Customer service and support have become very important for business success. Nowadays, consumers would rather do business with companies that provide exceptional customer service than companies with good product quality. As a matter of fact, consumers are willing to pay 16% more to get a better service.
With that in mind, customer service has become an integral factor for not just business success but the business reputation as well. The fact of the matter is that businesses that provide a seamless service favor good sentiment from customers, as well as favor positive reviews and word-of-mouth recommendations. This is very important, especially in the ecommerce market that’s becoming increasingly competitive and overcrowded.
Both customer service and the overall customer experience are now very important to modern consumers. So much, in fact, that around 60% of consumers will abandon a brand if they experience unfriendly service. That’s why ecommerce businesses must step up their game to ensure customer satisfaction.
That being said, here are a few effective practices for maximizing your ecommerce customer service.
Create a Multichannel Approach
One of the key elements in successfully providing exceptional customer service is to be where your customers are. Today, that means pretty much everywhere. Online consumers browse through various media channels every day and engaging them on every channel might prove to be a daunting task.
However, if you create a multichannel approach for your ecommerce business, you can engage customers on the most important channels instead of trying to get in touch with them on every possible location or touch point. Providing customers with the right information regarding your products is vital for long-term engagement, as well as customer retention.
Therefore, consider providing assistance where it matters the most. For example, today the most popular media channels are social media platforms, email, mobile and websites. With that in mind, create a customer service feature for each of those channels so that customers can interact with you the way it suits them the most.
Don’t Exclude Phone Support
Although the majority of consumers consist of younger generations that avoid using the good old landline for anything, there are still members of older generations who might prefer phone services over other methods. In the ecommerce world, every customer matters.
Providing service over the phone might seem old fashioned but there are still a great number of people who opt for this method. However, if your ecommerce store favors a larger consumer base, the regular landline might not be sufficient to provide an exceptional service over the phone.
In that case, you might consider opting for services, such as 1300 numbers that will replace the landlines and improve your phone-based customer service features. This practice is ideal for handling more inbound phone traffic, as well as for giving your ecommerce business a more professional outlook. That way, when customer call to get informed or ask for assistance, you can seamlessly provide them with a service that will guarantee their satisfaction.
Consider a Live Chat Feature
Live chat is yet another practice that can take your customer service to another level. Live chat allows customers to directly contact a representative of your business and address any issue they may be having on the spot. As a matter of fact, live chat has the highest satisfaction rate, 73% compared to other customer service methods, which is 61% for email and 44% for phone.
In addition, 79% of consumers prefer live chat feature due to the quick response rates. By implementing a live chat feature on your ecommerce store’s website, you can vastly improve your customer service and support. The main reason is that your customers will able to talk with a real person while on your website and sort out any inconveniences they might have or simply get the answers to any questions they might be having.
Offer a Self-Service Feature
A growing trend among consumers that’s gaining a significant momentum is self-service. In other words, consumers want to look up relevant information on their own and get informed before they decide to proceed with their purchases.
Providing consumers with a self-service option is a good practice for elevating your customer service efforts. In order to implement such a feature and make it as seamless as possible, focus on implementing a FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) page or a knowledge base on your website.
Furthermore, make sure you clearly define every policy you have, such as payment and privacy policy, policies regarding delivery and shipping, return and warranty policy and so on. Moreover, don’t forget to provide company information and contact info should consumers choose to contact you after all. That way, your consumers can get informed about how you do things at your company and get every detail they need regarding your products and services.
As mentioned before, customer service has become very important for both consumers and your ecommerce business. No matter how good your existing customer service may be, there’s always a room for improvement. That’s why you should consider implementing as many good practices as possible, in order to make your customer service truly exceptional.
About the Author
Raul Harman is the editor-in-chief at Technivorz blog. He has a lot to say about innovation in all aspects of digital technology and online marketing. Connect with hi
