HOW TO DELIVER WINNING CUSTOMER SERVICE ON YOUR ECOMMERCE STORE
Tuesday, April 28, 2015Global Administrator
How to Deliver Amazing eCommerce Customer Service
In today’s market, if you’re not selling online, you’re already behind. Consumers are fierce, have high standards, and can be extremely disloyal. With the rise of social media and eCommerce giants, there’s not much standing between you and a competitor. So how does one stand out?
Customer service has and always will play a large role when consumers make decisions. It’s crucial that online merchants invest in this department. Customers will notice the difference and will remember you for it.
Below are a few key areas to look at when enhancing your eCommerce customer service policy.
Give customers options
A multi-channel support model is one of the best ways to give your customers options. By doing this, you recognize that every customer is different and you cater to individual tastes. Customers who would prefer to send an email can do that, while others who prefer to call and speak to someone can do that as well.
We’ve mentioned in prior blogs that we are big fans of having a chat feature. Everything is instant these days and customers expect instant support. Incorporating chat is a great way to approach this growing need!
Be a little more social
Social media is no longer a new concept, and businesses are expected to have a social presence on various channels. A lot of your customers will expect to find you on these channels and communicate with you there. Whether it be a question or a complaint, it is imperative that you’re there to respond.
In addition to this, social media is a fantastic area to listen to what people are saying about your brand. Listening and acting on what you hear shows that you care about your customers, and they appreciate it. Human interaction is a large factor in customer satisfaction.
Image courtesy of
Salesforce.com
Record everything!
As we mentioned above, your customers may be reaching out to you via multiple channels. Depending on how large your customer service team is, it may be a good idea to have all conversations, chats, and social interactions recorded. This prevents confusion when dealing with customers issues across various channels. Your team has access to all conversations so that nothing gets missed.
Remember, a complaint is a gift
Complaints are never fun to deal with, and it can be quite a time consuming process to rectify them. Having said this, it’s crucial that merchants recognize the value in these complaints. Customers are providing feedback of your product and service and giving you the opportunity to improve the quality. This relates back to our point above about recording everything. By keeping some sort of record of your complaints, you are able to revisit the solutions should you have that issue again.
It’s not an obstacle course!
Remove all unnecessary obstacles for your customers. Making your customer path easier could have a direct effect on your conversion rate and possibly improve your shopping cart abandonment rate. When customers have to sign up for an email list, or provide unnecessary information to make their purchase it becomes frustrating and unappealing. Customers want instant everything, so adding additional steps like this could deter them from making the purchase.
Customer service is a defining factor for a lot of customers!
Remember that customers will make a purchase because of your product, but will leave due to poor service. It’s important to implement a solid and effective customer service policy to keep your customers satisfied. Aim to build relationships, not just transactions on your eCommerce store!