Ask and thee shall find is a very true statement, especially in the world of website promotion. If the nature of your company involves regular customers purchasing products and services from you, take time to get to know them and ask them what they would like. Plenty of people are often flattered by this request as you are clearly interested in hearing about their experiences with your company and acting on any changes or requests that they might have. This is also a good way to gauge trends that may be occurring in your industry- it may even help to identify a gap in the market that your competitors have not yet discovered.
What we’re saying here is to encourage your customers to tell you what they want to see, what products and services they’d like to purchase that you could potentially provide them with, and set up as many platforms as you can for them to do this.
There are several ways to achieve this, but a general rule of thumb is people are lazy. The platforms you provide for people to leave feedback must be the simplest, easiest option. For example, website such as FreeIndex or Facebook Pages have the option for customers to leave you feedback, but they only work if those customers have a FreeIndex or Facebook account themselves. I know it's hard to believe, but not everyone has Facebook and some people are still circulating chain emails from 1994.
Most, if not all social media platforms have a function where other users can message your profile and leave comments, and remember that not all social media networks are worth your time. For example, MySpace, Soundcloud, YouTube and Vimeo are all good websites to join if you're promoting a music website for your band, where as if you're an internet trader or eBay dealer, you may find that a Facebook Page, G+ Page, Twitter and StumbleUpon might suit your website promotions a whole lot better.
Get into the habit of always encouraging your visitors and customers to give you feedback in person, on the telephone, but also via emails and your website too. Get into the routine of always asking if everything was alright for them, and what they thought of your site. In a world of large corporations, the personal touch in the form of taking the time to gauge your customers’ needs is an element that can really make you stand out from the crowd, and other competitors in your industry.
When feedback is received, don't take criticisms personally. Smile, and thank them for their feedback, note it down and reread it when a few weeks have passed if you're struggling to stomach it. On the other hand, if it's positive, make sure you recognise what you did to make it so- it's an indication that you're on the path to happiness!
Where feedback has been left publically, on a Facebook Page wall for example, thank the author of the comments, and be sure to screen grab it into a jpeg- those are always useful to display across other platforms, and if the nice comment was left publically, the writer doesn't usually mind.