Online Shopping: Savior Of The Universe Wanted

What is your company doing to improve cyber security and the protection of online shopping and shoppers?

Sadly we don’t have a group of intergalactic criminals who have joined forces to stop the fanatics from taking control of the online shopping universe. Guardians of the Online Galaxy may be fiction, but in the virtual world the need for their services is almost identical. Shoppers in Gotham City and beyond are struggling with perceptions of security and the fear of fear itself. What are the citizens to do?

Their online security is your business and its future business.

This fear is a massive drawback when it comes to online shopping. Yes, in principle consumers love the hyper-convenient way of racking up credit card debt! They are not averse at all. However, beneath every purchase of a Friday night takeaway, new camera or pair of must-have shoes, there’s the nagging doubt: ‘are my credit card details safe when shopping online?’ In fact, the number of people experiencing doubt are alarming. If there’s one thing to glean from this is it is: as a business, ensuring online security and protecting consumers is paramount.

You might think this is a basic comment. What didn’t I know about that? The difference is this time you actually need to trumpet what your company does to secure sensitive details. Let everyone know! Make the messages upfront and clear. You must reassure the consumer whenever you can. It might make the difference between a sale or an abandoned cart. Even more importantly, it might transform the perception of your business — and we all know how important word-of-mouth is these days.

In fact, it’s not just what you do to protect customers that requires some attention. You also need to understand online consumer behavior. That means you need to be savvy with what your customers are up to, and what scammers and the ‘bad guys’ in general are doing too. It’s an on-going part of contemporary business strategy.

What’s the Online Shopping Problem?

We all want to trust one another. Let’s face it, if you have a note in your hand there is a belief that your sheet of paper represents the wherewithal to purchase a chosen article in a transaction. We accept money’s worth. It’s a tacit agreement. We do that online too. We rely on trust all the time. The problem is much of the internet is anonymous in nature, or at least it started out that way with pretty disastrous consequences. Luckily (or not so luckily for some) the internet is a little more accountable. Yet consumers place their trust in websites, reviews, emails, social media messages and so on all the time. Most of us want to believe that what’s before us is the truth. When, of course, sometimes it really is anything but the truth.

This weekend at 100TB there was much discussion about where to buy a new camera. Three people made the decision it was best to go with Amazon. The conversation ended up like this:

Well Amazon’s trustworthy and you can rely on delivery. The others might be cheap, but what backup do you have?’

It’s interesting. If a website is explicit about what it does to protect its customers more sales might well occur. We are all suspicious of great prices. We have been schooled into believing ‘If it sounds too good to be true then it probably is.’ Therefore, if your sales rely on price you need to reassure your customer too. It makes sense, right? Once confidence is lost you will never win it back. Consumers are keen to spread the word to protect others too. If you help them achieve this goal, then you will see a difference in your sales and take-up.

So what should your online business consider when it comes to managing consumers’ online behaviors.

Top 6 Major Online Shopping Issues and Resolutions for 2017

• There’s been a massive increase in mobile internet access. Great! But there’s been a corresponding increase in shoppers who really aren’t internet savvy. This is where you need to put on your cape, mask and tights and fly to their rescue. Your helping hand will probably secure a sale. Think about it.
• Scams have become far more sophisticated. They are so plausible they catch even the most reasonable and wary consumers. It only takes a second. Ensure your messaging reassures and goes the extra mile. Having operatives available and double lock security is useful too.
• Customers are cynical and they expect problems. As many as two-thirds of consumers expect to be hacked within the twelve months. So the stakes really are very high.

• Levels of trust vary from region to region. What does this mean? Well consumers will normally prefer to purchase ‘locally’ that means their own state or country. Think about how you can reach out to your local community effectively. Social media can also be very effective at targeting people in your ‘community’ or ‘neighborhood’. Use it effectively for reassurance.
• Consumers have put the responsibility for online security on others. That pretty much means you as a business. They believe it lies with the company to keep their information safe. Messages that help consumers to understand what they need to do to keep their half of the bargain can be helpful. We all need to join forces to become our very own guardians of the galaxy.
• Promises are easy to make, especially when you don’t actually see someone face-to-face. Customer service is THE differentiator. Your support team needs to have super powers. Not only do you need to make your service exemplary, but you also need to protect customer data. That’s not a ‘nice to have’, it’s absolutely essential.
• Start selling off data without being upfront and watch your reputation crash and burn. For example, Bose has been accused of gathering data without consent. How does that make you feel about a brand? Would you be more or less likely to purchase from said companies?
• With Donald Trump having signed legislation to allow internet service providers to sell browsing habits expect suspicion to grow. You need to counter that aggressively but don’t forget the velvet gloves (and silk cape) too!

Like what you read? Try these other essential ecommerce posts from our industry experts.

Ecommerce can be a tricky industry, but if you do your homework and set clear boundaries concerning privacy and security — then there is no reason that you can’t expand your brand reputation, increase consumer confidence and plump up your pockets too.

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Originally published at blog.100tb.com.