Collecting in-the-moment feedback is truly powerful knowing customers just completed their in-store experience.
Think about it. Is it easier for you to recall how satisfied you were in a store if your last experience was a week or even a month ago, or is it easier to recall right after you exit the store?
In-store surveys, or enter/exit surveys, are a great tool for retail stores to measure customer satisfaction and other key performance indicators.
Some of the common questions retail stores have for customers include satisfaction, organization, where the store performed the best/likes, and what could be improved/dislikes.
All of which can be answered with retail market research.
Keep reading to learn about a recent case study our market research company conducted on behalf of a department store retail chain.
Recommended Reading: Conducting Customer Satisfaction Surveys [Ultimate Guide]
Importance of Measuring Customer Satisfaction for Retail Stores
Consumer shopping habits are always changing and evolving. While the rise of online shopping is no secret, it may surprise you that many people still make their purchases in-store.
For instance, 54% of consumers say that over the next year, they're likely to look at a product online and buy it in-store.
Therefore, the importance of retail stores measuring customer satisfaction at their brick-and-mortar locations is still prevalent - even with the transition to many buying products online.
This was certainly the case for our recent project. A department store wanted to assess overall store satisfaction, understand the store experience, and explore in-store reactions.
Critical measurements for the in-store retail survey included:
- Expectations
- Likes/dislikes
- Purchase expectations and habits
- Delights and pain points
How Retail Stores Can Measure Consumer Satisfaction
To meet the objectives, in-store surveys were conducted via tablets on-site at the department store.
This type of market research is great for gathering customer data right at the moment they are shopping and interacting with other store components.
From our experience the best way to manage a team collecting surveys in-store includes hosting training sessions, finding high-traffic areas in the store, and not staying in the same spot in the store.
Additionally, a $10 Amazon gift card was provided for a completed enter and exit survey. This helps improve response rates in a shorter amount of time.
Here are a few example customer satisfaction survey questions for retail stores:
- What inspired your visit to [insert retail store] today?
- Which of the following are you planning to buy from/browse today?
- How would you rate your overall store experience at this store today? Select a rating. (Consider using a Likert scale rating of 1 to 5, where “1” is poor and “5” is excellent.)
- Which of the following words best describe this store?
- How does this store compare to other [insert industry] retailers? Select a rating. (Consider using a Likert scale rating of 1 to 5, where “1” is other stores are much better and “5” is this store is much better.)
- How likely are you to shop at this store again? Select a rating. (Consider using a Likert scale rating of 1 to 5, where “1” is not at all likely and “5” is very likely.)
Ultimately, each in-store retail survey we create is customized based on the unique goals and objectives defined by the client.
Here are a few of our retail market research company's favorite customer survey questions.
The Results
The report is completely confidential to the department store.
It included a raw data file, online report portals with crosstabs, a full report (i.e., executive summary, data visualizations, recommendations), and a 60-minute virtual presentation.
Here’s an overview of the objectives addressed in the report:
- Reasons for visiting the store
- Awareness of promotional efforts for the store
- Planned purchase intent when entering the store
- Measuring the overall store experience
- Analyzing word associations with the store
- Measuring the effectiveness of several factors within the store
- Assessing how much shoppers purchased
- Measuring how likely shoppers were to shop again
- And more
When creating a report, it’s important to keep the original goals and objectives of the study in mind. Doing this helps ensure the report focuses on the content the client team is looking for.
Measure Customer Satisfaction with Drive Research
As consumer behaviors, attitudes, and preferences continue to evolve, it is important for retail stores to regularly measure customer satisfaction and other KPIs.
In-store retail surveys, alongside other market research methodologies, are great tools to measure satisfaction, experience, reactions, and other feedback.
Drive Research is a full-service market research company specializing in retail. Our team partners with department stores, grocers, wine and spirit shops, and other retail locations to provide insights needed to grow their businesses.
To learn more about our retail market research services, contact us today.
- Message us on our website
- Email us at [email protected]
- Call us at 888-725-DATA
- Text us at 315-303-2040
Emily Taylor
As a Senior Research Analyst, Emily is approaching a decade of experience in the market research industry and loves to challenge the status quo. She is a certified VoC professional with a passion for storytelling.
Learn more about Emily, here.
