In this series of articles, Gina Schaefer writes about her “Big 5” – the metrics her team uses to track, report on and measure the health of their business.
I bet like us you’ve experimented with a variety of methods to measure customer satisfaction over the years. Methodologies have come and gone, tools and technologies have morphed and improved. And frankly, it’s sometimes too complicated for what we need.
Some of the methods I’ve seen employed include:
- secret shopping programs (both in person and on the phone)
- focus groups held at various intervals
- semi-annual surveys with several (or too many) questions
- stationing an employee at the door, clipboard and questions in hand
While I think each of these options have merit, we have finally settled on a very simple, easy to administer option on our Big Five scoreboard. We call this our OSAT Score (Overall Satisfaction Rate).
Defining OSAT
Our OSAT score is based on how many customers rate us a 5 out of 5 for their overall customer experience based on a one question survey.
The entire team loves this method of collecting real-time feedback because it’s so EASY. There is nothing to print, to distribute or to collect from the customer. Cashiers know that every transaction they complete could result in feedback – both positive and negative and that their interactions with the customer put them in charge of this process.
If we all agree that they, meaning the cashiers, are the first and last touch point with a guest, what better way to end that touchpoint than on a high note that can be documented in a few small steps?
How it’s administered
The survey is linked at the bottom of the customer’s receipt with the option of going to a URL or scanning a QR code. That question is “How satisfied are you with the service you received today on a scale of 1 to 5 with five being the highest? You can see from the graphic I have included here that there are multiple questions, but it is the final question that provides the score we focus on.
And while we do get analytics on the other questions, we focus our attention on the overall rank received from the customer.
Data Collection
The customer is asked to provide their name and contact information but providing those details is not a requirement to complete the survey. We don’t do anything with the contact information beyond using it for any follow-up requested via the survey.
Which leads me to the follow up.
If a customer would like us to contact them regarding the survey or anything else they might have in mind, they do have to provide their contact information. There is no way for us to trace the survey back to any credit card information for contact, etc.
Customers want to be contacted for three main reasons.
Reason #1
Not surprisingly, I am always touched when someone provides their name and phone number because they want the opportunity to tell us in greater detail how much their shopping experience meant to them. Not only do we get glowing praise to share with the teammate, but we also get a meaningful interaction with a customer which is never a bad thing.
Reason #2
Something went awry and they want to pass on a big frustration or complaint. It happens! We have also found over the years that the faster we follow up, the more likely we are to diffuse the situation and make it right.
Years ago, a wise teammate told me that the best way to deal with an upset customer is to make them believe that they are the most important person in the world to our business and that what they experienced was completely unacceptable. I’ve found that to be a good method when making these calls. And my husband likes to add “Our job is to make the customer think they are right, even when sometimes they aren’t”.
While that might sound a little cheeky – it’s meant to teach the team that sometimes we screw up and sometimes the customer does. Belittling, arguing or rebutting will get us nowhere.
Reason #3
And the third reason customers provide their contact information could be because they either work for or own a business and they would like to discuss opening a business account with us. These opportunities can also lead to future sales and an ROI that is unanticipated. Regardless of why we need to follow up, doing so quickly and professionally is our main goal.
Reporting OSAT scores
Our Operations Manager is tasked with reviewing the OSAT scores on monthly store visits with the store Managers and Assistant Managers. We hope those conversations are always positive and, in cases where there is room for improvement, a plan is documented.
Formally, the scores are shared during our monthly leadership team meeting which also includes our back-office team. This is an opportunity for the HR, Finance, Marketing, Buying and Inventory teams to discuss how their roles can improve and/or support the scoring happening at the store level. That might be the most valuable point here after measuring customer satisfaction. If, for example, the buyer understands that customer satisfaction can be correlated with the items they are stocking (or forgetting to bring in) then they can play a part in elevating the score. The disconnect happens when leaders think that the store managers or cashiers have to provide all the solutions.
Finally, I personally love that comments can be shared with the entire team and can be moments to shine the spotlight on a deserving teammate.
Bonusing for OSAT
Each store manager has a goal of hitting an 85% or better target for each quarter to receive credit in their bonus bucket. We rounded out the year with a score of 86.8% with more than 2,423 surveys received.
One data point to celebrate was the increase in the “Assistance Received” score which rose from 76% in 2024 to 87% – meaning 87% of the people who took the survey said they received meaningful assistance.
Trickle down, up and around
A retailer’s week is full with a never-ending task list. Some big, some small. But they all add up to completing responsibilities that help us take care of the customers who help us keep our doors open. Somehow that needs to be measured. We do that with our OSAT score.
We want to service the neighbourhoods we operate in and grow the value of our company which is now owned by 130 or so of our employees. To me, that makes the responsibility that much greater.
Strong team members, leaders and owners are going to have high OSAT scores, because it means that at all levels, we have done the work of connecting us to our purpose. Good companies are always talking about, thinking about, and working to improve customer service. We are no exception and I think any hardware retailer would nod along to that.
This quote from our CFO summed up the on-going quest to our team perfectly when he said, “If you think you offer really great service, but you have a low OSAT score, then you don’t have really great service.”
Gina Schaefer, founder of Ace Hardware stores, is a dynamic keynote speaker with nearly 22 years of experience in community-building and business transformation. She grew her business from one to 13 locations, empowering over 130 co-owners. Gina’s engaging talks focus on creating positive corporate
cultures, effective succession planning, and empowering women in business. She inspires audiences with her compelling stories and actionable insights, motivating them to drive change and achieve success in both business and life.
