16 Comments to “Bloggy Question 16 — Customer Feedback”

1. July 23rd, 2006 at 5:32 pm
   Joe said

   Hey Liz,
   Probably the first thing I would suggest is to read the Blog’s comments.

   There is so much said in various ways, (you may have to read between the lines), but you will get so much insight into what people are thinking it is well worth the time and effort to read the comments.

   This goes without saying, RESPOND to the Comments. People like a personal touch…

   Joe

   ps It is good to put a voice to the blog I read daily… Thanks for thinking of me when you were visiting my hometown.
   J.

2. July 23rd, 2006 at 5:52 pm
   Mike said

   I’d tell the absolute truth - whether it’s favorable or not.

   If it’s a good blog/business, the truth won’t bother her.

   If it sucks, somebody needs to tell her to keep her from wasting her time.

   Caveat #1 - if it’s bad, I’d have a list of topics I think would be better for her to write about ready.

   Caveat #2 - You have to be prepared for the friendship to end if she’s not man enough to take the truth. If she ends the friendship because of the truth, you might be better off without it.

   Caveat #3 - if you can’t handle executing #2 and suffering the consequences, do what we all do ….LIE !

3. July 23rd, 2006 at 8:14 pm
   ME Strauss said

   Hi Joe,
   Great advice to read between the lines and to respond to what folks are saying that only encourages more feeback.

   It was great to talk to you last night!

4. July 23rd, 2006 at 8:17 pm
   ME Strauss said

   Mike,
   You are the very best at what you do!
   Tell the truth, unless you’re sure she can’t take it. Either way be prepared. That’s such great advice.

   Some folks don’t want to know the answer to question they ask, do they?

5. July 23rd, 2006 at 11:09 pm
   Cat said

   “she wants to know what folks really think about her blog and her business. What advice would you give her to help her find out?”

   For ‘folks’ it could just be a matter of putting up a poll with areas for extensive answers and a back and forth on her blog (if it’s that type). She could spread it out in various posts to gather the information in.

   But since it’s an important question that might impact her bottom line, I’d also go a more professional route.

   For the advice on her blog: I’d suggest having a couple of decent blogging designers to put together a full, professional critique. The report would include samples and suggestions so she could understand where they are coming from. Design may be subjective, but navigation and the ease at which you can access the information is not.

   For advice on her business: Again, I’d advise to go to those in the know for educated answers.

   Ditto on the advice above in finding what’s being said around the internet - suggest that she read the comments. In addition, google, use technorati and other blogging tools.

   And if ‘folks’ includes me, well then, that’s different. If I had the time I’d give a run down on the blog design itself. For the business, I would need to have had a long time knowledge as well as experience in that field before opening my mouth.

   cat

6. July 23rd, 2006 at 11:13 pm
   ME Strauss said

   Cat,
   You’re the kind of friend that I would want in just that sort of situation and just the sort of friend that such a blogger would really need, but might not want to listen to.

   Gosh the wealth of information you offer. You’re like an entire world survey with a design review and an customer response survey pulled toether all in one. I hope your friend would know the value of what you’d be giving. . . .

7. July 23rd, 2006 at 11:28 pm
   Cat said

   Thanks Liz,

   “… but might not want to listen to.”

   I know, it happens all the time. Even with clients.

8. July 24th, 2006 at 7:58 am
   Mark White said

   As others have stated above, I think there has to be a mixed approach to a question like this.

   Firstly, if it’s a business blog, then the blog should have been set up with an audience in mind both from the point of view of content as well as look and feel. These are the people that she really needs the opinion of as they are the ones she is looking to reach.

   So use the blog itself and ask them. Use that community element that a blog is so good at creating to find out it you are ticking all the boxes for those you want to attract. Caveat: you have to be prepared not only to accept the responses but to act on them. Asking for their opinion and them ignoring is likely to give the wrong signals. After that, find others who fit into your target audience and ask! They are likely to be able to give an unbiased opinion of what they would expect to find without being influenced by what the blog currently contains.

   Apart from this and the excellent advice above (esp from Cat), I would also turn the question round and ask her what her opinion of it is. A question like this normally means that the blogger does not feel entirely happy with what is happening on their blog and in their business - it is also likely that they do in fact know what the issues might be so. So I would encourage her to express her thoughts and opinions as well - they will often be near the mark.

9. July 24th, 2006 at 8:08 am
   ME Strauss said

   Hi Mark!
   Welcome. What good points you make. Thanks for taking the time to write them.

   So use the blog itself and ask them. Use that community element that a blog is so good at creating to find out it you are ticking all the boxes for those you want to attract. Caveat: you have to be prepared not only to accept the responses but to act on them.

   Ask your readers what THEY think is a big one. Even for a non-business blog, asking the audience how it’s going is sage advice for this situation. She might need help in figuring out how to do that because most readers are shy to offer even the slightest positive criticism to a writer they like.

