{"id":396,"date":"2016-11-23T10:02:30","date_gmt":"2016-11-23T18:02:30","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.agiliron.com\/blog\/?p=396"},"modified":"2025-11-25T02:41:30","modified_gmt":"2025-11-25T10:41:30","slug":"e-commerce-customer-happiness-turn-your-business-into-a-retention-driving-machine","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.agiliron.com\/blog\/e-commerce-customer-happiness-turn-your-business-into-a-retention-driving-machine\/","title":{"rendered":"E-Commerce Customer Happiness: Turn Your Business Into a Retention-Driving Machine"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.agiliron.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/October-Post-3.png\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-371\" src=\"https:\/\/www.agiliron.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/October-Post-3.png\" alt=\"october-post-3\" width=\"675\" height=\"372\" title=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.agiliron.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/October-Post-3.png 675w, https:\/\/www.agiliron.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/10\/October-Post-3-300x165.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 675px) 100vw, 675px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Running an e-commerce store involves numerous moving parts, many of which involve a high degree of complexity or one-on-one interaction in order to keep customers happy. Technically, it has never been easier to set up an online storefront. However, sustaining any type of long-term success can be a difficult task, even for the most experienced online sellers.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">After all, you\u2019re dealing with people. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">People, as you know, can be wildly unpredictable and irrational creatures. Yet, people generally respond to polite, courteous and prompt customer service. No surprise there. So, why then do so many businesses fall short when it comes to customer support?<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Depending on which data you review, the general consensus is there are somewhere between 12-24 million e-commerce storefronts on the internet today. Yet, only a small fraction of those stores are making more than $1,000 each year.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Delivering <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.entrepreneur.com\/growing-a-business\/how-to-make-at-least-1000-your-first-month-of-ecommerce\/287828\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">superior customer support<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> can instantly differentiate you from the competition. So, we\u2019ve compiled a list of six recommendations to help turn your e-commerce customer support into a retention-driving tool for your business.<\/span><\/p>\n<div style=\"background: #fffb90; border: 1px solid #fffb90; padding: 15px 15px; margin: 0 0 20px 0; font-size: 18px;\"><strong>Exclusive Bonus:<\/strong> <a class=\"manual-optin-trigger\" href=\"#\" data-optin-slug=\"q4kmpwwt4slakosf\">Download the FREE Cheat Sheet<\/a> to turn your customer support strategy into a revenue-generating machine!<\/div>\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Six tips to differentiate your business and turn your e-commerce customer support strategy into a money-making machine:<\/span><\/h2>\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">1) Adequately staff your customer support team<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It should come as no surprise that customers consistently rank <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.providesupport.com\/blog\/20-shocking-customer-service-facts-and-statistics\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">interactions with customer support staff<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> as one of the most important purchasing decisions. However, many e-commerce businesses oftentimes have trouble staffing customer support teams with the right people. Customer support isn\u2019t for everyone; it takes the right type of individual (usually one with thick skin and a delicate touch) to resolve high-priority customer support requests day after day. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Add in the fact customers expect 24\/7 support and it becomes even more difficult to <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.helpscout.com\/helpu\/customer-support-department\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">set up a customer support team from scratch<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">This topic alone deserves its own post. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">However, if you\u2019re starting from scratch, you should be looking for individuals who have:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Prior experience working on a multichannel support team<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Experience using collaborative software tools on a daily basis<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The technical \u201cknow how\u201d necessary to diagnose and triage support issues<\/span><\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A solid grasp on exactly how customer attrition impacts your bottom line<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">And that\u2019s just a start.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Your goal is to put together a high-performing, empowered team. All you have to do is look at <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.salesforce.com\/ap\/service\/state-of-service-report\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Salesforce\u2019s 2015 State of Service Report<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to understand the impact a highly empowered support staff can make on your business.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you\u2019re struggling to find the right individuals for your support team, LiveChat has a <\/span> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Support Hiring Guide<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> available for download that can be quite helpful for e-commerce business owners looking to scale their support teams.