Tips on getting feedback from customers on sampling campaigns

When it comes to running successful sampling campaigns, many brands fall at the final hurdle.

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Collecting customer feedback after a sample is delivered isn’t a nice, additional extra but a critical part of brand growth. But many beauty brands think their job is done once a customer has the sample in their hands.

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Let’s take a look at how to ask for feedback from customers and why it’s crucial brands and agencies don’t miss this step.

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Knowing your customer

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Brands can learn about consumers’ needs and preferences from their behaviour throughout a sampling campaign: from the online quizzes they may complete to claim their sample to the way they interact with social media campaigns or navigate a website.

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Collecting and analysing this data is a vital way brands get to know their customers better, in addition to helping hyper-target consumers with samples and offers most relevant to them.

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But number-led, quantitative data isn’t the only data that’s valuable. Qualitative data (non-numerical information) such as written experiences and reviews provide extra colour and detail that pure numbers can’t.

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Getting customers to share this information is critical if brands want a nuanced understanding of the people they’re trying to engage And qualitative data can give brands information they may not even have thought to request.

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Benefits of customer feedback

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There are many benefits of customer feedback surveys.

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Getting to better know customers, as described above, not only helps brands with targeted marketing but can inform their marketing and business strategy overall. Do their products and resource allocation match what consumers are looking for and are they in line with the evolution of the beauty market?

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Customer feedback is also an essential part of product development. A product will have undergone multiple, strict tests before hitting shelves but listening to the experiences of customers will help beauty brands further fine-tune their cosmetics, perfumes and skincare products.

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Is the smell of a moisturiser off-putting to consumers? Are large numbers of customers reporting skin reactions? Are they disappointed in the level of pigment in a cosmetics product? It’s vital a brand knows so they can improve their offering, safeguard their reputation and win back disappointed customers.

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But this isn’t the extent of the benefits of feedback.

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Asking for customer feedback via email is an easy way to establish a more personal, meaningful connection between brand and consumer. It demonstrates a genuine desire from brands to better serve their customers and helps consumers feel valued, building loyalty.

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And collecting feedback in the form of sample reviews can drive sales in another way.

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We’ve previously discussed how publicly published reviews and user generated content (UGC) helps sales shoot up: our partner Bazaarvoice conducted research that found there is a 140% conversion lift when shoppers read reviews and interact with other UGC.

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And a single customer review on a product corresponds to an average 10% conversion lift.

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How to ask for feedback

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In today’s digital age, asking for feedback couldn’t be easier.

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Sending a follow up email with a link to an online survey or a place to post a review is a simple way to quickly collect valuable customer feedback. A digital sampling platform like Odore makes this process seamless and efficient and centralises the data collected so brands can review feedback all in one place.

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Brands can increase the amount of feedback they receive by employing a few tactics.

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For instance, providing a prize incentive to consumers who give feedback or complete reviews - such as a discount code - will increase the number of respondents. The timing of follow up emails is also important: opt-in rates increase if emails are sent soon after a product is received. This is another way a digital sampling platform can help as a solution like Odore gives brands the ability to manage and track orders so they know exactly when a sample is delivered - and when to follow up.

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However, brands should still be realistic about the level of feedback they can attain. The average opt-in rate for reviews is around 1-5% and a 10% opt-in rate represents a very strong result.

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And brands should also be ensuring that reviews they collect and post are legitimate.

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This is easy with Odore as we work with companies like Bazaarvoice to check reviews for legitimacy and make sure they are published on the correct channels.

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Tips on what to include

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Sending emails at the right time and providing prize incentives can help encourage customers. But what’s written in the email and how it looks are also important.

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The best customer feedback email examples are visually appealing with strong, eye-catching designs that are consistent with the imagery of the overall brand. And brands should pay attention to the layout of an email when viewed on different devices: for example, does the email still look appealing and is it easy to read when viewed on a phone?

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It’s worth paying attention to the customer feedback email subject line too. Strong subject lines are clear, to the point and aren’t full of unnecessary words. Remember, subject lines are cut off after a certain number of words when viewed collectively in a user’s inbox.

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Therefore, subject lines should ideally be shorter than this cut off so consumers can see the whole title in their inbox. And it should be a compelling title that makes them want to click.

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Another feature to consider in a customer feedback email is the email signature. Are you sending the email from a named individual in your company for a personal touch? Or is that at odds with your overall brand style?

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As with any brand email, the email signature or footer should also include all necessary legal information, such as company address, copyright information and options to unsubscribe.

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How brands use Odore to collect valuable feedback

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Helping beauty brands collect valuable customer feedback is a key way Odore empowers them to maximise growth and sales.

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Through feedback emails sent through our platform, we helped a major skincare brand gain 39 reviews from one campaign that can be added directly to their e-commerce site. The brand also discovered customers were extremely satisfied with their product - gaining an average rating of 4.74 out of 5 - and 8 in 10 (79%) of customers said they were likely to purchase the product within the next three months.

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