How To Offer Great Online Customer Service

Now the busiest period of the year is over for many E-commerce businesses most will be having to deal with the after affects such as returns, emails, complaints and more. Keeping all your customers happy can be a highly stressful process and one that requires patience and being highly organised, not to mention flexible.

So here at Dorset Tech as we have quite a bit of experience when it comes to E-commerce and online business we have put together a brief guide in how best to keep your customers happy and coming back.

Respond To Emails Fast

Nothing is more frustrating then when waiting for a reply to an email, sometimes days even. This is a sure fire way to upset your customer. Aim to respond to emails within a few hours, even if it is just to say we have received your email and will respond shortly. Avoid using auto respond emails for this though and make every reply a personal genuine reply.

Be Flexible

Try not to limit yourself to routines or plan of actions when it comes to responding to customers and helping them resolve their issue. Customers will know if you are sending standard replies and this will most likely frustrate them. Each customers case is unique so being flexible to how to resolve the issue  will be most welcome by your customer and is excellent customer service.

Make Returns Simple

Nothing frustrates customers more then being made to jump through hoops to return an item. Having to scour your website for details on how to do this isn’t good business practice. Always have a dedicated returns page on your website clearly linked to from the homepage and any other pages deemed relevant. On this page clearly outline the procedure and costs to return an item. Even better is having a pre printed returns label so they can easily send the item back.

Offer Refunds

Sometimes as a business you have to take a hit when it comes to profit to keep customers happy. Offering a refund on an item will only help to build your reputation and the customer is likely to buy from you again. Amazon are really good for this.  We understand some companies work on small margins but a happy customer will always return to purchase again.

Have Clear Contact Details

This should be standard for all websites anyway but we still see some websites where the contact details are hidden or only on the about us page amongst a lot of text. Try have your contact details on every page, ideally in the header and footer so it’s easier for customers to get in touch with you.

Personalise Your Service

Chances are no two customer cases are the same so always treat each customer as a unique case. Offering a personal service rather then sending standard replies from a schedule will help resolve matters smoothly and with less frustration for both parties.  Sending template email replies will only frustrate your customer.  Make sure they know you are personally dealing with their request also.

Listen To The Customer

For many customers half the trouble is feeling they aren’t being listened to. This is the basis for many a frustration. Simply sending standard email replies will not help this. Always make sure you reply to the customer on a personal level and inform them you are working on their issue.  If it’s a phone conversation then never come across rude or interrupt the customer when they are talking.  Try use their name to make it more personal.

Man Social Media Platforms

If your business has social media platforms like Facebook, Twitter etc then always make sure if the messages is switched on that somebody is manning these to respond to any queries you get. Days and days to respond will not make your business look good. Even if it’s just to say please email us at this address etc, rather then leave the customer hanging.