3 Tips For Better eCommerce Customer Service This Holiday Season.

Posted October 9, 2019

The holiday season, which is also the year’s busiest shopping season, is just around the corner. At this time, brick and mortar and online retailers everywhere get extremely competitive. You will need to work really hard (and smart) to make sure shoppers will buy from your online store.

Holiday shoppers will be buying, and also returning products. Your customers will be talking about your products with their friends and family. It’s a golden opportunity to make sure that their comments and reviews are all positive. Even if they are returning or exchanging a product, they must be able to say that their experience was an easy and quick process with a favorable outcome.

Here are 3 Tips for Better eCommerce Customer Service this Holiday Season.

1. Your Customer Service Channels Must be Easily Accessible

It all starts with making customer service easily accessible to customers. It really bugs a customer when they badly need to contact you but can’t because they can’t find your customer support contact information easily on your website. It is extremely important to display your customer service contact phone, email, store address(if you have one), and live chat up front and easily found. After all, online shoppers seek personalized, real-time customer service. An online store that is easily accessible for contact and query resolution will win customers from their competitors.

Social media is also a great tool for customer service. That gives your customers a quick and easy alternative to resolve their issues. You can use social media to your advantage and win big for the holidays.

2. Expand Your eCommerce Customer Service Channels

An increasing number of consumers now prefer to reach out to a business via social media or live chat. In fact, these channels have become standard for eCommerce retailers as they help reduce the burden on phone and email support lines. Having more customer service channels also gives prospects and customers ample options to contact you for their immediate concerns. Just make sure that your customer service representatives stay active on all channels. Always be quick to respond, even if you are replying to say that you are aware of their issue and are actively working to resolve it. Angry customers, whose queries haven’t been given attention or have been delayed, can spread the word virally about your lackadaisical approach, damaging your reputation online.

If your website visitors find near-instant resolution of their concerns, they will be more likely to purchase from your online store. A seamless customer service experience providing consistent quality and functionality across all channels, will make customers keep coming back for more. Even after the holiday season is over!

3. Have In-Depth Knowledge of Your Products

Customer service professionals are expected to have in-depth knowledge of your products or services. This helps when a customer needs a question answered just before completing checkout. Imagine all the lost sales if your customer service reps do not have quick and correct answers. They should also have up-to-date information about how your entire system works, from ordering online to processing to shipping and delivery. You never know what type of a query might come your way from a customer. Preparation is key, and it comes with knowledge and awareness about your business, its processes and your products.

Bonus Tip! Empathy – Everyone Wants to be Heard

There isn’t a better way to address concerns of a dissatisfied customer than to listen to them carefully. Thank them for sharing their feedback and sincerely apologize for the trouble. Show empathy by keeping the conversation less businesslike and a little more casual. It will certainly help to tap into their emotions by showing them you care and acknowledge their dissatisfaction. Inform them that you understand the problem and are actively working to fix it and to prevent it from happening again in the future. Reiterate that the problem will be solved soon.

The next step is to take immediate action to rectify the problem, whether it is replacing a defective order, processing a delayed order, or processing an exchange or refund for the customer. A quick follow-up after the resolution of the problem will help build customer loyalty. It is also a good time to ask for a Review of how the dispute resolution process went on.

Bottom Line

Make sure that there are multiple channels to reach your customer service. Resolving a customer issue needs to be a quick and easy process. Listen to your customers queries and get back to them in a timely manner. Delaying resolution will only make things worse. Give yoru customers the best eCommerce customer service experience and they will keep coming back for more! Happy customers always return, and sometimes they bring friends!

Contact Us to find out how we can help you Save Time and Money on Holiday Shipping as well as eCommerce Order Fulfillment, Kitting and Assembly.