Do You Provide Top-Notch Customer Service?
No matter the size of your online store, customer care is one of the most important parts of an eCommerce business. This sort of direct interaction with clients helps you build both trust and brand awareness, and also reduces customer problems at the same time. It appeals to existing customers and attracts new ones. Some people are even willing to pay more if they get a better customer care experience. Also, it might be beneficial when finding your target customers.
You should be trying to provide the experience you’d like to receive as a customer yourself. In order to be able to do so, it is essential to master your brand and know all of your products inside-out. Customer support should be conversation as it is what people will remember about your brand.
Why customer satisfaction is so important
Do your products and services meet your customers’ expectations? Improving customer satisfaction could help you with managing (and improving) your eCommerce business. It’s a crucial metric to monitor, as it helps you determine customer repurchase intentions and loyalty, thus increasing customer lifetime value. It reduces customer churn as well as negative word of mouth. And of course, it’s less expensive to retain customers than to acquire new ones. So, work hard to satisfy your customers. Without further ado, let’s dig in some tips how to provide high-quality customer support!
Personalization works
Your customers should never feel like they’re just another number in your list which is why you should always personalize your responses. You’re not a robot, so stop selling and start talking human. It’s natural, more friendly and less business-like. Start with small simple steps, you can for example address each customer by their first name, ask them something non-business-related. A customer will feel comfortable around your business and repay you in mirroring your tone, which is why a friendly environment is essential here.
Honesty is yet another significant factor when talking to a customer. Admit it when you screw up, apologize if something doesn’t work as it should. Be realistic about what you can / can’t do for your customers and never over-promise anything. It will help you build solid trust because it feels real and human.
Don’t worry though if you find it impossible to speak like this all the times. It’s not always so easy to do so, sometimes you have to describe complicated technical things that are too difficult to understand and even if you try to explain them in many different ways it just might not work at all for some customers.
Don’t just react, be proactive
Even if you don’t have any solution to a customer’s request yet, always respond as soon as possible. Ideally acknowledge them immediately that you’ve got their message and that you’re working on a solution. Also, don’t forget to let your customers know you’re there for them by simply thanking them for contacting you. Encourage them to contact you again, ask for their feedback, or provide something extra to make them feel important.
It’s one thing to react to your customers problems quickly, it’s another to provide an answer to a question you pre-empt before they even have it. You can show initiative and offer help before customers ask for it. So make an extra effort, gather feedback from your customers and monitor their activity. This will allow you to detect and react to customer problems promptly. With all the information you’d be able to create a detailed FAQ section, tutorials, guides, knowledge bases and other self-service materials. So, make the first move, become proactive!
The customer is ALWAYS right
It’s similar to a relationship. When talking to your significant other while they’re angry, it’s important to stay calm and be patient. It’s similar with a customer. There’s a slight difference though, unlike your significant other your customers do not give a damn about how busy you are. You should be ready to take the blame for everything that goes wrong. Always. That’s the approach you need when dealing with a customer who is finding a particular feature confusing or can’t use the product they’d purchased from you for whatever reason. Be as polite as possible, apologize that it’s unclear, provide multiple explanations of what you think might help, and of course, always ask their opinion on how they feel it could be improved.
Also, never shut them down, invite them to ask more questions. You want your customers to feel that you are giving them proper attention, so they shouldn’t think that you don’t have time for them. Working quickly is not more important than reaching a resolution. Don’t simply focus on emptying your customer service inbox. When it comes to customer satisfaction, the ultimate goal of every conversation is reaching a solution!
A Summary
As they say, customer service starts with a smile, so be friendly. Offer multi-channel support, provide online chat that will help you focus on delivering timely responses. Responding quickly, personally, and pro-actively is the key to provide world-class customer service. Don’t forget to collect feedback and track all customer interactions and behavior effectively. Good luck!
