Collecting customer feedback provides invaluable insights into improving your products, services and overall customer experience. But making sense of large volumes of feedback data can be challenging without the right tools. This guide will explore the top customer feedback tools on the market and how to choose the right solution for your business.
The Growing Importance of Customer Feedback
A staggering 73% of customers say the overall customer experience is an important factor in their purchasing decisions.^1^ With consumers having more options than ever, customer retention depends on consistently delivering stellar experiences.
That‘s why actively soliciting customer feedback is critical for businesses today. According to one survey, 96% of customers say they are more likely to become repeat buyers when companies implement their feedback.^2^
Key benefits of gathering customer insights include:
- Pinpointing pain points. Feedback tools make it easy to identify common frustrations and issues. You can then prioritize quick fixes.
- Monitoring sentiment. Track how sentiment towards your company changes over time.
- Driving product improvements. Customer insights provide a roadmap for enhancing your offering.
- Informing business strategy. Feedback should guide your messaging, support, pricing and all strategic decisions.
- Boosting customer lifetime value. Taking action on feedback improves retention and satisfaction.
But while 80% of companies collect customer feedback, only 36% feel they are effectively using those insights.^3^ This guide will explore how investing in the right feedback tools can help close that gap.
Key Capabilities of Customer Feedback Tools
Customer feedback tools collect, analyze and help act on consumer insights. Here are some key capabilities to look for:
Real-Time Analysis
Real-time analysis helps you address issues proactively. As feedback comes in, you can respond right away to prevent small issues from becoming major problems. This is especially useful for customer service teams who can resolve concerns quicker.
Here‘s an example workflow showing how real-time analysis works:
- Customer fills out feedback form on website.
- Feedback tool performs instant analysis.
- Relevant team is notified of any urgent issues.
- Staff reaches out to unhappy customer to resolve problem.
This real-time approach results in 50% higher customer satisfaction compared to delayed responses.^4^
Customizable Dashboards
Customizable dashboards allow you to view analytics tailored to your business needs. For example, key metrics you may track include:
- Customer satisfaction scores
- Feedback volume over time
- Sentiment analysis
- Your net promoter score
- Keyword mentions
Dashboards can also be filtered by data source (emails, chat transcripts, survey responses, etc), location, customer segment and other parameters.
Example of a customizable feedback dashboard
Auto-Tagging
Auto-tagging uses natural language processing (NLP) and machine learning to categorize open-ended feedback. This makes it fast and easy to identify the most common topics and issues mentioned.
For example, all feedback related to shipping delays, stock outs or damaged shipments would be tagged as relating to "delivery issues". Companies can then prioritize improving delivery first before tackling other feedback topics.
Auto-tagging streamlines analyzing large volumes of customer feedback data
Data Visualization
Data visualization transforms feedback data into easy-to-understand charts, graphs and maps.
Popular visualizations include:
- Sentiment charts showing positive/negative sentiment over time
- Word clouds highlighting most frequent terms
- Geographic maps displaying feedback by location
- Comparison graphs contrasting product/location/segment metrics
Presenting data visually makes it easier to spot trends and patterns.
Data visualization reveals insights that may be hidden in raw data
Language Support
For global businesses, it‘s crucial that your feedback tool supports collecting and analyzing data in multiple languages. This ensures you can capture insights from international customers.
Look for tools with automatic translation and tools optimized for non-English naming conventions.
Comparing the Top Customer Feedback Tools
Based on market presence and reviews, here are the top customer feedback tools:
- Qualtrics
- Birdeye
- UserVoice
- Caplena
- Kapiche
- Chattermill
- Thematic
- UserReport
Here‘s an overview of how the main platforms compare across key capabilities:
| Tool | Starting Price | Real-time Analysis | Auto Tagging | Data Visualization | Languages |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Qualtrics | $1,500/mo | Yes | No | Yes | 16+ |
| Birdeye | $199/mo | No | Yes | Yes | 1 |
| UserVoice | $799/mo | Yes | Yes | Yes | 11+ |
| Caplena | $99/mo | Yes | No | Yes | 36 |
| Kapiche | $2,650/mo | Yes | Yes | Yes | 6 |
| Chattermill | Custom | Yes | Yes | No | 10+ |
| Thematic | $2,000/mo | Yes | Yes | Yes | 100+ |
| UserReport | $29/mo | Yes | No | No | 60+ |
Summary of key capabilities of top customer feedback tools
As you assess options, prioritize must-have capabilities. For most, real-time analysis and data visualization will be key.
Next, we‘ll explore popular use cases and how to select the right platform.
Choosing the Right Feedback Tool
Every business has unique needs when it comes to customer feedback tools. Assess your specific use case by asking questions like:
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What volume of feedback do you anticipate? Tools like UserReport are ideal for smaller volumes while enterprise tools like Qualtrics can handle large datasets.
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Will you run surveys or analyze unstructured data? Surveys require advanced questionnaires while unstructured text requires AI for auto-tagging.
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What platforms do customers use? Optimized integrations with popular platforms like Shopify can be advantageous.
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Does your team need real-time alerts? Real-time capabilities allow for immediate issue resolution.
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Who will use the insights? Simplicity and ease of use are key if non-technical teams will view reports.
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What‘s your budget? Prices range from $29/mo to over $1,500/mo for enterprise-level capabilities.
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What languages do you need? Businesses with international customers require multilingual support.
Take advantage of free trials to experience platforms firsthand before deciding.
Below are best practices when getting started with your new feedback tool:
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Make feedback submission easy. Place feedback forms prominently on your website and emails.
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Ask open-ended questions. This provides richer insights compared to multiple choice questions alone.
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Analyze text feedback with AI. Use tools like natural language processing to mine themes and sentiment.
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Create feedback loops. Share insights cross-departmentally and follow up with customers.
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Track metrics over time. Visualize how key feedback KPIs change quarter-over-quarter.
Key Takeaways
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Actively soliciting customer feedback provides invaluable insights that directly improve customer retention and lifetime value.
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Leading feedback tools make it easy to analyze large volumes of unstructured data.
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Look for key capabilities like real-time analysis, dashboards, auto-tagging and data visualization when comparing options.
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Choose a platform tailored to your use case, data volumes and team needs.
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Follow best practices like making feedback easy and closing the loop with customers.
The right customer feedback tool gives you the insights needed to evolve your business. Using the wisdom of customers, you can continually refine products, services and experiences to deepen loyalty and satisfaction.
Sources:
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“Future of CX”. PwC. Retrieved March 10, 2023.
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“Closing the Customer Feedback Loop”. SurveyMonkey. Retrieved March 11, 2023.
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“Only 29% of companies that collect customer feedback use it effectively”. SuperOffice. May 19, 2021.
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“The ROI of Real-Time Customer Service”. Qualtrics XM Institute. November 15, 2021.