Optimizing processes with effective feedback loops

Back when I was at Zalando, my team was working on a tool for 700 internal users. These users were a mix of photographers, retouchers, and copywriters. Our tool was meant to automate the work of photographers initially and then move to retouchers and copywriters.

I was new to the project since the responsible PM had left the team abruptly. The first few days I got to know about the product and the users. Interestingly, I came in just a few days before the launch. Two weeks down the line the launch was scheduled. I decided to do user testing with real users one week before the go-live.

This was the day when I realized how important feedback loops are. It turned out that during user testing we found two blocker issues and they were so important that we couldn’t go ahead with taking this tool live on the scheduled date.

What if the user testing hadn’t happened? What if there was no feedback loop? What if we would have gone to the users directly with the final product without taking their feedback?

In the end, we managed to agree with the users about a temporary manual solution for the problem and launched the product three weeks later instead of the original two weeks.

In this article, you’ll learn what a feedback loop is, the different types, and how to implement one effectively.

What is a feedback loop?

A feedback loop is when the output of a system such as internal employee/user feedback or external customer feedback is taken as input to improve a product. In cases like the one I mentioned above, it’s also used to take feedback from the users before launching the product to make sure that the product is delivered according to the expectations of the users.

What are the different types of feedback loops?

There are three main types of feedback loops depending on the visibility and type of feedback that you’re seeking:

Customer feedback loop

In this version, you collect feedback from the customers who are using your product. There are two types of customer feedback loops:

• Direct customer — Feedback is taken directly from the end customers via interviews, group sessions, feedback forms and user testing
• Indirect customer — Feedback is taken by understanding user analytics, engagement metrics, support tickets, ratings and reviews, etc.

Stakeholder feedback loop

As opposed to customers, you can also collect feedback from internal stakeholders such as higher management, engineering, design, marketing, sales, customer service, etc. as well as external stakeholders such as partners, industry experts, advisors, etc. While this won’t lend you immediate insights into your users, these stakeholders have niche knowledge that can help you identify potential issues in your product that customers might not pick up on.

Market feedback loop

Moving away from individuals, you can also seek feedback from the market itself. This includes two types of loops:

• Competition feedback loop — This is done via competitive analysis, finding strengths and weaknesses of the company
• Market research — This is done by understanding the market including sizing of the market, and past, present, and future market trends, etc.

Steps for implementing a feedback loop

To help you get started implementing a feedback loop within your product team, you can follow these steps.

1. Identify users/stakeholders to get feedback from — You need to determine whose feedback you want to consider since you won’t consider all the users and stakeholders. Categorize groups as primary (users and stakeholders whose feedback you want to consider) and secondary (whose feedback won’t be included in decision-making but is good to know)
2. Plan feedback channels — Plan which feedback channels you will use to seek feedback. These can range from online channels such as email communication, online user testing, and interviews, etc. to offline channels such as face-to-face interviews and feedback sessions
3. Define the feedback collection process — Define how you want to collect the feedback. One of the ways that I have used the most is to talk to the users and understand what they are comfortable with, at which place, and how. That will already give you a strong hint
4. Analyze feedback — This is the last part of the feedback loop. This is where all the analysis happens including finding trends, patterns, and actionable insights that can result in potential improvements
5. Document — Last but not least, document. Document every interview and insight. This will not only help the teams record the information but also foster a culture of implementing feedback loops for big as well as small features

Tools and technologies that can help in implementing feedback loops

There are many tools and technologies available that can help you implement a feedback loop. The following table outlines some of the most popular ones:

Feedback loop challenges and solutions

When I was at Zalando our product was for more than 700 internal users. Even though these were internal users, it was a little difficult to understand how to implement feedback loops. Below is the list of challenges and their solutions that we implemented.

---

Over 200k developers and product managers use LogRocket to create better digital experiences

Learn more →

---

Identifying who to take feedback from

As mentioned there were more than 700 users. This made it difficult to decide which users to take feedback from. We initially went with team leads but unfortunately, they had a lot of stuff on the plate and weren’t available for giving feedback actively.

So we decided to go with power users. These aren’t necessarily team leads but have been working in the team for a while now (in our case they have been in the company for more than five years). They also had a solid grasp of processes so we went with 15 power users to seek feedback from.

Feedback bias

For a short period, our team moved to the department where our users were. Originally, our team was a part of a centralized tech team but because of the decision of the higher management to move every team with its respective unit, we were moved to the department of our users. This meant my team was reporting to the head who was the head of our users.

Most of the time there was feedback bias. As a result, we introduced a RICE score to understand which feedback is valuable, and which is not.

Resistance to change

In one instance after the feedback collection process, we provided a solution that had the usage of a third-party tool. Usually, whenever a new tool is introduced, the users get overwhelmed. And the same happened when we proposed an introduction of a new tool.

To not overwhelm the users we had a one hour meeting with the 15 power users to explain the rationale behind the new tool. We also gave a demo and explained how the tool would make the lives of 700 users easier. Eventually, these 15 power users approved and were able to imbibe confidence in the rest of the users.

Key takeaways

In my career of 10 plus years as a product manager, feedback loops have been an effective tool to improve a product/process. With the emergence of AI and various tools, I’m confident that this process will become easier. I believe the companies whose loop from research to implementing feedback is faster, will eventually win.

These are those customer-centric companies that truly understand customers and build products that eventually help them. What different methods have you used to seek feedback from customers? Tell me in the comments.

Featured image source: IconScout

LogRocket generates product insights that lead to meaningful action

LogRocket identifies friction points in the user experience so you can make informed decisions about product and design changes that must happen to hit your goals.

With LogRocket, you can understand the scope of the issues affecting your product and prioritize the changes that need to be made. LogRocket simplifies workflows by allowing Engineering, Product, UX, and Design teams to work from the same data as you, eliminating any confusion about what needs to be done.

Get your teams on the same page — try LogRocket today.