How to Minimize Interaction with CustomersDealing with customers is an important part of business. However, if you’re simply not willing to deal with customers or are not able to do so for whatever the reason may be then there are some steps you can take to minimize customer interaction while continuing to produce sales as well, (if that’s what you want to do).
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How to Minimize Interaction with Customers in Your Business
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You may not have to deal with customers by phone, but there will be times when you will have to deal with customers via email, which is easy for anyone to do.
But if talking to customers over the phone is simply not for you or it’s just not possible for you to do so at the moment then there are simple tactics which you can use on your website to minimize customer interaction, at least over the phone. |
Offer free shipping for all orders placed online
You can run a banner or a graphical slogan on the top of your website which states “Free Shipping for All Orders Placed Online”. And by doing so, you’re letting the customers know that if they place their order online then their items will be shipped for free. But if they try to place their order over the phone then they won’t be able to take advantage of your free shipping offer.
Once your customers see your free shipping offer on your store then they’re more likely to place their order online without looking for your contact details to call you. However, in order for the customer to place their order online with confidence, they’ll need to have all of their questions answered on the website, and preferably on the product page of the product they’re going to buy.
Once your customers see your free shipping offer on your store then they’re more likely to place their order online without looking for your contact details to call you. However, in order for the customer to place their order online with confidence, they’ll need to have all of their questions answered on the website, and preferably on the product page of the product they’re going to buy.
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Provide complete product details on every product page
In order to encourage your customers to order online without any doubts or concerns and without giving them any reason to call you, then they must be able to have all their questions and concerns answered on your website. And you can help the customer buy the product with confidence by providing as much product information as possible on the product page itself.
All of your product pages should consist of and include complete product details, features, descriptions and specifications for each and every product. It’s also important to provide multiple product images and images of the product packaging as well. i.e. box shots for example.
Customers want to see what their getting before they buy the product and by providing them with multiple product images along with images of the retail packaging of the product then it enhances the sales presentation of the product and helps close the sale.
Images to include to each product page:
-Product images from different angles
-Images of all accessories included with the product, i.e. charger, cables etc..
-Screen shots (for software or electronics such as digital cameras)
-Box shots (images of the retail package in which the product is sold)
-Images of people using or wearing the product (if applicable)
Providing multiple product images on your product pages helps to build excitement and promotes an impulse to buy the product online right there and then.
All of your product pages should consist of and include complete product details, features, descriptions and specifications for each and every product. It’s also important to provide multiple product images and images of the product packaging as well. i.e. box shots for example.
Customers want to see what their getting before they buy the product and by providing them with multiple product images along with images of the retail packaging of the product then it enhances the sales presentation of the product and helps close the sale.
Images to include to each product page:
-Product images from different angles
-Images of all accessories included with the product, i.e. charger, cables etc..
-Screen shots (for software or electronics such as digital cameras)
-Box shots (images of the retail package in which the product is sold)
-Images of people using or wearing the product (if applicable)
Providing multiple product images on your product pages helps to build excitement and promotes an impulse to buy the product online right there and then.
Provide product reviews and comparison charts
It’s also important to provide product reviews and comparison charts on your website as well. Many times, customers look for comparison charts before buying the product online. They want to compare the product with other similar products in order to see which product is the best deal for them. And this is usually the case with technology products as well.
Many customers want to read reviews on the products before they buy. And you can find your own reviews online and add them to your website or rewrite those reviews in your own words, and/or write the complete review yourself. It doesn’t take too much time and research to write reviews and you can write the reviews yourself for free.
The more information you provide on the product page then the more likely the customer is to place their order online at that very moment, without having to call you and ask you any questions. And this is your main objective, is to provide the customer with all the information they need so that they can make their buying decision without having to look for your contact details to call you or contact you in any manner.
Many customers want to read reviews on the products before they buy. And you can find your own reviews online and add them to your website or rewrite those reviews in your own words, and/or write the complete review yourself. It doesn’t take too much time and research to write reviews and you can write the reviews yourself for free.
The more information you provide on the product page then the more likely the customer is to place their order online at that very moment, without having to call you and ask you any questions. And this is your main objective, is to provide the customer with all the information they need so that they can make their buying decision without having to look for your contact details to call you or contact you in any manner.
Provide a Frequently Asked Questions list
You can also provide a frequently asked questions list (FAQ) for each product and/or a frequently asked questions page for all questions in general.
A product FAQ list can provide a list of frequently asked questions and answers pertaining to that particular product. However, a FAQ list in general can provide frequently asked questions and answers for all other matters such as:
-return policy
-shipping policy
-warranty issues
-payment methods accepted
-sales tax
-accounts
-order tracking
-terms & conditions
In order to create an effective “frequently asked questions” list, you can visit your main competitors’ websites to see what questions and answers they have listed on their FAQ list.
A product FAQ list can provide a list of frequently asked questions and answers pertaining to that particular product. However, a FAQ list in general can provide frequently asked questions and answers for all other matters such as:
-return policy
-shipping policy
-warranty issues
-payment methods accepted
-sales tax
-accounts
-order tracking
-terms & conditions
In order to create an effective “frequently asked questions” list, you can visit your main competitors’ websites to see what questions and answers they have listed on their FAQ list.
You can also place yourself in the customers’ position as if you were buying the product and then ask yourself every question you would ask before placing your order online.
Your frequently asked questions page should answer all of your customers’ questions and concerns for the products and for questions in general as well. And by doing so the customer is able to make an easy buying decision without having to call you or contact you in any way, shape or form.
