- Online customer service and sales
- Digital customer service
Let your customer service be up to date, and follow new tech
In order to constantly provide the best customer service, companies are trying new technologies. Customer service does not always have to be personal, and the digital platforms give rise to other forms of customer service than the traditional personal we know from the physical stores. For example, IKEA and Matas adopted some of the latest technologies in order to provide customers with better customer service.
H&M
H&M has together with Google developed the app "H&M Home Stylist", which is a voice-controlled assistant with a human voice that will give customers specific design advice and product recommendations and thus make the shopping experience more personal.
With a Google Home Assistant, customers can now also get in touch with Matas' digital assistant simply by using their voice. The technology and use of voice is still evolving, but it works pretty well. For example, you can get information about products, price and the like, just as you can put products in the basket. As voice control and gaining more and more traction, the use of digital assistants will also be expanded.
IKEA
IKEA is also developing online customer service, and in that direction they developed the app IKEA Place. In this app you will be able to see your furnitures in your home before purchasing1.
As a company working to develop and improve customer experiences, customer service is automatically increased. The customer experiences are personalized and the online platforms know almost before the customer himself what it is you want to look for. But one thing is to be able to show the customer the goods that suit the customer's needs and that the customer expects, another thing is to be able to deliver the positive customer experience throughout the purchase process.
Today, customers shop around in several different webshops, and as more webshops constantly improve the shopping experience, response speed and delivery time, it places greater and greater demands on your company.
Bang & Olufsen
Bang & Olufsen is a Danish company that designs, develops and markets a selection of high-end products; including music systems, speakers, and televisions, which combine new technology with design, quality, and ease of use. This High End company has made an app in augmented reality, where you can experience the look of your speakers or television in your living room, kitchen, bedroom etc
Look at this example here:
Two things that you as an e-commerce merchant must constantly be aware of in addition to the buying experience, are customer support and delivery.
In order for a company to be able to compete in the competition for customers, it is necessary to have satisfied customers, but they do not come by themselves. You can do many things to satisfy your customers, such as. to enhance the customer experience, if any. by using AI or various apps that can help the customer on the way to checkout, you can build a larger selection of items, offer competitive prices, offer faster delivery, give free gifts and / or extend the statutory right of return. However, there are no benefits that can match professional customer service - and not least telephone support.
No matter what kind of customer support your company provides on its webshop, you should make it clear that customers e.g. have the ability to chat, email or make calls. However, it is important that you also make visible on the webshop what time periods the various types of customer support can be taken, so that the customer does not go in vain with his inquiry. Customers expect e.g. a faster response to an open chat than to email. If you do not respond to the chat outside of a certain time, it is important to make it known. When you as a company also use various online platforms such as Facebook, Trustpilot, Instagram, email or a whole fifth place, it is important that you are ready with a quick response if the customers write messages on this.
Furthermore, do the following:
-
Respond to emails and inquiries on social media every day. Responses within 24 hours are most optimal by email - on social media, you should preferably do it much faster. More than half of all customers now expect a response from customer service within an hour. They also expect the same response time on weekends as on weekdays. This need to satisfy customers immediately has forced companies to always be available as needed, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. As it is not possible for all companies to be available at all times, it is important to communicate when or how quickly the customer can expect a response.
-
Make all ways of contacting you VISIBLE
-
Encourage your custumers to take contact to you
Keep in mind that when your customers sit and click around your webshop, many will have already made the purchase decision, and may only need a single small push (eg in the form of a quick response) to complete the purchase. Of course, your customers have an expectation that you have a great deal of product knowledge and can answer the most common questions, and it is of course therefore important to have the right employees with the right product knowledge sitting in the support.
In addition to a really good customer support on your webshop, customers love fast delivery, and Danish consumers today take fast delivery for granted. If you sell stock items, and you have a Danish stock, it will almost be a matter of course for the customers if you offer day-to-day delivery on your webshop. Your customers have different preferences and therefore it will often be an advantage to offer several different shipping options, in the form of different shipping companies and pickup locations.
-