Requesting and collecting feedback from customers is, without a doubt, a must-have — but here’s a powerful complementary option: the “feedforward.”
The concept of “feedforward,” introduced by Marshall Goldsmith, is rapidly gaining traction — and for good reason. In marketing, it’s a preventive approach that involves gathering information and insights before launching a campaign. The goal is to gain a deeper understanding of the market, competition, and target audience, and use this data to refine and enhance the strategy.
Specifically, it involves conducting market research, collecting customer input, and analyzing trend data to identify successful practices to emulate. This allows marketers to make informed decisions, anticipate challenges, and develop more targeted and effective campaigns.
The use of feedforward is especially vital in today’s ever-evolving marketing landscape, where anticipating customer needs and staying ahead of competitors is key to success.
Feedforward vs. Feedback: What’s the Difference?
Feedforward is not necessarily better than feedback — each serves a distinct purpose. The choice depends on the objective and context of the campaign.
Feedforward is about gathering pre-campaign insights to refine strategy and make proactive decisions.
Feedback is about collecting post-campaign evaluations to measure performance and identify areas for improvement.
In simple terms, feedforward is future-oriented, focusing on solutions rather than evaluations. While feedback often revolves around critiquing past performance, feedforward shifts the focus to constructive suggestions for future improvements.
Instead of asking what went wrong, ask: “What could we do better next time?” This not only encourages more thoughtful responses but also frames your brand as solution-oriented and customer-focused.
Ultimately, combining both feedforward and feedback ensures you benefit from real-time insight and long-term strategic planning.
How to Implement Feedforward
✓ Intermediate Surveys
Rather than typical satisfaction surveys like NPS or CES, ask one or two specific questions such as:
“What feature would you like us to add to our app?”
Some answers may be unrealistic or repetitive — but others may be game-changers. Either way, they help align your product with real user needs.
Brands often act based on what they think customers want. Instead, validate your ideas by engaging real users early and tracking their responses.
✓ Purchase Confirmation Emails
You’re fully entitled to include a short feedforward question in purchase confirmation emails. Since these emails are directly linked to a transaction, open rates are high.
Offer a small incentive (like a discount) in exchange for answering a simple question:
“What would you like to see from us in the future?”
This creates a win-win: you gather useful insight, and customers feel valued and involved in shaping your brand.
Be careful — this is not about star ratings or generic reviews. Encourage genuine answers that your internal team can act on.
In short, feedforward supports strategic planning, while feedback enables post-campaign optimization. Combine both to fine-tune your marketing over time, improve customer satisfaction, and keep evolving with the market.