Acquiring Customer Feedback

1. Acquiring Customer Feedback Presented By: Sara Baker Katy Kodish April Parker Marko Vucajnk

2. Introduction • Important objective for marketing firms • Purpose: Take a product, research, & promote • Means nothing if customer feedback isn’t obtained • Making a profit is wonderful – but why? • Variety of forms • Focus Groups • Direct Mail • Telephone Interviews • Online Measures (Ex. Surveys) • Customer is always right! • Must know their opinion to build entire marketing strategy

3. Needs Assessment Methods(s) • Observation • What are the current methods being utilized? • How are these methods being carried out? • What is the general synopsis of the customer? • What is the exact target market? • Is the best way to reach this target market being used? • Would it be easy to implement the use of an additional method?

4. Needs Assessment Methods(s) con’t • Interviews • Do you believe that the methods being utilized are the best for obtaining customer feedback? Why or why not? • Do you think that there is room for improvement in these areas? • If you had to pick one method to utilize, what would it be and why? • Do you obtain quality feedback from customers in terms of usage for marketing research? • Does marketing utilize the information you acquire from customer feedback regularly?

5. Trainee Position • Members of the strategic development department • Specifically market analysts who focus on market research and product development

6. Nature of Trainees • Range in approximately three to ten years of experience as market analysts • Prior experience will play a key role • Bachelor’s degree in marketing or a business-related field

7. Nature of Trainees con’t • Skills and abilities • Tracking and maintenance of competitive and demographic information • Identification of new developments within each specified industry • Extensive monitoring of news and benefit design for all local and national competitors via website and newspaper searches as well as interpersonal contacts • Maintaining up-to-date national, state and county demographics via predetermined channels • Periodic assistance with focus group planning and telephonic surveys • Accompanying sales experts on company visits to further obtain a sense of market concerns

8. Number of Trainees & Type of Organization • Number of trainees attending the session = 15 • MASK Marketing – A marketing firm dedicated to establishing and maintaining quality relationships with customers on behalf of a contracted company utilizing outsourcing effectively

9. Training Location Central Hall 1st Pacific Avenue San Diego, California 15973

10. Training Objectives • Upon completion of the training session, each trainee will be able to utilize the following methods of obtaining customer feedback: focus groups, direct mailings, telephone interviews, and online measures such as surveys through observation of each method following the training session. • After the training session has been completed, the methods utilized by the company will be reevaluated and structured as to the recommendations of the trainer in hopes of improving customer feedback through direct assistance if necessary. • Upon completion of the training session, each trainee will have a thorough knowledge of each of the four methods discussed and will concurrently be able to put these methods into practice based on the need of the company by means of observation.

11. Type of Training Activities • Cognitive - involve thinking, verbal comprehension, reasoning, and quantitative ability • Affective - build on trainee motivation and attitudes • Psychomotor skills also utilized in activities • Ex. Drawing in the direct mail activity

12. Length of Training • Nine hours in length

13. Topics Outline • I. Focus Groups • A. Brief Overview of Focus Groups • B. Basics of Conducting Focus Groups • C. Getting More Out of Your Focus Groups • D. Closing Thoughts • E. Activity • II. Direct Mail • A. Ways to Acquire a Customer Mailing List • B. Guidelines to Follow When Conducting an Effective Mail Campaign • C. Handout – “9 Ways to Make a Direct Mail Letter Effective” • D. Activity • E. Handout – “10 Tips from a Direct Mail Specialist” • F. Closing Activity

14. Topics Outline con’t • III. Telephone Interviews • A. Advantages and Disadvantages of Utilizing Telephone Research • B. Assumptions in Utilizing Telephone Research • C. Telephone Survey Guidelines • D. Sample Fall Back Statements • E. Activity – Interview Training • IV. Online Measures • A. Brief Description • B. Types of Online Measures • C. Activity • D. Surveys – Assistance in Development • E. Surveys – Consideration in Designing

15. Training Session Agenda • I. (7:45 – 8:00) Welcome/Refreshments • II. (8:00 – 8:10) Overview/Importance of the Session; Breakdown of Activities • III. (8:10 – 10:10) Focus Groups -----------------Break (10 minutes)---------------------- • IV. (10:20 – 12:20) Direct Mail • Lunch (12:20 – 12:50) • V. (12:50 – 2:50) Telephone Interviews ---------------Break (10 minutes)------------------------ • VI. (3:00 – 5:00) Online Methods (Ex. Surveys) • VII. Conclusion of session

16. Ice Breaker • Explanation of activity • Memory-based

17. Training Strategy/Methodology • Lecture-based • Efficient way to get information across (limited time) • Effective in transfer of verbal information • Mixture • Business games • Team training • Role-playing

