The Top 14 Ecommerce Customer Service Tips to Enhance Customer Satisfaction

What differentiates you from your competitors? If it’s pricing, it won’t be long before someone comes along and undercuts you. Innovative products give you an edge, but again, only in the short term. Offering your clients the best possible customer service is the most cost-effective way to improve your bottom line.

When you get this right, you win a loyal fanbase that is willing to tell anyone who listens about your company. With that in mind, we compiled this list of the top 14 customer service tips to improve your ecommerce business.

1. Consider Asking for Help

   Do you find it hard to handle incoming queries? If you’re letting your ecommerce customer service levels slip, you’ll lose clients. Therefore, it’s worth thinking about outsourcing this vital function. The right team can enhance customer satisfaction and lighten your load.

   Also, as you work through the other tips in this article, you’ll see that you need a really good support team. It’s not enough to simply get the new person to answer phones, you need professionals.

2. Offer Multiple Channels for Customer Support

   You’d think we wouldn’t need to say this today, but not everyone gets this right. Considering how many communication platforms there are, you need to be where your clients are. Do they want to reach out via:

   • Phone
   • Email
   • Live chat
   • Phone
   • SMS
   • Instant messaging

   Offering support across different channels makes it easier for your clients to get in touch. It also positions you as a forward-thinking company that cares about supporting their customers. A money-saving tip is to have a bot to handle simple queries.

3. Make Self-Service Resources Available

   Some clients want to find the answers themselves rather than wait for help. You can make this easy with:

   • FAQs
   • Navigable knowledge bases
   • Video tutorials
   • Useful blog posts

   Make sure your clients know where to find these resources if they need them.

4. Personalize the Customer Experience

   You no doubt gather a lot of data about your clients. Put it to good use by personalizing the customer experience. You can:

   • Start by using their names
   • Offer them discounts on items they buy regularly
   • Giving them relevant product recommendations
   • Offering resources that are truly helpful

   For example, you can send them recipes using your products.

5. Be Proactive in Communicating

   Only 1 in 26 clients will complain directly to you. The rest just leave. But wait, according to the same research 13% of dissatisfied customers will tell 15 or more people about their bad experience.

   The problem with the traditional service model is that you wait for the customer to come to you. By this stage, they’re already frustrated and annoyed. You have to change the dynamic by becoming more proactive.

   You can do this with simple courtesy calls to find out how they’re finding your product. You can also reach out to warn them about possible shipping delays. Where possible, solve their problem before they even know they have one.

6. Train Your Support Team to Be Empathetic

   This point isn’t rocket science, but it’s funny how many companies focus on product knowledge first. While it’s important to give the clients the right information, you need to do it in the right way.

   Your consultant must acknowledge the client’s feelings and give an understanding response.

7. Respond Quickly to Inquiries

   You must answer queries quickly to keep up your service levels. Aim to answer all queries within a few hours, 24 at the most. If you don’t, your clients might feel frustrated and try a competitor’s product. Winning them back after this is almost impossible.

8. Simplify the Return and Refund Process

   You don’t want clients to return products, but you need to reassure them that you stand behind your products. Offering an easy way to get refunds does this. It can be the edge you need to convince a new client to buy from you. If possible, offer prepaid returns.

9. Leverage AI and Automation

   AI-powered tools like chatbots and automated email responses can elevate your service levels. They also free up your support team to deal with more complex queries. A further advantage is that these tools provide instant answers for your clients.

10. Ask for Feedback and Act on It

    Is your service as good as it can be? The only people who can tell you that are your clients. You need to encourage them to:

    • Leave reviews
    • respond to surveys
    • Give feedback after an interaction

11. Offer 24/7 Service

    Maybe you work across multiple time zones, maybe not. Either way, your clients might expect you to be available 24/7. They want to access support when it’s convenient for them. This might mean chatting at 3:30 in the morning. You can set up chatbots to handle some of the simpler queries. Otherwise, you’ll need to look into using an international outsourcing supplier.

12. Streamline Order Tracking and Shipping Information

    Your client wants to know about their orders and how they’re progressing. You should give them real-time updates so they don’t have to constantly call in.

13. Handle Complaints and Compliments Quickly and Carefully

    Most of us are quick to jump on complaints. How many of us respond to compliments with equal vigor? You should handle both quickly and professionally. When there’s a complaint, reach out and apologize for the inconvenience. See if you can come to a mutually beneficial resolution.

14. Monitor Social Media Channels

    Go beyond just monitoring your page. Look for questions and experiences your customers share. Set up an alert for any company or product mentions. Then, when these come up, you can weigh in on the conversation. Additionally, explore how your competitors and industry leaders leverage the best media buying services to amplify their reach, gaining valuable insights for your own strategy.

Conclusion

Improving your ecommerce service levels has many benefits. It improves customer satisfaction and reduces churn. By implementing the tips we’ve discussed here, you can improve your service levels almost effortlessly.