Running an online business means taking great care of your customers. In today’s competitive marketplace, your customer has a variety of choices for virtually anything they want to buy online. That means that you need to be better than the competition. How do you that?
On Time Shipping
Probably the biggest complaint that many people have is when their package doesn’t arrive on time. Whether the issue is that your delivery partner was delayed or the courier left the parcel at the doorstep and it got stolen, the bottom line is that your customer expects to receive their order in a timely manner.
They really don’t care that the Greenpoint post office happens to be overburdened that day or that the truck is stuck in traffic. All they know is that their order of the classic X-files DVD set isn’t there yet and they were all set to binge with a huge bowl of popcorn and some good old fashioned Scully and Mulder.
Customer Service
Another issue that is vitally important for your customers’ satisfaction is customer service. Do they feel that you’re there for them in the event of an issue? Is your customer support team friendly and willing to help? Are they proactive?
As one small business owner writes in Forbes, it’s not enough to simply have a customer service team in place, you need to actively reach out to your customer to make sure they are happy with the service.
So why is customer service so important these days? It’s simple really — we live in a world which is increasingly dominated by artificial intelligence. It’s cheaper and it doesn’t require sleep, medical insurance or sick days.
An AI will work quietly and happily 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. The only thing it can’t do? Calm down a frustrated customer who feels like they aren’t being listened to. That means that if you can provide quality customer service from real human beings who have real power to help them with whatever the issue is, you are going to win their business.
Don’t Be In a Race to the Bottom
As an online retailer, you never want to be in the position of being in a race to the bottom. You want to make sure that you’re able to provide your customers with reasonable prices but not necessarily the lowest possible price. The people looking for the lowest possible price will never remain loyal and they are also the customers most likely to complain. Instead, focus on providing the best experience possible with reasonable prices and you’ll find that your customers will keep coming back again and again.
Customer loyalty is vitally important — there’s a reason that so many online retailers now offer loyalty clubs. It’s not just about getting a sale one time and then moving on to the next person. It’s about keeping a customer happy for the long term. That means that you provide them with everything they need right from the start, including:
- On time delivery
- Great customer service
- Reasonable prices
So keep your customer happy and they’ll keep coming back for more time after time.