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There are many customer management and customer support solutions available, and if you're already using one or more of them, by all means, look for a way to document this refund data in the process you're using.

You can make your measurement as sophisticated as you'd like, but it's much better to create a basic measurement that can begin saving customers today. We keep up with customer activity through a variety of systems, but we currently track this refund process through a simple Google Doc:

• Name (customer name)

• Product (refund request product)

• Offered (alternative solutions offered)

• Response (customer response; copied directly from email or noted if by phone)

• Ticket Number (from relevant customer management, record)

• Representative (customer service representative responsible)

• Date (date of initial refund request)

This could be more complicated, but it doesn't need to be. By focusing on Product, Offered, and Response, we're able to:

• Quickly identify trends in what alternative solutions people prefer based on particular circumstances

• Use customer feedback to improve products based on how we know they're being used

By then tracking the lifetime value of that saved customer, we not only know how much was saved in a sale, but how much of a difference it makes over time.

Talk soon,
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