Article Contributed by Laura Moisei
We all like to be prompted with the right questions. Showed that our opinion matters. Involved in other people’s lives.
Questions are effective means to find valuable insights and to engage people by your side. As Dorothy Leeds points out, knowing how to ask helps you mend things even before they are broken. The right question at the right time may boost your carrier as an entrepreneur and transform your business for the very best.
In your early years of childhood, this is what you did: ask questions all the time and evolve by doing this. It’s exactly the same for a first time entrepreneur. You are in a special stage of your business life, when you should try to deeply understand your existing customers and start a long term commitment to show courtesy towards everyone.
So what questions do people like to hear?
“How satisfied are you with our service?”
There are countless variations for this one, as well as an infinite number of possible answers. A well-known retailer in my area has its checkout employees ask every customer “Was everything ok in the store?” when handing them the receipt. They seize an opportunity of obtaining feedback that would otherwise slip away as each customer passes by.
Think of the all times customer question: “What am I getting from this?” A wise business representative would reframe it into something like: “Look, this is what’s in there for you. Did you actually get what you wanted?” This means you are presenting your offer and the Unique Selling Proposition in a comprehensive manner while asking the customer for feedback.
“What can I do to make you happy?”
Of course, a more common alternative is the typical support question “How may I help you?”. This is more than just etiquette. It should reflect openness and real concern to fulfilling people’s needs. It’s very important to use “what” or “how” instead of “Is there anything I can do for you?”. The last one is already a closed question, with yes/no type of answer and you risk to get a direct “no” with no further nuances. Generally speaking, it’s best to ask precise questions that prompt for direct answers, but not closed ones.
“What can we bring around that wasn’t possible before?”
This means asking for people’s suggestion on new areas of improvement for your business. Customers will really appreciate your proactive attitude and your willing to involve them in important changes.
You may argue that research and planning are already part of your core missions as a manager. Indeed it is your part, but haven’t you ever experienced a gap of inspiration? There are moments when you get such gaps out of too much involvement. This is when you can very much use some ideas from outside, so ask for them!
“Do my actions show respect for you and your time?”
With so many things to do in one day’s time, it’s actually a little miracle when someone stops to talk to you, so be thankful for that. Check whether you didn’t exceed the unspoken limits. Of course, this may depend on people’s momentarily mood, but it’s always good to ask.
This kind of question is particularly useful in customer surveys. Place it as a self-evaluating question at the end of the questionnaire. It can be something like “How much time did this take you to fill in?” and a likert scale asking “How comfortable this was to you?”. It tells people that you value their effort and consequently allows you to tweak your communication strategy.
What are the best questions I’m not even considering?
We are only humans and we sometimes skip the essence while trying to stick to a plan. As you exchange viewpoints with your customers, show openness towards unplanned topics too. People like to speak their minds without having the feeling they are undergoing a fixed interview. It’s always instructive to hear their own points of interest around your business.
Go ahead and use variations of these questions in your customer surveys to make them yield on useful data. Have those questions as part of your face to face interaction with customers. Post them on your Facebook wall as polls. Asking these proves you are a social wise entrepreneur with respect for your customer experience.
As for any business process, timing is crucial. Lose no time in asking the right questions. Typically, it’s good to ask for feedback in a reasonable time span from the relevant experience, when the impression is still strong, so that answers won’t be biased by the pressure of the moment but neither diluted by oblivion.
Ask the proper questions and people will love to interact with you. It even happens for the question itself to be the answer. You can win people over just by daring to ask. Go on!
About the Author
Laura Moisei writes for 123ContactForm online survey builder that helps small businesses get in touch with their customers. Laura is a dedicated blogger and small business consultant with a drive for technology.