In 2016, I was so intrigued by the novelty of ratings buttons in a restroom in the Frankfurt airport that I snapped this photo. Just eight years later, the constant barrage of feedback requests has become overwhelming, even for this market research enthusiast.
Eric Taub explores this trend in his New York Times piece about ratings review burnout, Tell Us How We Did – Anytime, Anywhere, which delves into this phenomenon.
My four key takeaways from the piece are:
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- It’s never been easier for businesses to solicit online customer feedback.
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- With Customer Acquisition Cost as a success metric, businesses are treating every interaction as an opportunity to develop a relationship rather than one-time exchanges.
- Consumers are growing wary of overly positive reviews, especially as more companies aggressively work to acquire 5-star reviews.
- Companies that take the time to respond to both positive and negative reviews are viewed favorably by consumers.
Taub’s insights are a much-needed reminder to approach requests for customer feedback thoughtfully. My litmus test includes the following considerations:
- Does acquiring the information outweigh the potential risk of losing customer access due to unsubscribes or disengagement?
- Will the feedback be actionable? For example, knowing that someone thought your clinic’s bathroom was dirty yesterday is immediately actionable, whereas just being told that your Net Promoter rating is a 62 will require broader analysis to guide improvement efforts.
- Does statistical significance matter for your goals? Will the number of likely respondents yield meaningful results? If you’re a new company, even a handful of Amazon reviews can be valuable. On the other hand, if you’re tracking your Net Promoter Score, the accuracy is dependent on a robust sample size – typically roughly 300 respondents.
By thinking through these considerations, businesses can gather truly valuable feedback without overwhelming their customers or compromising their engagement.
Bonus: Here’s a 1988 picture of me with Mayor Ed Koch in Central Park, mentioned in the Taub article, just after he yelled “How am I doing?!” to the crowd.
