New Customer Engagement App Promises Faster Feedback

On Tuesday, Benbria, an Ottawa, Canada-based mobile customer engagement company, unveiled its BlazeLoop® CE (customer engagement) solution for faster customer feedback in the retail, hospitality, finance, banking and fast-casual restaurant industries.

“In the current customer feedback market, most of the solutions are survey-based,” Tony Busa, director of marketing, told Loyalty 360. “Those take too much time and are often done after they leave [the business establishment]. Most surveys don’t provide actionable information.”

According to Busa, only one of 26 customers provides feedback in an establishment, while a large percentage of others will share their experiences – particularly negative ones – later via social media.

Most customer feedback information from typical surveys goes to a customer service or marketing department, with little or no chance to quickly reach back out to the customer, according to Busa. “BlazeLoop provides a way for quick customer commentary and for businesses to win over at-risk customers.”

Capturing those sentiments, and addressing the ones that need attention, can enable the company to remediate any issues in a positive manner before the customer leaves the establishment, Busa said.

BlazeLoop enables customers to provide feedback through a variety of mobile, online and in-store collection points – including Web app, SMS/text, e-mail, mobile app or kiosk. Real-time notifications alert front-line managers of customer issues, enabling them to contact the customer straight away and privately resolve issues. 

For example, a hotel using the app might provide signage at the check-in counter and at various locations throughout the establishment asking customers: “How did we do today?,” with SMS, mobile app or Web app information. Once the consumer connects (which he or she can do immediately with a smartphone), he can provide feedback via a thumbs up/thumbs down or other quick response. The questionnaires are designed to be short so customers can quickly provide feedback, Busa said.

If the guest reports an issue, the application routes the complaint to a manager who is empowered to respond. After the issue is resolved, the application “closes the loop,” by asking not only if the situation is resolved, but also if the customer has other needs and if the customer will refer the business. 

“Unlike post-visit surveys, BlazeLoop gives us instant visibility into our guests’ satisfaction or dissatisfaction, allowing us to address their requests and concerns while they are on our property,” said Patrice Basille, executive vice president at the Brookstreet Hotel, Ottawa, in a prepared statement. “Our customers are more mobile than ever before and Benbria’s on-the-spot guest feedback helps us improve our operations by fixing issues when they happen, enhancing the guests’ experiences during their stay, and provides us real-time insight to give the next guests the experiences they expect and we strive to deliver.”

Opportunities for improvement are identified which can enhance brand reputation management, customer service and front-line operations, Busa said. “We are offering companies a way to modify brand loyalty.”

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