Customer satisfaction surveys have been the bedrock homebuilders use to gather their customer feedback. The thinking goes... We sell the home. Build the home. Close the home. And then ask the customer, "How did we do?"
The formula is tried-and-true, and not just for home builders. Customer surveys have helped shape and improve the customer experience across all industries. The data collected paints a picture of the experience your team is delivering. You identify areas that need attention and implement plans to address those deficiencies. Unfortunately, the actual beneficiaries of those customer experience (or CX) improvements are your future customers. Is your CX program designed to address the needs of your customers today?
Today's customer experience landscape is more frequently defined by taking actions to improve the experience of every single customer. Making customer feedback actionable is the name of the game. Anticipating the pitfalls in the customer journey and building bridges over them. Addressing customer concerns with precision and a timely response. Our after-the-fact move-in surveys that ask, "how did we do?" are still relevant. But an even more important question to ask every customer throughout their journey is, "how are we doing?" Real-time listening and real-time response are the new standards for delivering the best possible customer experience.
One of the beauties of home building is the length of time we spend with our customers. Ideally, we've architected a well-orchestrated customer journey. We connect sales, design, production, closing, and warranty into a series of transitions that smoothly move customers from one phase to the next.
Customers are buyers, then become decorators as they design their new home. If we've done well in the planning phases, they become confident observers during construction. We then ask them to become inspectors and acceptors before they close on and move into the home. Their role and relationship with us is different at each phase. Doesn't the customer deserve to be asked for feedback after each of those unique experiences? While it's fresh in their mind. While we can respond in real-time to any bumps or bruises. Before we usher them to the next phase and potentially create problems for our downstream teammates? “Less mature companies are more likely to be doing transaction studies (i.e. Move-In surveys). But if they don't have it linked to a relationship study or a customer journey, then the chances are that the moments of truth they're measuring may not be the right ones, or they might not be in context.” - Moira Dorsey - Qualtrics XM Institute
Tools that promote real-time listening can be extremely valuable to homebuilders. But as Paul Gortzig, Director of Sales at Bokka Group is quick to point out, "Tools can only help you be more efficient at what you do. You have to have the desire to service your customer and deliver a greater experience. It’s an internal thing." The key to a meaningful CX program starts with a genuine desire to serve every customer as a central value of the entire organization. Customers are smart. They easily recognize when their builder only gives lip service to their claims of "we care for every customer." When listening and responding are key values to your company, those behaviors are demonstrated in every customer interaction. If customers know you care, they are much more inclined to give their feedback when you ask for it throughout their journey with you.
Here are a few questions you may want to consider. Does your CX survey program gather customer feedback at key moments of truth through the entire customer journey? Does it alert you in real-time whenever a customer experiences a bump along the way? Does it put the right information into the right person's hands with laser-focused precision so they can address the customer's concern, or merely create clutter by sending you every completed survey received? Does it focus on making process improvements for future customers or cause you to take action to help your customers today?
Hopefully, you're able to answer "yes" to almost all of those questions. If not, please let us know. We'd love to chat about your current solution and introduce you to BuilderCX. BuilderCX is an industry-leading survey platform designed specifically for builders. Using brief Pulse Surveys at every phase of the customer journey, builders receive detailed customer feedback in real-time, along with alerts and action plans throughout the entire customer experience customized to your unique processes, products, and people.