Why customer service is essential in ecommerce
You’re probably aware of the importance of customer service. Poor service leads to bad reviews, a bad reputation, and fewer sales. Good service cultivates brand loyalty, a good reputation, and repeat sales.
While this is generally true of all businesses, customer service is especially vital in ecommerce.
Today’s shoppers expect:
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High-quality goods
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Short delivery times
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Quick email responses
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Thoughtful packaging
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An easy returns process
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…to name but a few requirements of good service.
Unfortunately, customers are often quicker to leave a negative review for poor service than a positive review for good service. And those reviews can hurt your conversion rates and – depending on the sales channels – even obstruct your ability to sell.
So, let’s explore what it takes to deliver excellent customer service every time.
Customer service checklist
There are several factors that go into a satisfying customer experience. And you need to work on all of them to avoid the risk of disappointing your customers.
Here’s a checklist for delivering excellent ecommerce customer service:
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Quality control: Implement a process of checking order accuracy and product quality before shipping goods.
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Transparency: Be open and honest about delivery times, product details, and your brand story. Don’t pretend to be anything you’re not – people will figure it out eventually.
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First impressions: Be thoughtful when packing and shipping products. Damaged or rough packaging can disappoint customers, but a personal touch or a surprise freebie can really please them.
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Communication: Make your contact details easy to find on your website and respond as quickly as possible to every request. The sooner you reply, the less stressed that customer will be.
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Refunds and returns: Many business owners make the mistake of arguing with customers over returns. Instead, you should set up a simple returns process that’s easy to follow and give customers the benefit of the doubt whenever possible.
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Fulfilment speed: Optimise your shipping process to ensure customers receive their orders quickly. This can be achieved through automated shipping tools, efficient inventory management, and procuring the best courier providers.
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To summarise, any opportunity to do something that will please your customer should be considered. And any risk of upsetting the customer should be avoided.
3 tips for improving ecommerce customer service
If you’re already prioritising the fundamentals of good customer service mentioned above, there are a few ways to go above and beyond to provide an even better experience.
Here are my three best tips for improving ecommerce customer service.
1. Set up best-practice processes
The best way to ensure consistently good service is to have processes in place that support it. For every step in the customer journey, create a workflow that makes it easier to do the right thing.
For example, you can set up automated emails that update customers about the status of their order as it moves through the fulfilment cycle. This will save you time responding to order enquiries and ensure you never forget to let them know when a product has been shipped.
Whenever you have a repeated task that must be done, determine the most efficient way of doing it and construct your environment to facilitate that process.
2. Personalise the customer experience
Every interaction with a customer is a chance to be remembered.
From how you pack your goods to the website, ads, and email marketing you use to sell products – a positive surprise can go a long way.
Consider your target audience and how your communications make them feel. If they’re big on conservation, use sustainable packaging. If they love a bit of fun, be humorous in your messaging.
Put yourself in the shoes of your target customer and ask: What would make me want to buy from this brand?
3. Improve response times
When something goes wrong with an order, most shoppers are willing to offer the supplier a small period of grace in which to make amends. We’re all human, and mistakes happen.
But if you don’t respond within that grace period, that small frustration can quickly become an avalanche of outrage. It’s one thing to deliver a faulty product but to follow that up with radio silence can be the straw that breaks the camel’s back.
Set a specific time of day to respond to all customer enquiries so that they never slip away from you. Follow up on every communication to let them know their problem is important to you.