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">2) Make it easy for customers to resolve issues themselves<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Believe it or not, many customers don\u2019t want to talk to another person \u2014 whether that be in-person, via live chat or on the phone. Some simply want to resolve the issue themselves. Posting FAQs or creating a knowledge base (help center) of helpful information where customers can accurately diagnose and resolve their own issues can provide a number of benefits.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">First, fewer support tickets can lead to faster response times. In an ideal world, your response times will always be exactly where you want them to be. Although, that isn\u2019t always the case. For a variety of reasons (especially if you\u2019re NOT using a centralized ticketing system), response times can vary. Fewer support tickets can lead to increased support quality and, as a result, directly impact your bottom line.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Second, creating a detailed knowledge base can provide positive SEO benefits. Detailed \u201chow to\u201d articles, guides and other helpful resources act as unique, custom content you can use to increase organic search traffic. Each of these pages has the same ability to rank in search results as any other web page.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Lastly, creating a knowledge base can be one of the most profitable business decisions for your e-commerce business. It is also a relatively inexpensive undertaking, especially when compared to the cost of losing a customer. Arming customers with the information they need to resolve support issues on their own is an investment quickly paying for itself multiple times over.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">3) Use a live chat tool to resolve customer support issues (and more)<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Many business owners operate with the limiting belief that live chat tools are only used for customer support. Instead, think of live chat as a support and sales tool rolled into one. A live chat tool gives you nearly instant access to customers who have \u201copted in\u201d to provide direct feedback about your business. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Think about being able to make customers aware of new products before they hit your storefront, upsell potential customers who have already expressed interest (or purchased) your products or instantly resolve any concerns before purchase. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The list goes on and on, but here are two, specific benefits you may not be thinking about:<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">First, live chat can help your customer support team provide more consistent responses. Many live chat tools will allow you to set up prewritten or \u201ccanned\u201d responses, which can help to establish greater consistency when dealing with customers. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Second, live chat tools provide you with detailed, written histories of your interactions with customers. Essentially, live chat acts as a living history of your most common support issues. You should be regularly reviewing your chat history in order to identify common patterns, issues and problems. You can then use this information to create a knowledge base or a set of FAQs in order to help customers resolve their own issues.<\/span><\/p>\n<div style=\"background: #fffb90; border: 1px solid #fffb90; padding: 15px 15px; margin: 0 0 20px 0; font-size: 18px;\"><strong>Exclusive Bonus:<\/strong> <a class=\"manual-optin-trigger\" href=\"#\" data-optin-slug=\"q4kmpwwt4slakosf\">Download the FREE Cheat Sheet<\/a> to turn your customer support strategy into a revenue-generating machine!<\/div>\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">4) Respond to support tickets in the order they were received<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Response times are one of the most important metrics for a customer support team \u2014 and rightfully so. Each passing minute a customer is left without a resolution to his or her problem threatens your ability to establish a long-term relationship with that individual.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Thankfully, centralized ticketing systems can handle this task quite easily. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Help desk software can help you manage support tickets, track customer support interactions and respond to tickets in the order that they were received. Still, ticketing systems allow your business to manage support much more efficiently. \u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If your business is handling customer support via email \u2014 and not yet using help desk software \u2014 implement a standard response time for all email inquiries. You can also use email autoresponders to cut down on the amount of back-and-forth between customer and support staff. Autoresponders are also useful in the event you want to point customers to resources and guides helping them resolve potential support issues on their own.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">5) Use plain English to explain your return policy<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Returns, exchanges and refunds are simply part of doing business. At least <\/span> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">30 percent<\/span> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> of all products bought online are returned. You can\u2019t avoid these types of transactions, so make it as easy as possible for all involved to get what they want (including yourself). <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Explain your return policy in plain English; this is neither the time nor the place to use jargon or legalese which no one will understand. To be frank, customers aren\u2019t idiots. They\u2019re humans who want things explained in terms they can understand. What\u2019s more, customers appreciate simple, easy-to-understand returns. In fact, <\/span><a href=\"http:\/\/www.invespcro.com\/blog\/ecommerce-product-return-rate-statistics\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">nine out of 10 consumers<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> say they\u2019ll buy something again if the return policy is completely simple.