18. Training Technology/Media • Depends on how the trainer structures the content • Easy format to transfer to PowerPoint if preferred • Computers must be utilized in a few of the activities • Additional supplements can be added • Youtube videos • Online games • Podcasts

19. Training Content & Activities • I. Focus Groups • Brief Overview • Basics of Conducting Focus Groups • Activity – Think, Pair, Share (Pitfall Activity) • Closing Thoughts • Focus Group Activity (If time permits)

20. Training Content & Activities con’t • II. Direct Mail • Ways to Acquire a Customer Mailing List • Guidelines to Follow When Conducting an Effective Direct Mail Campaign • Catch the reader's attention immediately • Offer the reader an incentive for responding • Handout - 9 Ways to Make a Direct Mail Letter Effective • Activity • Handout - 10 Tips from a Direct Mail Specialist • Closing Activity

21. Training Content & Activities con’t • III. Telephone Interviews • Advantages and Disadvantages of Utilizing Telephone Research • Assumptions in Utilizing Telephone Research • Telephone Survey Guidelines • Sample Fall Back Statements • Activity – Interview Training

22. Training Content & Activities con’t • IV. Online Measures • Brief Description • Types of Online Measures • Activity • Surveys – Assistance in Development • Surveys – Considerations in Designing

23. Structure/Activities/Recommendations For Ensuring Transfer of Learning • Increased rate when they know the reason they attending the session and what they are expected to learn • Need time to practice what they’ve learned • Team training activities • Meaningful training content • Store in long term memory • Writing • Drawing • Transfer • Role-playing • Structure of training room = conducive to learning • Mirror work experiences

24. Evaluation Procedures • Examine cognitive and skill based outcomes • Trainees will complete • A decision making question to measure their learning ability and how familiar they are with completing a process or following a procedure • A behavior based rating form to measure the amount of skills the trainees have prior to this session • We want to know if the trainees can: • Recognize a customer’s concern • Make an accurate decision • Collaborate with others • Communicate effectively with customers

25. Learning Measures  Read and answer the following question below, check all that apply: 1. If I were told that customer feedback was needed for a new product by a certain deadline I would: _______ Collaborate with others to produce a solution. _______ Consider the best solution I feel. _______ Compare other company’s or industry techniques. _______ Consider the different methods to acquire customer feedback.

26. Behavior measure • Rating task: Consider your experiences with different market and product developments over the past three months and observing customer reactions. Read the definition and behaviors associated with the skill. Then complete your ratings using the following scale: Always Usually Sometimes Seldom Never 1 2 3 4 5 I. Sensitivity: Ability to deal effectively with customer needs, knowing what information to communicate to whom, Ability to deal with people from all over the world. To what extent in the past three months have you: _______ 1 Expressed recognition of the feelings, needs, and concerns of customers? _______ 2 Communicated a customer concern with others? _______ 3 Provided incoming information and news to others to perform their job? _______ 4 Avoided conflict between customers and others? _______ 5 Encouraged customers to continue to give feedback? II. Decisiveness: Ability to recognize when customer feedback could affect new developments. To what extent in the past three months have you: _______6 Considered different decision alternatives? _______7 Combined with others to come up with a solution? _______8 Compared results of other company negative feedback and new developments? _______9 Stuck to a decision you made regardless of the outcome? _______10 Made an accurate decision?

27. Follow-up Procedures • Affective outcomes and results • Trainees will complete a questionnaire to measure their reactions, attitudes, the structure of our presentation, and the accuracy of our training content • Provide feedback on how successful we were at meeting our objectives • Important items to gain: • A thorough understanding of how to utilize the four methods to acquire customer feedback • More independent thinking • More awareness of how to evaluate industry change • More quality-based relationships with customers • More verbal comprehension • More reasoning and quantitative abilities

28. Reaction Measure Read each statement below, indicate the extent to which you agree or disagree with each statement using the scale below.   Strongly Disagree Disagree Neither Agree Strongly Agree 1 2 3 4 5 1. The training content was logically organized. 1 2 3 4 5 2. The training session prepared me to make future decisions. 1 2 3 4 5 3. The information I received was very beneficial. 1 2 3 4 5 4. There was enough time to learn the training content. 1 2 3 4 5  5. The group activities created a comfortable environment. 1 2 3 4 5  6. The different trainers brought their own ideas and information. 1 2 3 4 5  7. I clearly understood the training session objectives. 1 2 3 4 5  8. Overall, I was satisfied with the training session. 1 2 3 4 5

29. Training Budget

30. Training Room Layout • Fan-type seating arrangement • Can easily switch from listening to a presentation to practicing in groups • Communicate with everyone in the room • Effective for many group activities we will conduct • Provides good visibility • Provides comfort and adequate work space

31. Questions?