Five-page document includes customer survey and accompanying letter.  

Introduction

About 100 days after close, it’s a good idea to survey the two companies’ customers. Chances are they may have experienced some turbulence caused by the transition. They’ll probably appreciate the extra attention. 

It may be uncomfortable to go looking for bad news, but it’s even worse if customers have a problem with your business and don’t tell you about it. It’s up to the acquirer to keep the lines of communication open. A survey is one way to promote a dialogue with customers and give them an opportunity to tell you how well the combined organization is meeting their needs.

The survey:

  • Communicates to customers that the company is concerned about any impact the deal may have had on them
  • Helps the company find out if customers are confused or unhappy about new policies and procedures
  • Explores whether or not customers are experiencing billing or customer service problems
  • Determines whether or not the customer intends to do business with the company in the future
  • Finds out if the customer is happy enough with the company to recommend it to others
  • Asks if a customer knows who to contact for questions or problems.

To improve the response rate, the buyer should consider offering a free gift to customers who complete the survey. This will give customers a token of appreciation for their continued patronage. The gift does not have to be elaborate or expensive. A baseball cap with the company’s logo can serve a dual purpose of making the customer happy and creating a walking advertisement for the combined business.

Even if the response rate isn’t great (and survey response rates are usually extremely low), the survey sends a message to customers that the buyer cares. Even if they throw it away, the survey still sends a message that says “What our customers think matters.”

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