How to Have Amazing Customer Service and Implement Product Feedback Loops with Ward Sandler of Memberspace
Episode 434: Show Notes
Today we are super excited to welcome Ward Sandler to the show! Ward is the co-founder and CEO of Memberspace, where he and his team help entrepreneurs and organizations turn any part of their site into a members only area. They make it so easy, anyone can do it! Our topic for today's conversation, however, is customer service and feedback loops and we were over the moon when Ward pitched this idea to us and we cannot wait to share it all with you. We get into all the helpful and authentic ways you can keep in contact with your clients and customers, and Ward talks about the ways he does this every day, all week long!
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This kind of proximity to an audience is what has helped Memberspace grow and grow in such an exciting way. They have raving fans and Ward explains what has contributed to this. Spoiler alert, its the feedback loops and great service! These lessons can be applied to whatever kind of business you run, whether it is for services, courses or products, you do not have to be a software company for these strategies to be implementable. We really recommend that you check out Memberspace and give it a shot if you have been considering something like this. Without further ado, let's get into some strategy!
A Breakdown of Memberspace and The Idea of Feedback Loops
Memberspace has done what we wanted so badly five years ago: reliably turning any part of a website into a members-only area! This means being able to secure certain pages and then charge money for access to these. Others have tried to do this in the past but none came close to the service Ward and his team offer. The ethos behind the company is to get out and talk to people, something many entrepreneurs seem to shy away from. Sales talk can be a bit scary and sometimes not that fun but let's face it, to make it in the creative entrepreneurial world, you have to have at least a little thick skin! Ward built this up during his days in sales and it has served him well in his work at his new company. He reminds us that you have to talk to people and you have to talk to the right people! That means the ones that are already paying you.So talking to your existing customers and listening to what they have to say is a staple of any good business. When Memberspace started out, Ward would hand-text each new customer and he learned a lot by reaching out. These are the people you want to get as much information from as possible.
The Communication Systems in Place at Memberspace Currently
Right now on the Memberspace website, there is a direct link to schedule a Zoom call with Ward. This is a very unusual measure to be taken by a software company and it is exactly what endears Memberspace to their customers immediately. It shows what kind of company they are and their ethos is clear to be seen. Getting in contact with the support team is also easy and the onboarding email sequence doubles down on this sense of support. Ward reminds us that if you do not have the thickest skin, manage this part of your business wisely. Take on an amount of contact you can handle and maybe build from there. There is nothing wrong with starting small! You will always have people who behave badly when they contact you and it is always a good idea to let that affect you as little as possible. Some people will have great suggestions that can help you move in the right direction and that is what you are after. If you take notice of what people say there will be a lot of data, but you do not have to rush into using it. Ward prefers to collect for a while and then consider a wise move based on accumulated findings. The important things show themselves over time and doing this smartly takes some practice and some passion!
Is There a Point Where This Communication Changes?
Ward does not plan on growing out of his role as a reachable CEO. If he was to collect the data it would be different and second-hand and he likes that direct link to his customers. Speaking to them and hearing what they say and how they say it is so valuable to him. It does not mean he has to do everything that is suggested or asked for, but he believes staying close to his customers is a lifelong aspiration. In the congested marketplace, you have to find some ways to differentiate yourself and this can be key to doing that! You could do it through your pricing, your branding or other means, Memberspace chose to make it through their proximity and intimacy with customers. This is what can make people love you and love your business and that is why it is so important for Memberspace. When you give people a great experience you are essentially creating little sales agents that will spread the word on your company and you cannot buy that!
Other Elements of Support at Memberspace
Memberspace actually uses their own service to run their own business! If you can get your head around that! Another avenue of feedback they use is the comments on why someone may want to cancel a trial or subscription, and in Ward's experience most of these are pretty neutral and they do not have many disappointed or upset customers; mostly people are canceling for their own reasons not because of being let down. It is another good data point and again Ward applies his rule of taking notice of the things that keep coming up. Memberspace does not carry out surveys and Ward chooses to talk to the support team all the time, as it is the most important feature of the company for him. With all this information he and his team can then decide on what features to work on next, and they often use gut instinct to decide on these based on the conversation they have been having. For Ward, it is not an exact science but they have never launched a new feature that was a disaster, probably because each feature is based on what is being asked for! Surveys can be misleading and biased and not necessarily a good source of information. Memberspace chooses to use conversations as their data point and you can see how it is paying off!
Quote This
If your goal is to get away from the customer, you probably shouldn't be running a business.
—Ward Sandler
Highlights
A Breakdown of Memberspace and The Idea of Feedback Loops. [0:04:52.4]
The Communication Systems in Place at Memberspace Currently. [0:11:44.5]
Is There a Point Where This Communication Changes? [0:24:12.7]
Other Elements of Support at Memberspace. [0:34:12.2]
#TalkStrategyToMe [0:39:17.3]
Tighten the loop!
Don't overthink pricing.
Keep it simple.
ON TODAY’S SHOW
Ward Sandler
Memberspace
Ward Sandler is the Co-founder and CEO over at MemberSpace - a profitable software as a service (SaaS) company that enables entrepreneurs and organizations to turn any part of their website into members-only with just a few clicks. Ward and his partner Ryan started MemberSpace back in 2015 and it continues to grow each year. They have helped customers around the world process over 50 million dollars from their members. Prior to starting MemberSpace, Ward did website and software consulting for four years while teaching himself how to code. He helped design everything from simple websites on Squarespace to custom software applications with Ruby on Rails. Prior to consulting, Ward was at top sales account manager at Thomson Reuters selling enterprise tax software to Fortune 1000 companies. He graduated with a B.S. in Business and Technology from Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, New Jersey and currently resides in Philadelphia, PA.
KEY TOPICS
Memberships, Feedback, Data collection, Systems, Business growth, Communication, Customer service, True fans
