from performance focused on averages versus avoiding individual surveys dropping below a specific level.

    We do also gather qualititive inputs, including free form text fields to address the performance of the individual and suggestions for improvements in how we assist the client.  We merge these inputs with our internal VoC information to work on building a complete perspective of what works and what doesn't.

    We've got solid systems in place tackling the tactical issues customers comment on, and are working this year to raise the impact on Operational Excellence and Innovation through VoC.  The issue I am trying to solve for here are to get to the right questions which produce the right metrics to assess performance at the individual level.

    Thanks again for your input on this!

    ------------------------------
    Kevin Williams
    Director - Customer Excellence
    American Express
    Hebron CT
    860-5301067
    ------------------------------


    Original Message


  • 4.  RE: Best questions to ask B2B customers about their experience

    Posted 01-16-2015 09:08 AM

    Hi Kevin,

    Are you providing open text boxes for customer comments? I've recently been mining this unstructured data from our CSAT surveys and gained some insight I could not have with yes/no or scale-based questions.

    Kind regards,

    ------------------------------
    Elizabeth Thomas
    Senior Director, Customer Experience
    Rocket Software
    Denver CO
    303-882-4152
    ------------------------------


    Original Message


  • 5.  RE: Best questions to ask B2B customers about their experience

    Posted 01-30-2015 05:05 PM

    One of the most fruitful questions I've ever used in a B2B client feedback session is, "What are your biggest 2-3 challenges coming up in the next 12-24 months?"  The answers can give you tremendous insights into where you may need to adjust your strategies, products, development and hiring.  You may also be able to get ahead of business development opportunities.  But, that's a question best asked in an relationship-oriented interview, not necessarily a survey.

    One other from experience: If you think about our relationship on a spectrum with strategic partner on one side of the spectrum and on-demand provider on the other side of the spectrum, where does (my company) fall?  Where would you like us to be?

    How has the relationship with (my company) changed in the last 12-18 months?  Gotten better, stayed the same, become more difficult?  Why?

     Look at your strategic goals for other ideas. 

     Just some ideas.  Good luck.  Sounds like fun! :)

    ------------------------------
    Stephanie Thum
    Vice President of Customer Experience
    The Export-Import Bank of the United States
    Washington DC
    ------------------------------


    Original Message


  • 6.  RE: Best questions to ask B2B customers about their experience

    Posted 01-31-2015 07:54 PM
    Kevin, My team also implements solutions for clients. We are introducing a range of CX metrics including the Net Easy Score. This will be used across the client lifecycle from onboarding of the client through implementation and on into the maintenance activities. ------------------------------ Russell Graham Managing Director Standard Chartered Bank Singapore ------------------------------
    Original Message