Based on my recent experience with 2 online retailers, I have come up with 5 quick and simple tips for online retailers this Christmas:
- Don’t Sell Items You Don’t Have!
It sounds simple but you would be surprised. I ordered an item that appeared to be in stock on the Mac Warehouse UK web site. I ordered on a Friday, but when I arrived into the office the following Monday and had heard precious little I rang up customer service, only to be told the items were not in stock, and that the lead time from the supplier was going to be 10 DAYS! - When a Customer Cancels an Order, Cancel It!
Having realised it would be a long wait for the goods, I decided to shop elsewhere. Needless to say I asked customer service at Mac Warehouse UK to cancel the order and refunded the amount they had already charged to my card. Simple right? Wrong! Another 3 calls and 5 days later and they finally canceled the order, having lied to me in the prcess, saying the cancellation takes 3 hours to show up in their system. - Bend Over Backwards for Your Customers
Having taken my business elsewhere to UK Insight, I placed the order and the product arrived the next day. Pretty Simple. having then realised I needed a new hard drive, I placed another order with next day delivery. When the order didn’t come the following day I rang up the day after and asked for a refund on delivery. UK Insight didn’t quibble it, they simply refunded the charge for shipping and took up the matter with the courier company. BINGO! I know where I will shop again. - Provide Lead, Delivery & Opening Times.
At a time sensitive period like Christmas it is good to let your customers know how long it will take for them to receive their goods. It might seem insane to tell your customers to stop shopping for Christmas on your site from, let’s say 20th December, but nothing will infuriate them more if they order something and it doesn’t come. Moreover it is not like people will stop shopping at that date. Hell, people even go shopping online on Christmas day! If you run a bricks and mortar operation too then make sure it is easy for people to find you and know when you are open over the festive period. - Custom isn’t Just for Christmas.
If you want to build long term customer relationships, follow up with any pre-Christmas shoppers after the holiday season and get feed back, start doing the soft sell, try and ad value to them and create customer loyalty by being a useful resource, and connect with them via email and social networks. People love to follow their fave stores on Facebook and elsewhere.
Anyhow, 5 quick tips, 5 minutes. Hope they were handy! Let me know what you think.
Photo – Bixentro on Flickr
Web-head & art collector, living in East London and huffing on the fumes of the planet since '78. Here are my thoughts.
Internet Strategy, Marketing & Technology Links – Dec 7, 2009 | Sazbean Dec 7, 2009
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