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Published on August 31, 2023
If you thought running an online store meant you didn’t have to provide exceptional customer service, think again. Your customers wouldn’t settle for unfriendly customer services in a brick-and-mortar store, so why would they settle for it online?
There has been a huge increase in online shoppers in the last few years. Over 2.14 billion shoppers buy items online and the number is growing by the day. You’ll no doubt have a good mix of online and in-person customers, and all of them must receive a high level of customer service.
Like they do in brick-and-mortar stores, consumers like to be looked after.
So, how do you provide excellent customer service virtually?
Regular Communication
Communicate regularly with existing and potential customers through social media channels and email marketing. You don’t always need to be promoting something. Your communication should focus on building a personal connection with your customers, encouraging them to favour your store over your competitors.
Speedy Response Times
Many online stores lack the level of two-way communication required to build relationships with customers. It’s always a pleasant surprise when an online store delivers a prompt response. No one expects it! Simply replying to customer questions quickly is an easy way to exceed expectations. Install an online chat feature that allows you to converse with customers in real time.
Encourage Feedback
No one knows what you could improve on more than your customers. Let them tell you! Customers feel valued when their feedback is taken on board, increasing your repeat purchase opportunities. Good feedback can be included as a testimonial on your page copy to signal to your visitors that you’re a trustworthy business.
Enhance Your Customer Experience
Have you ever clicked out of a website because it was too slow, cluttered, or hard to navigate?
Your customers have too.
Don’t give them a reason to do this with your store. Enhance your customer experience to convert their visit into a sale. Here are some quick and easy ways to do this.
Improve Navigation
Make it easy for your visitors to find what they want quickly. The easier they can navigate your website, the more satisfied they’ll be during their pre-purchase experience. Ask yourself the following questions:
- How quickly can they find your product categories?
- Do you offer a “You May Also Like” feature?
- Is it easy to see your product descriptions?
- How accessible is the “Add To Cart” button?
- Do you provide a search bar?
Speed Up Your Site
Your customers are human, and humans are impatient. There’s no excuse for slow sites these days. Use an online tool to check your site speed. If it’s not loading in two seconds or less, more than 53% of people will abandon your site. Here’s what you can do without any technical experience.
Compress Images And Remove Any Unused Images
Images are the biggest culprit in slow site speed. Get rid of any you haven’t used and compress the ones you want to keep. Sites like Shopify have image optimisation apps that compress image size to reflect best practices.
Fix All Broken Links
Broken links decrease site speed and increase bounce rate – a combination no online store wants! Run your site through a broken link checker and clear these up as soon as possible.
Reduce Redirects
Redirects can slow down the time it takes to reach the new version of the page. Your customers may not have the patience to wait for this to happen.
Write Copy That Sells
Keeping your copy friendly, light and conversational stimulates the customer’s imagination and motivates them to purchase your products.
Good on-page copy turns your website into a powerful selling tool.
- It influences the buying cycle.
- It turns your products into ‘must-haves’.
- It sells!
What are the qualities of sales-oriented website copy?
It’s Honest
Today’s consumers are aware of hyperbolic marketing, so avoid making any unsubstantiated claims about your products in your copy.
Once you’ve talked the talk, make sure you can walk the walk. If your products don’t live up to your claims, it won’t be long before word gets out and your sales potential is damaged long-term.
It’s Engaging
Write content that sparks an emotional response from your visitors. Tap into their pain points and give them the perfect solution.
It’s Targeted
Research the keywords and phrases your visitors are searching for to target purchase-ready customers through your content. Include keywords in titles and descriptions to get your website in front of those looking for the products you sell.
Avoid over-stuffing! Your customers are smart, and they’ll perceive this as a desperate marketing tactic.
Show Off Your Trust Signals
Trusting a website with financial information is a big deal. The last thing your customers want is to find their credit card details have been captured via your website. If customers don’t feel confident that you take their security seriously, they’ll abandon your site at checkout.
Trust Badges
The big names in eCommerce have built-in security infrastructure, but your customers won’t know this unless you tell them.
Include as many trust signals as your eCommerce platform allows. Shopify, for example, offers a range of free ‘secure payment’ and ‘trusted site’ badges. You can put these anywhere you like on your online store with a simple drag and drop.
Customer Testimonials
Seeing that you’ve provided others with a great for influencing customers and increasing sales conversions. 95% of customers say that irrespective of positive or negative reviews – it has ultimately influenced their purchasing decisions. Customers also spend 31% more at online stores that highlight testimonials.
Optimise Your Website To Reach Your Sales Potential
Treat your online store the same way you would a physical store. Prioritise customer service, keep your website clean and clutter-free, engage with visitors and influence customers with the right sales language.
Reaching your sales potential requires a lot of time and effort. While a few tweaks here and there can go a long way, maintaining high online sales is a long game.
Do you have the time to invest in your site?
Our eCommerce services will turn your website into a bustling sales tool. From SEO to content marketing, we’ve got all the tricks of the trade to achieve sustainable revenue results for your online store. Give us a call today to book your free consultation. Tell us your goals, and we’ll tell you how we’ll achieve them.
Emily Bodman
Content Marketing Specialist
Emily is a Content Marketing Specialist at Found whose focus is to craft SEO-optimised content that engages audiences and drives results.
