Given how many people don’t want to speak with public relations people (see last week’s post), there seems to be a lot of companies who want my opinion.
I am getting barraged with emails asking me for surveys. Are you?
Recently I was asked to give a “customer satisfaction survey” for Amazon, American Express, Delta Air Lines, Starwood, Sephora, Facebook, Office Depot and a few more. Every time I contact a customer service line I am asked to take a “short survey.” The thing is, not all the surveys are short and most just seem to want to massage the egos of the companies asking.
The surveys are more marketing ploy than service. I think companies just want to tell their customers how well their customers say they are doing so they can attract new customers and thumb there noses at their competition.
Come on! Ask me something more than “How are we doing?” It’s self serving.
If you really want my opinion, survey me on what I think about the government shut down. Ask me my opinion on women’s rights in the workplace. Query me on what I think about puppy mills, breast cancer education, teaching kids to eat healthier, improving the environment and what it means to be a woman in her fifties competing against women in their twenties for work, Seek my opinion on meaningful issues that can make a difference and pay it forward, improve the government, better society, eradicate prejudice and open peoples’ eyes to “What can be?” and “Why not?”
The only person who ever got away with asking “How am I doing?” without totally annoying people was the late NYC Mayor Ed Koch. And he was an elected official and an individual. It made sense to ask since his job was to serve the people who voted for him.
As for multi-million corporations with big marketing bucks to burn, don’t keep asking me to tell you if you are doing a good job. If you keep having to ask, you probably are not.
