Creating a feedback program your users actually engage with is the goal. Use this guide to develop your own program.
.webp)
Feedback program engagement is a strong indicator of product value. Why? Your users believe you’ll create solutions that help them accomplish their goals.
Ultimately, this user engagement also drives product growth. Active product feedback leads to more valuable product iterations, creating more user engagement with your product—and the cycle continues. It’s a win-win for everyone.
So how can you create a feedback program your users actually want to participate in? Bake customer centricity into every part of your program. We’ve put together six user engagement strategies to help you do just that.
Your user engagement strategy should create connections and foster long-lasting relationships with your users. When you connect meaningfully with your users, you’re building empathy that helps you to anticipate their needs.
The best way to build a strong connection with your users is to talk to them. Set up email surveys, 1:1 meetings, and beta test groups to learn more about your users and what they need to accomplish their goals.
Remember: when you talk to your users, be curious about their problems instead of asking them to solve yours. Instead of sticking to the “how can we do better?” script, ask them where they struggle the most, then address that. Tools like the UserVoice contributor sidebar allow you to capture feedback in the moment while you talk to customers, so you can always stay on top of their needs.
Feature requests are another way to connect with users—respond to their ideas and use them as a starting point for your brainstorming sessions. Users will see just how much your product is shaped around their needs, which encourages continued feedback that leads to product growth.
Users who feel heard and understood will likely stay engaged with your product.
As you’re building a product, you have a rough idea of how your customers will use it—but experience inevitably teaches you that predicted and actual usage don’t always align. Your users might come up with creative workflows you hadn’t yet imagined or run into blocks you didn’t anticipate.
Your data metrics can reveal how users interact with your product and where they hit production blockers. You can use those insights to guide your conversations or pinpoint the right questions to ask in surveys and customer conversations.
So what should you track? You already keep an eye on customer engagement metrics like net promoter score (NPS), churn, and customer retention rates for an overview of product performance. To see how your users work, take a granular approach. Dig into metrics that reveal common workflows, like time spent on each feature, clicks, and scroll depth. This data will also lay out ideal touchpoints for in-app feedback surveys.
By learning how your people work within your product, you stay in touch with customer needs. You’ll be able to focus on feedback questions that naturally boost engagement because they’re directly relevant to customer experiences.
Research isn’t just for projects and feature launches. In-app surveys provide valuable research and help you uncover trends in product performance across the entire user experience.
With in-app feedback, you’ll get something that’s missing from traditional surveys and 1:1s—real-time thoughts and feelings. That means in-the-moment frustrations, ideas, and praise.
Do your customers love a specific feature? Are they running into a frustrating bug? In-app feedback’s 24/7 accessibility means you’ll capture your users’ honest feedback the minute these experiences happen. In-app feedback will help you fix bugs faster and uncover hidden blockers and pain points easier.
We recommend keeping surveys short and to-the-point. Try single-question surveys or rating scales with space for typed responses. Keep them out of the way of essential product functions, like dashboards and navigation buttons, so users can quickly respond and get on with their work.
By developing a rich source of customer-centric feedback, you’ll be able to make valuable and practical features and adjustments to improve user engagement.
If your users don’t know about your feedback program, they can’t participate in it—so let them know you’re all ears. Remind them that their ideas are critical for future developments, and invite them to share their thoughts through conversations, dedicated forums, surveys, and in-app feedback.
We recommend casting a wide net when promoting your program. Use a variety of channels to meet users where they are, including:
While you don’t want to bombard users with constant solicitation, you can effectively promote your program in your everyday communications.
You might kick off your feedback program with a fun video announcement. Next, you might include a link in your email signature, share your feedback portal in your newsletter, and link a short survey in your next blog post.
In any case, sharing small reminders with your users in everyday communications reminds users that you’re focused on creating customer-centric products. When they’re ready to share, they’ll know you’re there to help.
Turn scattered user data into meaningful customer intelligence, guiding smarter decisions and creating a better product.
Talk to an Expert