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Your return policy can influence a purchase decision, particularly in instances when a customer is not 100 percent sold on the product. Don\u2019t give them even more reason to doubt your business. Use these <\/span> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">best practices<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> to establish a return process your customers appreciate.<\/span><\/p>\n<h3><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">6) Proactively resolve customer issues via social media<\/span><\/h3>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you\u2019re active on social media, chances are you\u2019re already addressing customer issues. At this stage, you don\u2019t really have a choice. In fact, <\/span> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">67 percent<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> of customers have used a company\u2019s social media channels to resolve customer support requests.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In fact, you don\u2019t have to look far in order to find published <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/buffer.com\/resources\/social-media-customer-service\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">case studies<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> from businesses who have successfully used social media as a customer support tool.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Nowadays, most consumers understand their lone voice has the potential to reach thousands upon thousands of people. As you may have guessed, that\u2019s both a good and a bad thing for business owners. \u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Again, help desk software can make managing customer support via social media much more effective. Most help desk tools will allow you to integrate your various social media accounts so you\u2019re able to manage all customer support via one, easy-to-use interface.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To recap: <\/span><\/h2>\n<h4><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Prioritizing customer support can be the difference between success and failure, particularly in an increasingly crowded marketplace expected to reach <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.internetretailer.com\/2016\/01\/29\/online-sales-will-reach-523-billion-2020-us\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">$523 billion<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> by 2020.<\/span><\/h4>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">There are several steps you can take today in order to differentiate yourself from the competition and turn your customer support strategy into a revenue-driving machine:<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\n<h5><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Staff your customer support team adequately<\/span><\/h5>\n<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\n<h5><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Make it easy for customers to resolve issues themselves<\/span><\/h5>\n<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\n<h5><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Use a live chat tool to resolve customer support issues (and more)<\/span><\/h5>\n<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\n<h5><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Respond to support tickets in the order received<\/span><\/h5>\n<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\n<h5><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Use plain English to explain your return policy<\/span><\/h5>\n<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\n<h5><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Resolve customer issues proactively via social media<\/span><\/h5>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Implementing a customer support strategy is a highly personal decision \u2014 one requiring a unique approach for every business. Unfortunately, there isn\u2019t a blueprint to guarantee success.<\/span><\/p>\n<div style=\"background: #fffb90; border: 1px solid #fffb90; padding: 15px 15px; margin: 0 0 20px 0; font-size: 18px;\"><strong>Exclusive Bonus:<\/strong> <a class=\"manual-optin-trigger\" href=\"#\" data-optin-slug=\"q4kmpwwt4slakosf\">Download the FREE Cheat Sheet<\/a> to turn your customer support strategy into a revenue-generating machine!<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Running an e-commerce store involves numerous moving parts, many of which involve a high degree of complexity or one-on-one interaction in order to keep customers happy. Technically, it has never been easier to set up an online storefront. However, sustaining any type of long-term success can be a difficult task, even for the most experienced [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":371,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[45],"tags":[36,22,57,56,23,51],"class_list":["post-396","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ecommerce","tag-business-management","tag-customer-engagement","tag-customer-happiness","tag-customer-support","tag-ecommerce","tag-ecommerce-business"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.agiliron.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/396","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.agiliron.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.agiliron.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.agiliron.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.agiliron.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=396"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.agiliron.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/396\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.agiliron.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/371"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.agiliron.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=396"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.agiliron.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=396"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.agiliron.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=396"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}