User experience is one of the most important – if not THE most important – element of running an online business. A good user experience will help your business achieve better sales, lower dropped carts, and higher customer satisfaction. Unfortunately, many online businesses still make the mistake of focusing on the pre-purchase experience and completely neglecting the after sales-part of the journey.
After sales can greatly affect the larger user experience, which is why providing good after sales service is a must. Here are the basic tips to follow if you want to offer a positive user experience all the way from browsing to checkout.
An Accessible Site
Past surveys have shown that not being able to access an online store after making a purchase scares customers more than experiencing the same thing before a purchase. When customers have just spent their money on an online store and they can’t access the site to get simple information such as shipping details, they are more likely to complain. This kind of experience also shatters customers’ confidence – and your online business’s credibility – completely.
When it comes to improving site accessibility, one of the ways to improve it, is to increase the load speed of your page. Slow loading pages can frustrate users and lead to higher bounce rates, ultimately affecting your conversion rate. Tools such PageSpeedPlus.com, can assist you in identifying and addressing performance issues. Additionally, automating these tests can save you time and ensure that your website stays optimized. By regularly monitoring and improving your page speed, you can provide an enhanced user experience that keeps customers engaged and satisfied.
Regardless of the ecommerce platform and hosting service you choose to use, for example, Windows or Linux VPS hosting, maintaining a high level of uptime is a must. Always take the extra steps to inform customers in the event of a site failure. You can also invest in premium Magento support services – or a support service for the platform you use – so that you always have expert technical support to deal with errors and bugs.
A Personalized Delivery
If your online business sells tangible goods, make sure they are delivered to the customers the right way. Using the shipping company’s plastic bag just won’t cut it. You have to develop your own packaging that will both protect the items as they are being delivered and create a more personalized experience.
You can also go the extra mile to enhance user experience to a whole new level. Instead of a generic invoice, for instance, you can include a handwritten thank-you note and address the customer by name. You can also include relevant samples or brochures in the packaging, relevance being the main focus in this case.
Inform customers every step of the way, from the moment their orders are received to a follow up email asking if the products are delivered correctly. Ask for feedback and be sure to handle problems (i.e. the products being damaged in transit) promptly.
Develop Relationships
Many online commerce experts will tell you to treat every customer as if they are your first. This is sound advice to follow. We go out of our way to ensure that our first customers are really happy with the service. Why change the approach when you know that it works really well?
Answer support requests and inquiries as quickly as possible. Provide customers with more ways to get in touch, and be sure to take every complaint seriously. The complaints you receive won’t always be justified, but there is never a good reason to not take these complaints seriously. After all, customers are the most important part of your business and you want them to have the best experience possible.
