A good customer service is important for businesses of all types, but we would venture that in E-Commerce is even more important. And why?
For many reasons, but the most important -from our point of view- is the enormous competition that exists at the online level. Unless you sell a unique product in the world (a rare thing), your potential customer will only have to do a couple of clicks to buy in another business very similar to yours. And this is where customer service plays a key role in ensuring that your undecided customer prefers to stay on your site.
In this article, we’re going to give you 5 tips for your customer service to meet the expectations of the most demanding buyer.
OFFERS DIFFERENT CHANNELS OF CONTACT
The time when your only contact channel was a phone (sometimes a pay phone) is far behind you. Consumers want to be able to choose the way that is most convenient for them at all times.
Don’t worry, this doesn’t mean that you have 15 communication channels open, but it does mean that you go beyond a simple email address or telephone.
Let’s take an example: Nike gives its visitors multiple ways to contact them:
- Phone number
- Live chat
- Store locator
Other contact channels can be provided too, like social media and contact forms, for example. It seems like a lot of channels, but it’s not really that many if you manage them correctly. Thus, you give the customer many options to choose the one that best suits them.
IMMEDIACY IS IMPORTANT
If there is one thing that differentiates offline commerce from online commerce, it is the immediacy of customer service. A consumer enters a physical store, calls a clerk and gets immediate answers. In the case of ecommerce, the telephone is an option to make up for this difference, but many consumers are reluctant to call.
In this sense, live chat is profiled as a very useful tool to listen to the customer and offer quick solutions.
We have already talked about the advantages of live chat in previous articles, and we have made a comparison between the main live chat options in the market. There are many things we could say about it, but if you’re looking for immediacy, this is your tool.
Following the example of Nike, if we click on the live chat option, a window will automatically open, with a little contact form helping the customer manager determining your needs:
ASK YOUR CUSTOMERS FOR THEIR OPINION
An important part of providing good customer service is that your customers feel that you listen to them. And one way to make sure of this is to periodically ask them for their opinion.
This may be a little scary at first, but it’s the best way to improve and optimize your service.
How to ask for feedback? There are many ways:
You can include automatic surveys that are displayed on your website when the customer is browsing.
You can send post-purchase emails, asking them for feedback about the transaction they have made.
A tip: The NPS (Net Promoter Score) is a very quick and simple survey that is usually standard when we seek to know the opinion of customers. It consists of a single question: « On a scale of 1 to 10, how likely would you recommend us to a friend or family member? This survey will give you a score from 1 to 10, allowing you to easily measure how satisfied your customers are.
AN ANGRY BUYER? FOLLOW THESE TIPS
No matter how good we do things, there’ll always be someone who’s not happy. Maybe we’ve made a mistake (it’s inevitable) or we’ve just been touched by a difficult customer.
If you find yourself in this situation, we recommend that you take the following steps:
- Be interested in their opinion. Even if you don’t share it.
- Try to get him to tell you what he has to say.
- Let him see that you are listening to (or reading) what he tells you. If he asks you questions (even if they’re not very relevant), worry about answering them.
- Apologize for any problems you may have caused.
- Try to solve their problem as much as possible. If you can’t, find someone who can help you do it.
You should always look your best, as an angry user is likely to leave a bad review that will damage your future sales.
KEEP IN MIND (ALWAYS) THAT CUSTOMER SERVICE IS YOUR SECRET WEAPON
We have already commented at the beginning of the article, but we want to repeat it because it is probably the most important reflection that you are going to extract from here.
In marketing, word of mouth is key. Whether word of mouth is personal (friends, family) or mouth to mouth in the form of 5 stars in a page of reviews.
That’s why offering a customer service that leaves your customers more than satisfied is mandatory. This way, you’ll get them to become promoters of your brand (and, by the way, you’ll be able to compete with giants like Amazon).
That’s why we recommend you to:
- Look for tools that make your life easier. Live chat solutions, such as Oct8ne, bring you closer to your customer and allow you to serve them quickly.
- Take advantage of automation: chatbots or email automation allow you to automate your work.
- Learn from what your customers tell you and optimize your ecommerce: If many customers ask you about the same thing, include it in the FAQs. If many customers ask you about a product you don’t have, consider adding it to your catalog. And so on. Something very positive about ecommerce is the enormous amount of data you offer. Take advantage of all that information to extract business intelligence that allows you to grow.
Image credit: Sanket
The post 5 tips for an optimal customer service policy in your E-Commerce appeared first on ECN | E-Commerce Nation.
June 18, 2020 at 08:07AM
via https//www.brucedayne.com/
E-commerce Nation, Khareem Sudlow
