Hemsby is first British seaside resort to use instant customer-feedback scheme.

The resort, which recently called-in brand expert Simon Middleton, known as The Brand Strategy Guru, to help improve its brand reputation, is now focusing on demonstrating its commitment to excellent customer service by becoming the first British resort to use an advanced customer-feedback scheme.

Under the new scheme, visitors to cafes, food-stalls, shops and attractions in the resort will be invited to pick up a postcard carrying the slogan: “Tell the Viking what you think”. The Viking refers to the resort’s new logo designed by Scott Poulson at Special Design Studio, based on Hemsby’s 1,200 year-old Viking heritage.

On the back of the postcard simple instructions and a phone number encourage the customer to text instant feedback to the business owner about the service they have just received. Customers can give a score out of 10 and add a more detailed comment if they wish. Customers also have the option of entering their comments on a special website branchadvisor.com

Visitors can also use the system to comment on their general views and experience of the resort as a whole.

The postcard-text system, known as branchadvisor.com is the brainchild of Martin Kentish, the Norfolk entrepreneur who runs a specialist customer feedback business Free Range People.

Martin explained: “It is great to see our branchadvisor.com product being used in this way to enhance customer experience in Hemsby & Newport. Although the system was actually designed for large high street retail brands, it’s good to demonstrate how branchadvisor.com could be deployed to help retailers within entire villages, towns or even cities!”

Simon Middleton, who put together a team of volunteer specialist experts to work pro-bono on the Hemsby re-brand campaign, is delighted with the customer-feedback scheme.

Simon explained: “I think it shows courage and determination for small businesses like the traders in Hemsby to pout their reputations on the line with an instant feedback scheme like this. And it’s a win-win for everyone. Praise will boost the traders’ morale and encourage them to stay focused. Any criticism can always be learned-from and improvements made. And visitors to Hemsby & Newport will know that this is the only resort in the UK to take its customer experience so seriously. I wish every holiday business in Norfolk used the scheme. It would help to build the reputation of the county very fast.”

The picture shows Martin Kentish of Free Range People with the customer-feedback postcard.

Date posted: Monday 3rd August 2009Back to news home page >