Whether they’re happy or unhappy, the vast majority of your customers will never make the effort to contact you to share their feedback. That’s why your response in form of a thank you letter for customer feedback matters when one of them takes time to reach out.
We’ll explain why it’s important to send a thank you letter after receiving feedback and show you how to write one that acts as a tool to further strengthen your customer relationship.
What is a thank you letter to customers?
A thank you letter is sent to a customer after receiving feedback from them, either positive or negative. This feedback might come via the ‘Contact Us’ form on your website, your customer support inbox, a phone call, or even regular mail.
A thank you letter acknowledges their message and shares pertinent information about their experience.
Customers aren’t obligated to tell you what they think about their purchase. In fact, few actually do. Instead, they’re much more likely to tell friends and family about their experience or comment about it on a public forum like Google reviews.
So, when they make the effort to share their thoughts with you directly, they’re doing you a big favor. It’s the right thing to do to thank them for getting in touch.
Why it’s important to send a thank you letter after receiving feedback
Acknowledge receipt of the message
Contacting a company can feel like sending a message into a black hole. Will anyone even read it, or will it be lost amongst thousands of other messages? The first purpose of a thank you letter is to let customers know you got their message, which goes a long way in making them feel their time sending it to you was well spent.
Communicate the value of their feedback
Direct customer feedback is like gold to company leadership, product developers, and marketers. It helps teams troubleshoot problems, build the features users want, and create more targeted messaging. Sending a thank you letter allows you to share this value with customers, showing them their input matters.
Retain them as a customer
If the feedback is negative, don’t assume the relationship is lost. If you can acknowledge what went wrong and find a way to make it right, this is a chance to win a customer for life. If the feedback is positive, a warm and thoughtful response could turn a happy customer into a brand evangelist who will rave about your product and help you win more new customers.
When should you send a customer feedback thank you letter
Ideally, you should send a thank you letter to every customer who provides feedback.
If you’re a large organization, this might mean you cannot provide a personal response to every individual. In this case, you should use templates and other forms of automation to at least let customers know their message reached you. Send individualized responses to targeted customers, like those with an exceptionally positive or negative experience.
Send your thank you message in a timely manner. If you’re using automation, it’s easy to ensure a follow-up message is sent within 24 hours. If you’re crafting letters manually, aim to get your responses out within a week of receiving the original message.
What to include in a feedback thank you letter
A thank you
No matter what kind of feedback it is, convey your appreciation for the customer’s thoughts. Even if they’re sending you a scorching complaint, look for the lesson you can learn and thank them for it.
A professional tone
It’s important not to get too emotional, even in response to positive messages. Ensure your letter aligns with your brand standards for language and tone.
An apology (if warranted)
Saying you’re sorry is essential in the case of negative messages, even if the customer is being unreasonable. You don’t necessarily need to admit fault, but you can apologize for the inconvenience the customer experienced.
A customized response
For positive feedback, give some insight on why it’s meaningful to you. For negative feedback, cite your actions to correct the mistake and, if appropriate, offer the customer some form of remediation.
A token of appreciation
People aren’t usually looking for a discount when they send companies feedback, but giving them a nominal incentive, like a 10% off coupon code, is a nice way to show your thanks and encourage a future purchase.
A personal closing
The signoff should come from a person, not a generic “support@…” email address.
What you should omit
A hostile tone
Don’t try to argue with the customer or have the last word in the exchange. You’ll lose a customer, the customer will walk away with a grudge (and most likely tell others about it), and nobody wins.
Sample thank you letter for customer feedback
For positive feedback
Ms. Parsons,
Mitzy,
Thank you so much for taking the time to tell us about your great interaction with our support rep, Dan. Our long-term goal has been to set the industry standard for prompt, knowledgeable service, so your message lets us know we’re succeeding. It means a lot. I’ll be sure to share your kind words with Dan.
As a token of our thanks for being a loyal customer, please enjoy 10% off a future purchase using the coupon code FRIENDSANDFAMILY10.
Thanks again, and have a great day.
Lionel Steward
Customer relationship manager
For negative feedback
Reggie,
Thank you for your message.
I’m so sorry that your order was delayed beyond the expected delivery date. I understand how frustrating it must have been to learn you would not be getting your package when you initially planned to. We pride ourselves on timely order fulfillment, which never should have happened.
We experienced a technical glitch that caused shipping labels to be printed incorrectly. It took about two days to get the problem resolved, which caused the delivery delay. We’ve upgraded our software and switched to a new shipping vendor to ensure this problem does not occur again.
I hope you will give us a chance to regain your trust. Please use the discount code CUSTOMER15 for 15% off your next purchase with us.
Again, thank you for reaching out to share your thoughts.
Sincerely,
Marcia Peters
Fulfillment manager
By expressing your sincere thanks and taking the time to correct any mistakes on your part, you’ll solidify the customer’s trust in your brand and increase the likelihood that they’ll spend money with you again in the future.