Manufacturers' Association of Northwest Pennsylvania
Business Magazine VOL. XXI, NO. 5, May 2008

Next Month's Feature:
2008 Annual Report

Customer Satisfaction Survey

Most unhappy customers don't complain...They leave silently...Then, they tell others about their bad experiences.

Cultivating and nourishing customers is essential for further success with both current customers and new prospects. What are your customers thinking about their experiences with your business? Though we would like to believe we know how our customers feel about our efforts to satisfy their needs, when we survey our customers, we are often surprised by their responses.

Customer satisfaction surveys are a crucial tool for businesses that want to stay in touch with their customers' needs while simultaneously measuring their company's potential for continued success and improvement.

The primary objectives of a customer satisfaction survey are to determine ways to keep customers happy and loyal. Why be concerned with customer loyalty? The reasons are multiple:

  • The cost of attracting a new customer far exceeds the cost of retaining an existing one.
  • High levels of customer satisfaction and high customer retention rates are strongly and positively correlated, and both are related to profitability.
  • Raising customer retention rates by even a modest amount, such as five percentage points, can increase the value of an average customer between 30 percent and 125 percent.
  • Loyal customers are less price sensitive. That is, they will pay a premium for goods and services.
  • Loyal customers not only repurchase more and more often, but also are more likely to recommend a company to their friends and colleagues.

The Association can individually tailor a customer satisfaction survey to meet the needs of your organization. A confidential, customized survey will be developed, and our staff will meet your management team to introduce the survey and give instructions regarding its use. You may choose to either administer the survey yourself and prepare your own results analysis or hire our staff as an independent third party to administer the survey and prepare the report for you.

The survey will provide you with a vehicle to capitalize on your successes, improve on problematic areas, design staff training and form the basis for your strategic planning activities.

For more information, call the HR Services Division at 814/833-3200 or 800/815-2660, or submit the form below.

Please send more information on your Customer Satisfaction Survey service to: