In this day and age things have changed when it comes to engaging with customers. Long gone are the days when in order to build a relationship with customers there had to be a face-to-face interaction. All of these encounters have been moved to the on-line marketplace. This said relationship building is still a core business need.
Here are The Island’s 5 suggestions on how to gain customer trust in the digital era.
1. Use social media to reach customers
The best place to connect with fans. Consumers are getting to the point where they are used to reaching their favourite brands through social media. People value others opinions and where best to find them? In a recent study Deloitte, proved that 75% of on-line Americans say social media channels influenced their shopping behaviour. In the same study 84% of people report using digital for shopping-related activities before or after their most recent trip to a store. Not having a social media presence can make a consumer wary of your brand.
2. Customer service can take place on-line
No matter what happens, consumers will always want to have a say in what businesses are doing whether that be through reviews on third party websites or on the official website of a brand. A business should invest in on-line customer service to avoid people being unhappy with waiting on the phone to talk to an operator. An FAQ section can save you some of the customers enquiries. In the same way, a customer service chat or forum can help those who need assistance. Most people prefer on-line customer service to talking to an operator.
3. Introduce a loyalty program
Loyalty programs are maybe one of the most common tools out there that brands use and this may come as an obvious statement, but it can prove to be very effective. Shopping patterns are actually affected by loyalty schemes. Some suggestions for loyalty programs are: email coupons, loyalty points, free shipping perks, contests and so on. The key to a loyalty program is that it is easy to understand and use.
4. Encourage customer reviews and show them on your website
Not being able to hold the product you are selling in hand means that some will be immediately turned off, for those who aren’t reviews are what will make them buy. Consumers trust reviews as if they were the opinions of friends and family. Businesses should use this to their advantage to convince on-line shoppers their product or service is good. Encouraging reviews also means that a customer will know a business cares about their opinion and not just making a sale. The next natural step of customer reviews is to become brand ambassadors to friends, families and people on social media.
5. Offer multiple payment options
Consumers are more and more wary of how their details and payment information are transmitted over the internet. Having multiple options allows a business to capture all different types of on-line buyers without excluding someone on the basis of not meeting their expectation of payment methods.
Building customer loyalty and trust is a vital step towards success for on-line businesses. Hopefully with these 5 suggestions you will be that much closer to achieving that.
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