Corporate websites customer service |
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If you are a consumer goods or manufacturing company. The single most important reason for having a website |
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Article copyright © EPNET published on: 10th December 2009 |
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Corporate consumer goods companies have the opportunity to get in-touch with their public in the
simplest most convenient way on the Internet. Having a website that can provide product information is critical however the main purpose should be customer service or customer care. |
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What we have discovered in ten
years of working on the Internet and
developing websites is that
companies have a block when it comes
to customer service. They don't seem
to understand how powerful a website
can be that can help and assist
their customers.
An example of what
is wrong: |
I purchased an air conditioner
from a well known store and a well
known branded product. Being a new
product to me and having read the
product instructions a few times
there was something that I could not
figure out. So I looked locally for
the product manufacturer and found
their website. That was a good
start. The next thing that I needed
to do was to find their "customer
service" page which I found, that
was the second step completed
successfully. I then needed to find
product information but apart from
the basic list of product features
that was all there was. I could have
done with some more detail about the
product operation there was none. I
could have done with a "Frequently
Asked Questions" section in case
someone else had the same problem
that may have been answered, there
was none. I then looked for an email
address of someone that I could
email to ask them my question, there
was about ten people listed with
email addresses. So this was really
great now I could solve my problem,
right? Wrong!
As
I have had many previous experiences where
I don't get responses from emails
from manufacturers I decided to send
an email to five of the people on
the list provided on the web site in the hope that maybe one person would respond.
The first was the Brand Manager,
then the Product Manager, the Sales
Manager, the Service Manager and the
general "info@" email address. I
have never had a response from any
of them. |
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If these people do not want to interact with the public
then why are their email addresses on their website? |
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Benefiting the company |
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It does not matter if you are a product
manufacturer, a bank or an advertising agency if you
develop a website the single most important factor
should be communicating both ways with your customers and your
public. Why? |
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Apart from the obvious the Internet has allowed the
public into your world. People can quickly figure out
how well you interact with your customers. The good
thing, at the moment, most companies deal with their
customers in the worst possible way. Companies don't
want to interact with their markets! The good news is that over 90% of companies have not figured this out yet so everyone
projects the same bad service. Which means that the consumer does not expect good service. Can you imagine
that if you had a consumer section with articles and help about your products with email that actually worked, how your company could really benefit?
You would certainly stand out from the crowd as being
one of the few most dynamic service orientated websites
benefiting your company and brand/s. |
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The benefits of a consumer orientated website |
| I am a consumer, even if I ask a
simple question and send an email to
a company and I get a response then
I figure that this company cares
about me which will give me a good
feeling about the brand. |
| If the answer was not what I
wanted or expected I will still have
a good feeling about the brand. |
| If I know that the brand is
supported in this way then in future
I would choose another product by
the same manufacturer. |
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| The advantages to a company that
has developed a consumer orientated
website: |
- Sell more products. (Simple isn't
it?)
- Research - obtain important
demographic and psychographic
information
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| People are not looking for a
clever creative corporate
branded advertising Flash website on the
Internet. They are
looking for information! |
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| Every companies guide to basic
customer service: |
- Greeting. Acknowledge and
welcome the customer. Identify
yourself as a representative of the
organisation, and ask if you may be
of service.
- Determine the needs of the customer.
Ask questions to fully understand
the problems, concerns, constraints
and desired outcomes of the
customer. Apply the basic questions
of what, where, why, when, who and
how.
- Offer options. Present a number of
possible solutions to the customer’s
problem. If none of those choices
meet the customer’s needs, gather
more information to broaden or
narrow the search.
- Ask if there is more you can do.
Whether or not you have been able to
satisfy the customer’s initial
problem, look for ways to provide
additional products or services to
assure that the customer has had a
good experience.
- Ask if the customer is satisfied.
Whether you have been able to
provide the product or service the
customer wants or not, they must be
satisfied that you have done your
best to understand them and their
needs, treated them with courtesy
and respect and provided them with
the best solutions available.
- Thank them. The customer’s time is
valuable. Whether they spent money
in your business or not, thank them
for shopping with you and welcome
them back.
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Poor customer service is common. |
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Read this article: Poor Customer
Service Drives Nearly Half of U.S.
Consumers to Take Their Business
Elsewhere, Accenture Survey Finds.
Virtually every industry lost
business because service
expectations weren’t met |
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| A properly designed website can
be the cheapest method of resolving
customer issues and improving
customer service. |
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| Customer Service Is Key: The
Sign Said, "We Provide
Superior Customer Service" |
But that's not what happened.
Someone must have forgotten to tell
the staff. I noticed the huge sign
on the wall as soon as I walked into
the business and I thought, "Hmmm.
This will be a good experience."
Nope. Just like so many other
businesses, the huge poster on the
wall was just that -- a poster with
shallow words that didn't come close
to the behaviors I experienced.
That's the problem with companies
that go through the motions of
creating vision, mission and values
statements and then proudly display
them on a wall for all to see.
What do you think? Are you impressed
when you see vision, mission and
values statements posted in public.
How often has your experience with
the company matched what they say?
Click on the comment link below and
send us your thoughts. |
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| Poor
customer service travels ten times
faster than good customer service. |
Comment on this article |
