Same Business Problem, Three Different Questions

Imagine a commercial equipment supplier notices that customers who place one order rarely place another. The sales team suspects price. The operations team thinks customers struggle to reorder. Both explanations sound plausible, and neither team can point to the same customer experience. Before sending a survey, try writing three versions of the question.

1. The broad question

“Why haven’t you ordered from us again?”

This can surface a reason you never considered. It also asks customers to explain a pattern they may never have thought about. “We haven’t needed anything” could mean their next purchase is six months away, they bought more than they expected to use, or a colleague now handles ordering. Keep the question if you want to hear the respondent’s own explanation, and leave room for a follow-up.

2. The question with a theory inside it

“Did our prices put you off ordering again?”

A respondent can agree without recalling a price or comparing an alternative. The wording also introduces a theory before the respondent has had a chance to describe what mattered. To investigate price, ask about a specific purchase they considered and when cost entered the decision. They may tell you that the quoted price was fine and that the delivery window was the expense they worried about.

3. The question about an event

“Since your first order, have you needed to buy this type of equipment again? If so, think of the most recent time. How did you decide where to buy it?”

The first sentence gives people who had no further need a clear route through the question. The second asks those who did buy again to reconstruct a real decision. An answer like “Our engineer ordered the replacement directly because she had the part number” gives the supplier something to investigate. Where did the engineer find the number? Could she have reordered through the original supplier?

Choose the question for the decision

If the business wants to decide whether to simplify reordering, look for examples where customers needed a replacement and found another route. If it wants to change pricing, ask about comparable purchases and the trade-offs people actually made. Try writing down what you would do differently if each answer were true. That exercise can reveal which question belongs in the study.