By Jeff Perkins

One of the real challenges for parking providers is getting input from customers on an ongoing basis. The highly transactional nature of parking doesn’t always lend itself to a good feedback loop. So, as a parking provider, how do you know how you are doing? Are you meeting the consumer’s needs, or are you failing? How do you get better if you don’t know what’s broken?

Fortunately, our company’s users are more than willing to share their feedback with us. And while it’s important to read the positive reviews, you actually get a lot more insight out of the negative ones.

We spend a lot of time reading our reviews and doing a lot of surveys with our users–fortunately, when people create an account, they provide their email address so we can survey them. The insights we get from this research then inform how we evolve our offering. For example, one constant complaint we used to get was that people did not want to download an app just to pay for parking one time. As a result of this feedback, we added the option of paying via a mobile web browser. It’s an excellent example of listening to your customers and building new options.

Doing market research is easier than ever. Tools such as SurveyMonkey make it simple to create online surveys and email them to people who may have parked in your locations. If you don’t have a customer database, Survey Monkey can even help you find the people you’re looking for to take the survey. Also, nothing beats face-to-face interactions. Spend some time out on the streets talking to the people who are parking. Ask them about their experience and what would make it better.

If you have questions on how to improve your parking program, start by listening to your customers. They will probably have the answers you are looking for.

Jeff Perkins is CMO and head of product at ParkMobile.

By Rachel Yoka, CAPP, LEED AP BD+C, WELL AP

In a normal year, it takes discipline to set goals and stay focused on the steps you need to take to achieve them. This year has thrown us all for one heck of a curve. It’s easy to mindlessly scroll through 2020 memes (and there really are some great ones, so I recommend checking out a few).

Disruption caused by the pandemic has forced every parking, transportation, and mobility organization to revisit their entire operation. Our organization is no different. The level of disruption we have all experienced is challenging and painful. Yet, it can spur and advance innovation and positive change.

We decided as a team to respond to the ongoing crisis with intention, clarity, and kindness.

The intention behind our stay connected effort is to provide numerous resources, including Parking & Mobility magazine, frontline trainings through December, industry Shoptalks, and on-demand courses and webinars to train industry professionals. Every one of these resources is available to IPMI members for free.

Our Roadmap to Recovery initiative exemplifies our approach to clarity. We had to get crystal clear on what our members and the industry need, right now. We asked and you answered. We’ve heard from every segment of the industry on how they have had to adapt and stretch their organization to meet new demands. Our newest edition of the special publication Roadmap to Recovery is available now–download it today and dive into survey results and articles by industry experts.

Kindness comes easy to our community (or at least it appears to!). Your willingness to share your experience and insight with your colleagues and lend a hand is absolutely extraordinary. It’s apparent in our volunteers every single day. It’s evident from the generosity of our Frontline Training instructors, who freely give of their time to keep your team members up to date on essential skills. It’s every one of our speakers showing up at the Leadership Summit this week to offer their perspectives. I could go on, but this would become a full feature article in the magazine. For your kindness, thank you. We are all that much better for it.

If you have ever had an inclination to volunteer, write, or get involved–this is your year. Get off the sidelines and give of your gifts to our community. Reach out to me and we will find you the right opportunity to do so.

Here’s a five-minute ask: We still need to hear from you, it’s critical to our success as a community. Here’s how you can do that:

We look forward to hearing from you–stay well and stay connected.

Rachel Yoka, CAPP, LEED AP BD&C, WELL AP, is IPMI’s vice president of program development.

Tag Archives: surveys

Listening to Your Customers

Acting with Purpose and Kindness