What Is Customer Sentiment?

Customer frustration is never a good thing. Research shows that 71% of customers feel frustrated when they do not receive a personalised experience from a business. This frustration is an emotion. And emotions can dramatically change how customers behave. They might stop buying from you or tell their friends not to use your products.

In this article, we'll explore the concept of customer sentiment to understand why it matters so much and how you can use it to improve your business.

The difference between customer sentiment and satisfaction

Customer sentiment and satisfaction sound similar but have some key differences.

Customer satisfaction usually measures whether the product does what it is supposed to do. For example, if you buy a toaster, customer satisfaction would measure whether it toasts your bread.

On the other hand, customer sentiment looks at how the customer felt using that product. Did they enjoy using the toaster? Was it easy to use? Did it improve their morning routine?

So, a product that does what it's supposed to but nothing more might have a good satisfaction score but a neutral sentiment.

In contrast, a product that does what it's supposed to and leaves the customer feeling delighted would have a high satisfaction score AND positive customer sentiment. That's what you're aiming for.

Why customer sentiment matters

Now, one customer's feelings toward your brand or product won't matter much. However, customer sentiment is a big part of how all your customers feel and can impact your entire business.

Positive sentiment can make customers stay loyal and even tell others how great you are, reflected in a positive Net Promoter Score. Negative sentiment can make you lose customers and harm your company's reputation.

For example, let's say you sell a toy that breaks easily. It frustrates parents and makes them think your company doesn't care about quality. They might not buy from you again. And when you add social media to the mix, things can get out of control fast. Negative comments can spread like wildfire, and before you know it, you're known as the brand with the faulty toys. That's not good for business!

Loyalty and retention

When customers have positive feelings about your brand, they're more likely to stick around and buy from you instead of your competitors.

Think about it—if you have a favourite coffee shop where the staff are always friendly and remember your usual order, you're probably going to keep going back. You feel good when you're there; that positive sentiment makes you a loyal customer.

The same thing happens with products. If a customer loves using your product and it makes them feel good, they'll want to keep using it. They might even buy other products from your brand because they trust you.

This loyalty is imperative for businesses. It costs 3-6X less to keep existing customers than to find new ones. Plus, loyal customers often spend more over time.

The role of sentiment in strategy

Beyond preventing a social media disaster and keeping customers, customer sentiment plays a more prominent role in your overall strategy, whether that is loosely defined or part of a formal customer experience management programme.

For starters, tracking it over time lets you see trends and patterns in how your customers are feeling.

This can help you spot areas for improvement. For example, if last year's sentiment was better but worse after you added a new feature, it could mean that customers don't like the new feature. You might need to change it or get rid of it.

Moreover, using customer sentiment when you make decisions can lead to better strategies that put the customer first. If you know what your customers like and don't like, you can make choices that will make them happier.

Methods for measuring sentiment

To leverage sentiment insights, you first must measure how customers feel. How to measure customer sentiment will depend on the means available to you, since there are many ways to approach it. Some are qualitative, which means they look at detailed feedback and comments. Others are quantitative, which means they use numbers and scores.

Common approaches include:

Surveys and feedback forms

First, the most traditional way of doing things still works well. Customer surveys are useful because they come straight from the source. Your customers tell you how they feel in their own words.

SmartSurvey is a modern tool that lets you create and send surveys easily. It has customisable customer survey templates, shows the results in real-time, and has plenty of other survey features. Our surveys can provide both qualitative and quantitative data. However, for customer sentiment, we recommend using open-ended questions to get more detailed feedback.

This way, people can give you specific examples of how they feel about your product, service or business.

Social media monitoring

Tools like Hootsuite and Sprout Social track brand mentions and reviews across social platforms like Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. They help monitor what people are saying about you online.

However, social media comments alone rarely provide a complete emotional perspective. Platforms tend to skew negative, with annoyed customers more likely to post publicly than satisfied ones. Plus, if you're new and don't get many mentions, it might not be the best option for your business just yet.