Your frequently asked questions page should answer all of your customers’ questions and concerns for the products and for questions in general as well. And by doing so the customer is able to make an easy buying decision without having to call you or contact you in any way, shape or form.
Provide a local phone number (non-toll free)
Although you may not wish to deal with customers over the phone, it would still be worth while to provide a local telephone number than to have no phone number at all.
Most of your website visitors will be preoccupied with reading product information online and will not be thinking about contacting you or looking for your contact details for any reason – at least not for the moment.
The customer should be able to read the product page and then proceed to click on the “Buy now” or “Add to cart” button without any hesitation and without having to contact you as well. And if you’ve provided complete product details, descriptions and multiple images then there should be no reason why the customer would have to contact you.
However, if after reading the product page the customer still has some unanswered questions then they may begin to look for your contact details on your website. And although many customers will contact you via email or through your contact form, some customers however may want to call you by phone. Yet if they’re not able to find any contact phone number at all then they may become hesitant or simply withdraw from placing their order.
Most of your website visitors will be preoccupied with reading product information online and will not be thinking about contacting you or looking for your contact details for any reason – at least not for the moment.
The customer should be able to read the product page and then proceed to click on the “Buy now” or “Add to cart” button without any hesitation and without having to contact you as well. And if you’ve provided complete product details, descriptions and multiple images then there should be no reason why the customer would have to contact you.
However, if after reading the product page the customer still has some unanswered questions then they may begin to look for your contact details on your website. And although many customers will contact you via email or through your contact form, some customers however may want to call you by phone. Yet if they’re not able to find any contact phone number at all then they may become hesitant or simply withdraw from placing their order.
A business website with no phone number at all creates hesitation and sometimes suspicion within the buyer as well. But as long there’s a contact phone number on your website then the customer can continue to shop in confidence knowing that if a problem does arise then they can still contact you by phone. However, if you are simply not able to answer phone calls for whatever the reason may be, then you can have all business calls forwarded to voice mail.
Then later you can screen each call and decide whether to return the phone call or not. And after seeing a local number rather than a toll free number some customers may be less inclined to call and may prefer to contact you via email. But as long as they know that there is a phone number to call should any problem arise then that may be good enough for them.
To obtain a local, non-toll free phone number please visit www.RingCentral.com
You can also obtain a local phone number with voice mail features for free with GoogleVoice at www.google.com/voice
Then later you can screen each call and decide whether to return the phone call or not. And after seeing a local number rather than a toll free number some customers may be less inclined to call and may prefer to contact you via email. But as long as they know that there is a phone number to call should any problem arise then that may be good enough for them.
To obtain a local, non-toll free phone number please visit www.RingCentral.com
You can also obtain a local phone number with voice mail features for free with GoogleVoice at www.google.com/voice
Live Chat
Live chat or instant messaging has become a popular means for businesses to deal with customers online without having to spend more time over the phone. In fact, some customers may find it easier to ask their questions via instant chat than to speak to a person on the phone
The live chat tool is an excellent marketing feature and is nothing more than a simple script which can easily be installed onto your web pages and will allow your website visitors to contact you via instant messaging with just one click. However, if you’re going to implement the live chat tool on your website then be sure to be available when live chat is available to your customers. (NOTE: You can turn live chat on or off at any time and/or use it during business hours only.)
The live chat tool is an excellent marketing feature and is nothing more than a simple script which can easily be installed onto your web pages and will allow your website visitors to contact you via instant messaging with just one click. However, if you’re going to implement the live chat tool on your website then be sure to be available when live chat is available to your customers. (NOTE: You can turn live chat on or off at any time and/or use it during business hours only.)
Guarantee fast email response time
Did you know that many retailers take 24 hours or more just to respond to emails?
However, a long email response time can also cause a business to lose a sale and the interest of the customer as well. Yet, you can beat the competition in this area and close more sales by responding to emails within an hour or less. And if you’re able to respond to emails within an hour then you can add this information to your contact page in order to encourage email communication.
An easy and simple strategy for responding to emails quickly is to answer them once and then save those answers as responses for future email responses to other customer inquires. In time you’ll find that most if not all of the questions coming from customers are similar or the same in nature. And then all you would have to do is copy and paste that same response to every email which consists of those same particular questions.
However, with or without a fast guaranteed response time you should always try your best to answer any and all emails as quickly as possible as this is one of the best ways to build credibility and close the sale as well.
If you want to minimize customer interaction for whatever the reason may be, then be sure to give the customer all the information they need on your website so that they won’t have to contact you. And in doing so, you can close the sale with minimal to no customer contact at all.
However, a long email response time can also cause a business to lose a sale and the interest of the customer as well. Yet, you can beat the competition in this area and close more sales by responding to emails within an hour or less. And if you’re able to respond to emails within an hour then you can add this information to your contact page in order to encourage email communication.
An easy and simple strategy for responding to emails quickly is to answer them once and then save those answers as responses for future email responses to other customer inquires. In time you’ll find that most if not all of the questions coming from customers are similar or the same in nature. And then all you would have to do is copy and paste that same response to every email which consists of those same particular questions.
However, with or without a fast guaranteed response time you should always try your best to answer any and all emails as quickly as possible as this is one of the best ways to build credibility and close the sale as well.
If you want to minimize customer interaction for whatever the reason may be, then be sure to give the customer all the information they need on your website so that they won’t have to contact you. And in doing so, you can close the sale with minimal to no customer contact at all.