National Shopping Service realizes that your time is valuable,
so weve made working with us as easy as possible.
We employ a number of research tactics to gather data and materials from customers,
current and potential, as well as partners and employees. While online communication
is the most efficient feedback methodology of our current research approaches,
we are equally capable of performing market research utilizing mailouts or e-mailouts,
and/or phone surveys. Please read on for our generalized approach...
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Structuring the customer research project
Customer research requires you to collect and analyze data,
then act on the resulting information - otherwise you have invested time (and
money) without any return. How do you structure the research project for maximum
return on investment? By approaching the project scientifically.
- Choose A Topic...
First, we will describe what topic you willl study. A good example of this is
a typical restaurant customer survey. With this approach, we are interested in
the topics of food/service quality and advertising effectiveness. On the other
hand, an employee feedback program might be used to gauge reactions to different
incentive programs which themselves have specific performance areas as their topics.
- Select a Technique...
Next, we choose a research technique and a tactical approach for carrying it out.
If you're doing a customer survey, for example, choose a method (of communication,
as opposed to the type of customer contact being experienced - personal, phone,
online) such as telephone surveys, in-store surveys, or assessments administered
through a web site.
- Sample selection...
Once we have strategized a topic (or group of topics) and a method of research,
we can effectively select an appropriate sample size to address the topics required.
A sample is a subset of the larger universe you are studying (you have access
to our 185,000+ shoppers nationwide, international contractors, in-house staff,
and many other demographically diverse human resources).
The size of your sample affects the accuracy of your results, of course. If the
sample being studied is too small, errors will creep in as you generalize your
conclusions to the larger population. Thanks to years of experience, we strive
to make your sample group a true representation of the total universe you are
studying.
- The survey tool...
Whether it is a questionnaire or a list of discussion topics for a focus group
moderator, the survey tool must be developed with care. Whole books are devoted
to this subject, and many professional consulting firms work in this area. However,
even a beginner's efforts can produce results.
"CARE"
- Customer/Contractor Assessment Reporting Engine is a versatile content management,
statistical analysis, and control panel for ALL of your customer research needs.
"OpinionWeb"
- Setup in minutes, this easy online survey collection, tracking, and analysis
tool allows clients to fully administer a customer or employee survey without
the involvement or costs of the more traditional mystery shopping and other assessment
tools.
Employee
"Monitors" - Whether checking out a person's background through
our network of partners, collecting employee satisfaction surveys using online
systems, or interviewing employees upon exit, quantitative facts as well as anecdotal
and narrative information is collected and managed using web-based content management
and project management applications.
- Analyzing the results...
The final step in a customer research project is collecting and analyzing the
data. The data must be gathered and results must be tabulated, grouped into meaningful
categories, and studied until insights emerge. It takes analytical skill to turn
a pile of survey answer sheets into actionable customer and employee wisdom. That
is where NSS's experience and sophisticated analytical tools converge to find
the "nuggets of gold" in your customer or employee research.
- Drawing Conclusions...
A customer or other research project is tough to do well, but not if you have
the right mentor. Delegating the project to our specialists here at NSS will get
the job done better, faster, and without drawing your focus away from the other
aspects of your business. You should invest in your research projects in proportion
to the importance of the decisions riding on the results.
For the local chef with one or two stores, the low-budget "OpinionWeb"
(online automated comment card tool) would most likely provide just what he needed
- an early warning system to alert him to problems with the customer experience.
On the other hand, for a retailer considering signing a long-term lease on an
expensive storefront, spending several thousand dollars on research to assess
the new trade area would be money well spent.
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Privacy Matters!
When you ask customers for information, you raise concerns regarding how that
information will be stored and used. It is very important to assure customers
and employees that the data you collect will not be sold or used in any way that
might violate their privacy or be harmful to them. Let customers know that your
purpose in obtaining this knowledge is to offer products and services they are
more likely to want, and to improve other aspects of your relationship with them.
The customer information you collect is a valuable company asset and you must
protect it as such.
Your investment in customer or employee research, however modest or grand, is
an important component in your overall success. Understanding your employees will
guide you toward training, marketing, and compensation strategies that are cost-efficient
and highly effective. The best way to understand your "people" is simply
to ask them what you want to know - through the most appropriate survey techniques
for your situation.
Get started soon and continually perform customer service and employee research.
Survey your audience at intervals over time. You will keep your research knowledge
current, spot trends as they emerge, and deepen your insight into the ongoing
conditions of your business. Research takes a little time and sometimes a lot
of courage, but the effort invested will go straight to your bottom line.
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