Product feedback is your ticket to a successful business. You need feedback in order to perfect your product and earn trust. But getting customers to take the time to give you actionable feedback is challenging. Everyone is busy and distracted, and it’s just too easy to ignore emails from brands asking for product feedback.
To motivate customers to deliver the kind of feedback you’re looking for, you need an email message that entices them to respond. Below we’ve found four examples of brands doing it right and how you can learn from them.
1. “A quick question for you” from Headspace
Yes, it’s a survey. But not boring.
As a Headspacer who’s been using our product, we want to hear from you.
We want Headspace to be the best resource possible, so we’re looking for users to chat with and give feedback to help us improve the experience for everyone. If you’re interested, just fill out this super-short survey and someone from our team will be in touch. Thanks!
Thank you,
The Headspace Team
What makes this product feedback email great?
A few things make this email from Headspace a standout. First, it immediately acknowledges the elephant in the room — that they’re receiving yet another survey email. And the quirky assurance that the survey won’t be boring piques curiosity.
Next, it labels the customer “a Headspacer,” making them feel part of a community. And as a community member, their feedback is truly valued. Anytime you can make someone feel a part of a social group, you connect with the innate human need for belonging. It’s highly motivational.
Finally, the email assures the user that the survey is “super-short,” reducing the time-investment barrier. All of these elements add up to an email that’s likely to generate a strong response.
2. “What’s one thing Olark could do better for you?” from Olark
Hey!
We’re making plans at Olark for 2014. In order to understand what our customers want and need from Olark, please write me back and let me know your answer to this question:
What is one thing that you wish Olark could do better for you?
Cheers,
Sunir Shah, Chief Marketing Olarker
What makes this product feedback email great?
This email from Olark has several positives going for it. For one thing, it’s from a real person, and it sounds like a personal email rather than a mass-generated marketing missive. That alone increases response rate.
Additionally, it only asks a single question, so the user knows they won’t face a slew of questions in a lengthy survey. And the user knows this even before opening the email — the subject line is clear. There’s no need to click to take a survey. All the user has to do is hit “reply,” just as they would with a personal email.
3. “2 minutes to tell us what you think” from DocuSign
Hey Ashley,
Your experience with DocuSign is important. Please take a few moments to give us feedback and comments in this quick survey.
We promise to make good use of your thoughts.
Sincerely,
Marisabel Agosto, Free Customer Advocate
What makes this product feedback email great?
This message also looks like a personal email from a real person — an immediate response-booster. And the subject line tells the user exactly how much time will be required to respond. The user can quickly click on a survey link and spend two minutes responding.
Additionally, the email gives the user confidence that their feedback will actually be taken into account. It assures, “We promise to make good use of your thoughts.” The email makes the user feels valued, which motivates them to respond.
4. “OnePageCRM and Your Company - questions/feedback?” from OnePageCRM
Hi Ashley,
Michael here, the CEO of OnePageCRM.
Even though I lead the company, I’m a natural "product person" and the user experience you get from our app means a lot to me.
Our users love OnePage and the focus it brings to sales, but if there’s anything that’s bugging you, even the smallest of issues that could be done better, I want to hear about it - so hit the reply button.
And ok, this is an automated email, but if you reply it comes directly to me and will be answered by me.
Best regards,
Michael FitzGerald, OnePageCRM
What makes this product feedback email great?
This email misses a huge opportunity by failing to personalize the subject line, but it immediately gets better once the user opens the email. It feels personal, even though it (refreshingly honestly) admits that it’s automated. It also insists that if the user replies, the CEO will personally respond — an extremely rare occurrence, so it stands out and prompts the user to hit “reply” just to see what the CEO will say.
It also asks just one simple question and makes it easy for the user to respond by not requiring a survey click, just a simple reply to the email itself.
Mining gold through product feedback emails
Product feedback is gold for a company that is continually trying to improve their product and make customers happier. You need to know exactly what your customers like and what they find missing, or you can’t accomplish your mission. Strong product feedback emails that take advantage of human psychology will help you boost response rates and collect the valuable feedback you’re looking for.
Written by Laura MacPherson
Originally Published: 1 May 2020