Customer sentiment analysis software

New AI-powered solutions use machine learning to assess sentiment in large volumes of text data. Algorithms identify emotional keywords, tone and patterns to categorise sentiment.

Artificial neural networks now achieve up to 85% accuracy. However, as a relatively nascent technology, some kinks regarding contextual understanding still need to be worked out.

Using sentiment to improve business

Once you have this information, you must act on it. It's not enough to just know how your customers feel—you need to use that knowledge to improve things.

Identify areas for improvement

Review feedback to pinpoint problematic products/services. Pay attention to patterns when analysing customer sentiment. If multiple customers mention the same issue, that's a clear sign of where you need to focus your efforts.

Tailor marketing strategies

Understanding customer sentiment can help you speak to your customers in a way that really connects with them.

If you know what your customers like and don't like, you can create marketing messages that hit the right note. You can focus on the things they love about your product and address any concerns they might have.

For instance, if customer sentiment shows that people love how eco-friendly your product is, you could make that a crucial part of your marketing. You might create ads highlighting your green credentials or start an email campaign about your environmental efforts.

Enhance offerings

Finally, customer sentiment can be an excellent guide for improving your products or services. By listening to how customers feel, you can make changes that will make them happier. That might mean adding new features, changing how something works, or even creating whole new products.

Best practices for monitoring sentiment

Before we wrap up, let's look at some best practices for tracking customer sentiment. These tips will help you monitor how your customers are feeling and use that information to improve your business.

• Establish a regular feedback loop with customers: Don't just ask for feedback once and forget about it. Keep checking in with your customers regularly to see how their feelings change over time.
• Integrate sentiment analysis into customer experience (CX) strategies: Make understanding customer sentiment a crucial part of how you design and improve your customer experience.
• Ensure transparency and responsiveness in addressing customer sentiment: When customers share their feelings, good or bad, make sure you respond. Thank them for positive feedback and address negative feedback quickly and honestly.
• Maintain a proactive approach to managing and improving sentiment: Don't wait for problems to pop up. Regularly look at your customer sentiment data and think about ways to make things even better for your customers.

Wrapping up

Customer sentiment provides invaluable emotional insights to enhance products, services, communications and strategies. By actively listening and responding to feedback, you can consistently exceed expectations rather than just achieving basic satisfaction.

Key takeaways

Understanding customer sentiment: Customer sentiment refers to the emotions and opinions customers hold about a company, product, or service. It’s more than just satisfaction; it encompasses how customers feel during their interactions with your brand, which can significantly impact their behaviour and loyalty.

Distinguishing sentiment from satisfaction: While customer satisfaction measures whether a product meets expectations, customer sentiment gauges how customers feel about using the product. A product can fulfil its purpose yet evoke neutral or negative sentiments, making it crucial to aim for positive emotional experiences.

Importance of positive sentiment: Positive customer sentiment is vital for building loyalty and retention. Customers with positive emotions towards your brand are more likely to remain loyal, make repeat purchases, and recommend your business to others, which is more cost-effective than acquiring new customers.

Strategic role of sentiment: Tracking customer sentiment over time can reveal trends and areas needing improvement. Integrating sentiment analysis into business strategies allows companies to make informed decisions that prioritise customer happiness and satisfaction, potentially preventing issues before they escalate.

Measuring sentiment: Businesses can measure customer sentiment using various methods, including surveys, social media monitoring, and AI-powered sentiment analysis tools. Each method has its strengths and limitations, with surveys providing direct feedback and AI tools offering scalability.

Actionable insights from sentiment data: Collecting sentiment data is just the first step; the real value lies in using it to drive improvements. Identifying common customer pain points, tailoring marketing strategies, and enhancing products based on sentiment feedback can lead to better customer experiences and stronger brand loyalty.

Best practices for monitoring sentiment: Regularly gathering and responding to customer feedback is essential for maintaining a positive sentiment. Businesses should integrate sentiment analysis into their customer experience strategies, ensure transparency in their responses, and proactively manage sentiment to continually exceed customer expectations.