The Feedback Loop

 Do you give good feedback? Let me re-phrase that.

Is the feedback you give saying as many good things about you, as it is about the subject of your review?

We’re all accustomed to dishing out feedback, whether we’re reviewing a fabulous or disastrous holiday venue, providing a glowing testimonial for a colleague/mate/ex-boss/would-be-client on LinkedIn, or explaining to an unsuccessful candidate why they didn’t make the cut.

Particularly in situations where feedback is published for the world to see, it’s very clear that our expressed view is going to influence the reputation of the person or organisation we’re rating. This is powerful, and brands must have the courage of their conviction to ask questions of their publics, listen and act where necessary on the feedback they get.

Wise businesses understand the value of asking their customers what matters to them; who wouldn’t want to know the ‘secrets’ of winning our customers’ favour? It’s so easy for us to make assumptions on the reasons customers buy from us, but when was the last time you took the time to ask? That’s as true for us as PR consultants as it is for the clients we advise.

Reflected influence

There’s a balance of power when it comes to who gains from the feedback process, in which we tend to attribute all the ‘influence’ (power) to the person or organisation that’s giving the feedback.

Common sense, surely, that when we submit ourselves to the whim of our reviewers – will they love us or tell the world that we’ve failed utterly to meet their expectations – the reviewer has the power to make or break our reputation.

It struck me this week, however, that in a business-to-business scenario at least, the feedback process reflects on the reviewer too.

Here’s an example that will be familiar to many PR agencies, and probably to other sectors besides. We’re invited to submit credentials at the start of a tender review process. They outline a process that leaves some room for interpretation (I’m being nice, it was unclear). We ask for clarification, they reply but don’t answer the question. We submit credentials. They tell us, in a very polite email, that we’re not shortlisted. We ask for feedback. Radio silence.

This prospective client had the chance to impress the pants off us even if we were not destined to work together. We could have fallen a bit in love with them, become regular customers, told our friends and family how this was the one that got away which we’ll always regret…

Instead I find myself thinking they’re a bit amateur, a bit second division, probably would have been a hellish client.

That’s the thing about reputation and influence; it’s not all contained within a PR plan, it’s embedded in the way we conduct ourselves ‘on and off camera’.

So, my parting thought. Next time you’re asked for feedback, pause a moment and just consider ‘the feedback loop’: every action (or inaction) has a not-necessarily-equal-or-accurate reaction.

Sarah Bryars

Chief Executive

Image courtesy of Stuart Miles at www.freedigitalphotos.net