As e-commerce continues to increase in popularity, more and more businesses are investing in improving their customers’ online purchasing experiences. Meanwhile, they’re searching for methods to optimise and eCommerce Customer Service customer service in the e-commerce industry.
Simply stated, your e-commerce firm will fail if you don’t provide excellent customer service that assists consumers as they browse your site, choose goods, make purchases, and utilise your products or services, among other things.
What is eCommerce Customer Service and how does it work?
Online customer service is the act of assisting consumers with their purchases, whether it’s guiding them through the purchasing process or addressing issues—all while establishing an overall smooth customer experience across many touchpoints.
If your online consumers have issues when making a purchase or want post-sale support, your customer care representatives must be able to respond quickly and efficiently. Customer service for e-commerce may assist you with the following aspects of your business:
- Customer service concerns, such as difficulties completing the checkout process, inability to add goods to the basket, invalid discounts, and so on are addressed.
- Common inquiries about product returns and refunds, as well as product delivery.
- The need to provide a consistent experience across a variety of communication channels
The advantages of enhancing customer service for e-commerce businesses
Customer service is critical for every organisation, but it is particularly critical for e-commerce businesses. This is due to the fact that, in a self-led e-commerce experience, customer service is often the primary, if not the only, point of contact for the client.
Instead of engaging with sales people, seeing and touching things on the spot, and asking questions on the spot as they would at a brick-and-mortar store, consumers shopping online are more likely to shop alone. And that’s a big part of the allure.
Customers may shop whenever they want, from anywhere they want, and in whatever manner they want, whether it’s concentrated or informal. It’s on their terms, not ours. Customer support is the first point of contact for them whether they have queries or difficulties, whether it’s about picking a size or service plan or tracking a product. They may also schedule maintenance or make a refund.
As a result, your service experience must be at least as fantastic as the rest of your customer experience. A positive connection may boost customer loyalty and possibly lead to increased sales. In fact, nowadays, service is the most important driver of client loyalty, and 75 percent of firms can demonstrate a link between improved customer satisfaction and increased revenue.
A poor customer encounter, on the other hand, might completely derail a customer’s experience. It may even lead to them taking their business elsewhere and posting unfavourable reviews and comments about your organisation on other websites..
What characteristics distinguish excellent e-commerce customer service?
Great customer service contacts, according to customers, are rapid, helpful, and pleasant in their nature. Customers’ difficulties should always be resolved as promptly and painlessly as possible regardless of whether you’re communicating with them before to, during, or after the transaction has been completed.
When it comes to e-commerce, there are even more considerations to take into consideration. What factors contribute to a positive e-commerce experience? It’s convenient, user-friendly, and accessible on the conditions that consumers want it to be. As a result, it comes to the reason that your customer service should be all of these qualities as well.
It should be simple to navigate – Be open and transparent, and simply direct them to where they need to go.
Omnichannel – “Be where your consumers are,” we mean, in essence, “you must be everywhere.” When we say “be where your customers are,” we mean “be everywhere.” Customers should be able to contact a company through their chosen communication channel — whether it’s live chat, email, phone, or social media — and expect to get consistent, seamless service.
Available 24/7 – Availability is guaranteed around the clock – Even if your office is closed, you may provide consumers with after-hours help using chatbots and automated emails, as well as self-service material.
Pleasant and personable – In a nutshell, the customer experience should be pleasant and personal, whether they are speaking with a service representative or browsing through a FAQ page. The experience should also reflect your brand’s voice and values.
Above all, BE HELPFUL – Keep in mind that you are delivering a service. Answering their queries, handling their problems, or reaching out to them with timely reminders is what you should do. Every encounter should be beneficial and should increase their trust in your company’s brand.
5 Customer Service Best Practices for Exceptional Results in E-Commerce
Don’t know where to begin when it comes to improving the online purchasing experience for your consumers. Here are the top 10 e-commerce customer care best practises that you should take into account:
-
Communicate with customers using the channels that they choose.
An eCommerce company that is always developing and expanding should leave no stone unturned in terms of providing clients with a variety of support options.
It’s possible that restricting your communication channels to only phone and email may ultimately drive clients away from you and towards your rivals.
-
Put proactive customer service at the forefront of your business strategy.
The vast majority of online businesses place a premium on offering reactive help, which means they respond only when a consumer has a problem. Businesses, for example, will only confirm a shipment delay when a customer requests an update on the situation.
In order to provide excellent ecommerce customer care, you must foresee client concerns in advance and resolve them before they become more serious difficulties.
This method is referred to as proactive customer support, and it should be used as your first line of defence when dealing with client complaints or requests.
-
Make your online store more user-friendly for live chat.
You may recall a moment when you were browsing through an online page and had a few queries on your mind, such as: Are there any discounts now available? Or, more specifically, when will this product be back in stock?
As prospective customers browse your e-commerce website, they may be unsure of how to get support with their questions. Providing immediate assistance via a live chat window may be quite effective.
Live chat has one of the highest customer satisfaction scores of any online service. According to a survey, clients who utilise live chat report higher levels of satisfaction than those who use any other form of contact.
-
Product catalogues that are designed with integrity
When you visit a brick-and-mortar shop, a salesperson will take you through the product features and pricing. Product catalogues, on the other hand, include all of the information required for an e-commerce firm.
Several clients will contact your company for assistance if they believe that product descriptions are lacking in important information. Some customers may not be satisfied with the product photos, while others may quit their shopping basket due to a discount coupon code that does not function properly.
Approximately 87 percent of online customers spend at least a minute reading product descriptions before making a purchase from an e-commerce company, according to research.
-
Make yourself available to customers through social media.
Customers are more engaged on social media platforms than they have ever been. Instead of only posting photographs from their trip or dinner party, they are also sharing their personal experiences with their favourite businesses.
According to Microsoft research, 50 percent of consumers between the ages of 18 and 34 have communicated with a company via social media.Any customer service plan in eCommerce would be inadequate without the use of social media platforms. Leading social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and others have evolved into effective tools for assisting current consumers and attracting new customers.
Encourage your employees to keep an eye out for what consumers are saying about your business on social media sites like Facebook and Twitter. Resolving their complaints on a public forum can assist your company in developing a strong brand image.
Customers’ birthdays and anniversaries should be acknowledged and tagged, and this may go a long way toward increasing client loyalty. You may also use social media to host competitions and reward consumers with unique gifts or discount coupons as part of your overall marketing plan.