   Asking her what she thinks is wrong is also a great point. I know that when I start asking folks that question, I’m often thinking about what I think is going on and trying to confirm my own suspicions. With the right friend, just saying “I think this might be the problem,” can often get things rolling.

   Hope you’ll keep adding to the conversation, Mark. You’ve got insight and experience that adds value to what we talk about.

10. July 24th, 2006 at 10:16 pm
    ah Pek said

    Hi Liz,

    I like what Mike said,

    Caveat #3 - if you can’t handle executing #2 and suffering the consequences, do what we all do ….LIE !

    I think that what I get when I asked my friends about my blog! LOL.

11. July 24th, 2006 at 10:23 pm
    ME Strauss said

    Hi Ah Pek,
    I can always find something that I know is worth keeping about anyone or anything that I look at. I’m lucky in that way, I guess.

    What folks are looking for is analysis. That usually starts with, “Hmmm, what I know is . . . “

12. July 25th, 2006 at 7:15 am
    JohnB said

    Such a simple question … such a complex answer.

    First, and this isn’t sexist, this is the sort of question that is likely posed by a woman rather than a man. The men I know who maintain web pages/sites/blogs don’t really care what you think about their pages/sites/blogs. They care about what they are saying and what the readers of the blogs are saying. If you aren’t a reader of the page/site/blog, you’re not likely to have been asked this question by a man. Notice Mike’s reply above: (to paraphrase) answer the question that was asked. Nothing more; nothing less.

    But the women … ah, that’s a completely different situation. Women’s conversational patterns differ significant from those of men. When a woman opens with a conversational gambit like this one (”What do you think of …”) it isn’t always a desire for specific feedback but is, as the word I specifically chose, a gambit for a conversation that will include, among other things, your views on site/page/blog. Check out Mark’s answer. After answering the question he considers that there might be an alternative approach: that the question isn’t a question but an opening for a dialog.

    I am trapped in my male conversational patterns: when I read the question my immediate thought — *immediate* thought — was ‘why was it started in the first place?’ That’s probably why I liked Cat’s answer the best: she differentiated between “just folks” and “business folks” (not her terms — so don’t go looking for them — just my nomenclature for the bifurcation she recognizes).

    So … me? I hit a number of blogs in round robin fashion. If the question were asked of me, I’d take my initial train of thought and start with a variety of open-ended probing questions (generically: who, what, where, why, when, how) to see if there was even a fit between my knowledgebase and the page/site/blog direction. If there is a match then I’d suggest a meeting where we can discuss this further (I’m always looking for billable relationships) and if there isn’t then I’d back away explaining it was out of my area of expertise.

13. July 25th, 2006 at 7:28 am
    ME Strauss said

    Hi johnB,
    Though I hold my own opinions about how women and men approach things, I think you’re a bit quick to say this is a woman’s question. When I wrote it originally I used the pronoun “he.” I was thinking of a new blogger in either case, and I’ve heard the question much more from men than from women. I get this question a lot via email from me who want me to stop by their blog and give my opinion on what I see. Are they, then, just playing up to the blonde at the top of this page?

    It’s easy to assume that all folks think like we do, but the world is much larger than we are.

    That aside, men often want to solve specific problems, whereas women tend to want to debrief even after the problem has been solved. I tend to give feedback that comes from my head, not my heart — analysis, observation, and detailed comment — staying far from words like good, bad, and ugly and choosing instead words like effective, working, and distracting to me.

    Billable relationships seems to be similar to the approach that I take. My words would be reader’s viewpoint.

    Thanks for your comment. It’s fun to joust bit.

    Do come back and tell me where I’ve missed the boat or misunderstood what you’re saying.

14. July 25th, 2006 at 12:23 pm
    JohnB said

    Not too much to tussle with! I was perhaps premature in identifying it as a woman’s question though I thought I’d been sufficiently expositive in subsequent paras to show that one group (that I identified as X-chromosome challenged) that saw the question as a direct question needing a direct answer while others (blessed with Y-chromosomes only) saw this as an opportunity to explore related areas.

    After that I think you sum it up well — especially in a [vbg] Y-chromosome manner by inviting further dialog. When time permits (as now) then it is my pleasure; when it does not (the rest of my time) then it is my loss.

    As for the self-deprecating “blond at the top of the page” observation … the mere fact that you can refer to yourself in this manner suggests that you are well-grounded and open — and that those who approached you already understood you and felt as comfortable about approaching you as you felt about billing them.

15. July 25th, 2006 at 3:19 pm
    ME Strauss said

    You know, JohnB, you’re right. I hope you’ll come tonight to Tuesday comment night and explain your thinking even further.

16. September 15th, 2006 at 8:30 pm
    Successful Blog - Bloggy Question 20 — A Significant Other Says “No Blog” said

    [...] Related articles Bloggy Question 19 — A Blogging Life of Fiction Bloggy Question 18 — Suddenly You Have Bloggy Question 17 — The Official Writing Book Discussion Bloggy Question 16 — Customer Feedback [...]