From redefining how your organization interacts with the customer, to mining data to understand the issues they’re facing, implementing Salesforce Service Cloud is the most transformative step companies can take to improving customer experience. But it’s not enough to simply leave it at that. The best organizations are constantly measuring Salesforce’s effect on their bottom line. How can you best measure how your customers experience your brand? Go straight to the source. 

Luckily for business and consumers alike, the days of sending and receiving questionnaires via snail mail are over. A quick search on the Salesforce AppExchange uncovers a multitude of digital survey tools, both free and paid, ready to mine customer insight and help you improve your processes. With so many tools to choose from, it can be a challenge to find the right one. At Bluewolf, we’ve worked with many of these tools. Here are our top four picks: 

1. Clicktools by Callidus Cloud (4.5/5 stars): Considered the best in the marketplace, Clicktools is a paid application that can meet just about any need your organization may have. For enterprise-sized companies looking for robust functionality, this offering is spot on. We like the easy-to-navigate user interface, which allows users of all skill levels to administer surveys and monitor responses, as well as the ability to add complex logic to surveys and forms, a feature that many other tools lack.  
2. Qualtrics (4.5/5 stars): A very popular paid survey tool used mostly by enterprise-sized companies, Qualtrics offers a fully integrated Salesforce app that allows you to create visually appealing surveys with just a few clicks. You can trigger surveys automatically based on Salesforce rules, and easily map survey responses to specific objects or fields in Salesforce. One of Qualtrics’s standout features is its ability to take specific question responses, like CSAT or NPS scores, and post the results directly into agents’ Chatter feed.
3. Timba Surveys by Altimetrik (4/5 stars): Built natively on the Force.com platform, this free tool is widely used by customers across all verticals who want core functionality without too many bells and whistles, like Branding, Logic, etc. Configuration can be a bit more complex when dealing with this application; you’ll need to set up a Salesforce Site in order to collect survey responses from your customers. The best part about Timba is its simple, drag-and-drop functionality, which makes it easy to create surveys. Plus, since it’s used by many mid-sized and small businesses for a variety of purposes, you can find many tips, tricks, use cases, and documentation on how best to use the tool. 
4. Survey Force (3/5 stars): For customers looking to test the waters with basic survey functionality, Survey Force by Salesforce Labs is a great free tool to start collecting customer feedback. Although very straightforward in nature, the lack of documentation and support can make it hard to set up in your Salesforce org, and some technical knowledge about Salesforce Sites will be needed for setup; however, the core functions are very easy for new users to manage. If your company is not ready to invest in a paid tool and needs a simple, no-frills survey, Survey Force is a great place to start. 

At the end of the day, companies should evaluate their technical skillsets and company goals when looking for the best fit survey tool to integrate with Salesforce. Don’t forget to keep the customer experience in mind when designing your surveys; after all, if it’s not easy or engaging, your investment in designing and deploying surveys will be wasted. Gathering customer feedback and consistently improving your service will differentiate your organization from your competitors. 

To learn more about how to improve your customer service organization, take our Customer Service Quiz and get a free copy of 10 Ways to Improve Case and Knowledge Management.