The importance of feedback

An essential element of a successful business, be it online or brick and mortar is the desire to receive feedback. Nearly as important as the desire to receive is the willingness to make changes that your feedback addresses.

Who to get feedback from

We should get feedback about our efforts from several different sources. Each source can provide a unique perspective that should be taken under consideration.

Your Readers

Sometimes we get so busy writing articles that we want to share, and giving our opinions about this, that, and the other things that we seemingly forget about the people we actually write our blogs for, the readers. Without someone reading your work, what would be the point? To gather effective reader feedback try some of the following methods.

• An onsite poll. Try using a poll on your wordpress blog
• Ask specific questions in your article. A fair number of people will respond via comment with answers.
• Read conversations on other blogs to see what is being said there. It will help give you some insight to your own community.
• Send an email directly to the person with 3-5 questions on it. This can upset some people so use it sparingly

By no means is this an exhaustive list of ways to get feedback from your readers.

Advertisers

Advertisers have a vested interest in your blog doing well. They no doubt also have an opinion about what is good and what is bad about your blog. Ask them to spend 10 or 15 minutes on your blog and then have them give you some feedback about what they observed, and their impressions about it overall.

Friends and Family

Sit them down in front of a computer and observe what they do. You almost don’t even need to ask questions with this type of a feedback. Watch what they click on, how often they click, is there anything they go back to on a regular basis. Get 3 or 4 friends/family to do this for you and you’ll start to see some patterns emerging.

Why, when, and how often?

Nearly as important as getting feedback is knowning why you need it, when you need it, and how often you need it. In this section I will take a quick look at each of those questions individually.

Why do I need feedback?

Feedback is necessary for the continued growth and well-being of your blog or website because it is the simplest and most effective way to put your finger on the pulse of your readers. It will allow you to make adjustments as needed in order that you will continue to improve and draw in more of an audience.

When do I need feedback?

Obviously you should be observing what goes on at all times, but I say wait at least 2 months before you start eliciting feedback from your readers. Reason being is that by the two month mark you should have a fairly established reader base. I believe that an established base is necessary for accurate and honest feedback. People who are just passing through don’t tend to care one way or another.

How often should I get feedback

I say once a month collect feedback, but try to always switch up the method you use and definitely change the people you ask.

I hope this gives you some ideas about working with your readers, friends, and family to get some feedback about your blog or website. Do you ever ask your readers for their thoughts on any aspect of your blog?