Author: Poornima Mohandas

Time to read: 2 minutes


In a recent conversation we had with the CEO of a men’s wear brand, he told us, “We completely missed the millennial generation. We failed to deliver a personalized shopping experience.” With the median age in India being 26 years, most retailers cannot afford to ignore the millennial generation.  

As Nikhil Ranjan, managing director of fine writing instruments and lifestyle accessories brand, William Penn put it once, “The day somebody states with a 100% guarantee that they know their customers, they are living in fool’s paradise.” With customers constantly evolving it’s a constant chase for retailers to stay on top of their game. So how do you collect feedback and avoid that nasty review on Google reviews?


Here are five ideas to improve your retail customer experience that we have seen work for our customers:


1. Collect New Product Feedback From Your Frontline Staff

Frontline employees constantly receive customer feedback on merchandise. However, most of this rich feedback remains unutilized and never reaches the decision makers at the corporate office. Why not listen to your frontline staff? 

A popular men’s wear brand used precisely this strategy when they launched their new product line, a women’s wear line. With their ears to the ground, they were able to quickly course correct around their fit and styling. The front line staff’s feedback was given to the tailors who quickly made changes. This was possible thanks to a direct channel of communication between the frontline store staff and the design team at headquarters. They are now a popular brand in the women’s wear category.


2. Make Surveys Easy for Your Customers to Take 

Ever taken a paper-based survey after a long day of shopping with the kids? Sigh. Yeah, that’s exactly the way your customers feel when you hand them a pamphlet after they pay your bill. Make it convenient for them. Serve up the survey on their mobile phone so they can take it at their convenience. 

For your most loyal customers offer them a treat and make them feel a part of your brand. Here’s how:

  • Invite your loyal customers for a sneak peek into the latest collection about to hit your shelves. You make them feel special plus you gather valuable feedback to improve your product and enhance sell-through.
  • The best way to know if customers are having in-store experiences the way you planned it, is to ask them directly. This can make them feel a part of your brand and openly communicate their feedback.


3. Survey Lost Customers

All stores have customers who walk in the door but walk out without buying. Did they not purchase because the product wasn’t available, did they not like what they saw or was the store staff not attentive to their needs? 

These are people who you should listen to but how do you when you don’t have their contact details. Here’s how:

  • Place a QR code prominently on your store shelves or on the front door
  • Encourage shoppers to take the survey
  • Let them scan it and take the survey at their convenience

This feedback can help you fix the underlying problems if any. What’s more, just showing lost customers you care might make them come back.


4. Calculate NPS Scores

NPS or Net Promoter Score is a scale that ranges from negative one hundred (-100) to positive one hundred (+100) that helps determine the willingness of customers to recommend your company’s products to their peers. Your NPS score indicates how satisfied and loyal your customers are. Since the scale ranges from -100 to +100, any score above 0 is considered good or above average. A score of 50 is considered excellent while anything above 70 is considered exceptional. This is an important business metric you want to track.


5. Collect Qualitative Feedback

It’s one thing to collect a large amount of qualitative data and quite another to make sense of it. It is easy to be bogged down by surveys especially when done on pen and paper. Easily analyze qualitative feedback using advanced reporting and survey analytics.


There you are, five easy ways to gather valuable feedback from your customers without being a nuisance. Make your surveys short, sweet, and convenient to take. Don’t restrict yourself to just customers, gather feedback from your front line staff as well as lost customers. Ultimately, this will help you deliver better and more consistent customer experiences across your store network.