As you’ve probably noticed, we’ve decided to dedicate a few posts as of late to the importance of quality customer care. Research suggests that far too many online businesses are still focusing too heavily on product and price, seemingly unaware of the fact that customers value quality of service above and beyond pretty much everything else.
So with this in mind, what follows is a two-part roundup of 10 of the most common yet catastrophic online customer care mistakes any business can make:
Mistake #1: Making Customers Wait Too Long
First of all, everything regarding the importance of instant gratification and fast access also applies to customer service. Think about it – if the average customer is only willing to wait 3 seconds for any given web page to load, how quickly do you think they will run out of patience when trying to get in touch with you? Particularly as far as complaints and concerns go, making them wait even a second longer than necessary could cost you their business and positive recommendation for life.
Mistake #2: Lack of Written Policies & Procedures
And not just written policies and procedures, but clearly and concisely written. The simple fact of the matter is that your customers technically should not have to get hold of you to access information about refund policies, returns, complaints, shipping and so on and so forth. The more accurate and important information they can access instantly without having to get in touch with you, the better.
Mistake #3: Not Apologising
Far too many businesses are in the habit of happily making the effort to rectify complaints, though for some reason appearing entirely unwilling to apologise. This can be problematic as while addressing the complaint is important, failing to say sorry where an apology is necessary gives the impression that you are simply going through the motions for the sake of it. Unless you come across as sincere and genuine in terms of taking responsibility/ownership of the problem, any resolution you offer could come as cold comfort.
Mistake #4: Taking Complaints Personally
This one has a nasty habit of backfiring and can lead to rather terrifying consequences. The problem being that when you are genuinely proud and passionate about your company, it’s difficult not to take complaints personally. Unfortunately, doing so makes it difficult or even impossible to approach and handle the problem objectively, which in turn leads to things escalating rather quickly. If you have a habit of taking complaints personally, you should delegate the responsibility of handling them to someone who is a little more impartial.
Mistake #5: Arguing Publicly
Last but not least, the very worst thing you can do is enter into any kind of argument (or even heated discussion) with one of your customers publicly. Even if they are completely in the wrong and you have done everything right, getting into an argument in any kind of public domain simply screams lack of professionalism. Respond appropriately, honestly and professionally, but avoid public arguments at all costs.
Stay tuned for the second part of our customer care post, coming soon…