What do customers think of your business? If you don’t know, you might want to find out. What they are saying could be affecting your sales.
The Importance of Customers
Customers are the backbone of any business. This includes online enterprises. Customers look to be treated in the same fashion here as they would if they walked into an actual store.
When designing your business and your website, don’t neglect customer service aspects. Because they are not getting to lay their hands on the products first, customers are shrewder in online dealings. They need certain reassurances before they will buy a product. This calls for more vigilance on your part.
Viral Nightmare
What can happen if you are not paying attention to this detail? The word will spread that you are not a reliable business owner. Recovering from a cascade of negative talk can be a hard thing to do.
Word of mouth advertising can be good but not in the case of poor customer service. A wronged customer will vent to whoever will listen. And, there will be a lot of people who are ready to jump on that bandwagon, even if your business was not the one that they had a bad experience with.
Most customers read reviews these days. With the economy still struggling to recover, no one wants to waste money on poor products or services. Whether it is a restaurant, retail store, site promoted by a television commercial or a common product, people want to hear what is being said. Scathing reviews of your products or services will be read by others. And, people will find somewhere else to spend their money.
If you Google a particular company, others may have already written reviews on their blogs that you can access. You don’t have the influence that your customers might have. The best course of action is to treat them all the same and offer great service.
Another viral outlet is social media sites. Here, one person is connected with hundreds of others. One negative post and link about your business could reach 500 or more eyes in an instant. If they forward it on to their friends – you see where this is going, don’t you?
The solution is in the problem here. Take this information to heart and take the temperature of your customers. If you have a blog, offer a virtual suggestion box. Encourage customers to come to you with their concerns and problems because you are dedicated to offering better products and services. And, correspond with your customers here so that they know that you care about what they have to say.
Head off poor testimonials that can negatively impact your sales by offering customers a hand in the beginning.
