By Sherri Ingram Breetzke
workz.com
Buyers remember customer service: The more attention you pay to customer service, the more likely it is that you’ll see return business. If your customer service is lacking, it doesn't matter how slick your Web site is, or that your prices are a bit better than your competitors': You’ve put your repeat business at risk.
Remember that it’s less expensive to market and sell to an existing customer than to find a new one. Here are four customer service opportunities and how to handle them:
-
After a purchase has been made, confirm the order via email. Even if you display a standard thank-you screen after the order is entered, follow up with a short email message confirming that you have received it. Offer as much additional information as you can to assure customers that you received the order correctly.
Your email message might include the order number, order total, items ordered, date by which to expect shipment, and contact information, such as a telephone number or e-mail address they can use to contact you.
-
After the item has been shipped, confirm the shipment via e-mail. A quick note to let the customer know that the item is on its way alleviates potential concern about delivery. The customer can now anticipate when the package will arrive. If you shipped the package via a service that provides tracking numbers, send the tracking number to the customer, who can then follow up on the delivery date.
-
After the package has been delivered, send another quick e-mail. This provides an easy way for the purchaser to contact you in case the item was damaged during shipment: Replying to the email message is a lot easier than looking up a telephone number or email address! Also, by asking questions in this message—Did the item arrive safely? Do you have any questions?—you prompt customers to respond with positive feedback. As a result of doing this, I have received many testimonials that I might not have gotten any other way.
-
After the transaction has been completed, consider sending a thank-you card. In some retail businesses, such as mine, you can really impress your customer if you follow up each transaction with a handwritten thank-you note. You could also use this thank-you note as an opportunity to ask your customers to recommend your business to their friends.
These standard points of customer service in the cycle of a sale might be supplemented with two more customer service opportunities:
-
When a shipment won't arrive on time, e-mail your customers to inform them. Customers understand that delays happen, and they will be generous in their expectations. But they do not understand when companies fail to take the time to notify them; they may perceive this as a disregard for common courtesy.
-
When an item arrives damaged or is not what the customer expected, take the opportunity to render excellent customer service. Earn that repeat purchase by showing customers a level of respect and courtesy that they were not expecting to receive. More often than not, customers whose legitimate concerns have been appropriately addressed become loyal lifetime repeat buyers.
The sales cycle provides many opportunities for customer service interactions that will help your business stand out in the crowd. Treat each customer like a potential reviewer for The Wall Street Journal or USA Today, and that repeat buyer will be yours!
workz.com is the trusted information and services community that helps small businesses grow and prosper online. Sherri Ingram Breetzke owns The Creativity Zone, an online gift shop.
|
