Beyond the Obvious

  Jason Brooks. Photo by Chris BerginDuring a focus group hosted by Jay-Crew Landscape, students from a local university scribbled feedback about the company’s service on oversized Post-it notes, filling display boards with constructive criticism.

Owner Jason Brooks was not in the room – that was part of the deal.

“Customer service is what everybody talks about, but not everyone acts on it,” Brooks says. He asked the instructor of an entrepreneurship class he was taking at Ball State University to form a focus group. Students helped run sessions with 100 total customer participants. For their time, Brooks gave them $25 to apply toward a charity of choice.

“The idea is to uncover what is not obvious,” Brooks says of surveys in general. “If you are learning something really big from surveys, you’re probably not paying enough attention to your business to begin with.”
But the little things are a big deal to customers. Things like showing up at a different time each week for maintenance services or not including postage-paid envelopes with bills. “I realized how annoyed I am at home when I get a bill and have to search for an envelope,” Brooks says, in hindsight. “But in my own business, I didn’t think about it.”

Customers said they weren’t always sure what services were performed, and when. In response, Brooks implemented a door hanger program. Leave-behinds include a place for the foreman’s name, service performed and additional notes.

Most surprising was customers’ interest in seeing Jay-Crew Landscape advertisements. “We have never been real big on advertising,” Brooks says, explaining that referrals drive new business. The company has enjoyed 15 to 20 percent growth each year, including this season. “One thing we picked up on from the focus group was customers want us to be out there more, which I found to be interesting,” he says. “I never thought customers would care about whether we advertised or didn’t. I always thought advertising was for customers who aren’t customers yet.”

So Brooks began running ads in local newspapers. He updated the Web site and sends out a regular e-newsletter.
In the meantime, surveys mailed with every invoice provide a constant flow of feedback, which is shared at Tuesday crew meetings. The surveys cover communication, attitude, quality of work, knowledge, attention to detail and end-of-day cleanup. They allow Brooks to check quality as the company grows and he cannot supervise every job.

At the end of each year, Brooks tabulates all survey scores and compiles a report to share with employees. He sends out 2,000 surveys and receives 200 back – a fair return rate by his standards. These responses help him collect customer testimonials to post on the Web site and promote upsell services.

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The author is a freelance writer based in Bay Village, Ohio