Customer Service Online – A Powerful Internet Marketing Tool
There is a popular saying in the sales world “The customer is always right”. Well, I guess this point can be debated… What cannot be debated though is the need to always offer excellent customer service.
Let’s face it. Without customers you simply do not have a business. If you want to build a successful online business you need you build a reputation for providing excellent customer service.
In fact, customer service becomes even more important when you sell online since you do not have any face to face contact with customers. Customers that may already be nervous about doing business online.
Helping a customer in need is the best opportunity you are going to get at building a relationship with that customer.
People simply hate dealing with companies that are all over them when they want their business but ignore them the moment they have a problem or query.
Remember that by providing bad service to a customer you do not only risk losing that customer for life, you risk losing many potential customers. People talk. People complain on public forums and blogs about poor service.
One of my main niches is helping new people to succeed with internet marketing and the number one internet marketing forum is Warrior Forum.
There are posts every day from members asking for comments and advice on a wide range of subjects and companies, such as “What do you think of X?”, “What host do you recommend” and “Is Y any good?”
Many of these posts are read by hundreds of people and potential customers. Whenever I see a comment such as “I tried using X a couple of months ago but found their customer service really sucks…” I cannot help but wonder how many potential customers this company has lost because of one incident…
It does not matter what niche you are in or how you intend making money with internet marketing, people do talk online and poor customer service is a big no-no. Nobody expects a company to be perfect.
A comment such as “Yes, I once had a problem with them but their customer service was excellent and the problem was resolved in no time” can actually help the company to get more business in the future.
Word of mouth is powerful. People love spending time on forums to learn and get advice from other like-minded individuals. This online version of “word of mouth” is very powerful.
Obviously, people also communicate offline with friends, family, discussion groups, and attend seminars and conferences. You simply cannot afford to allow poor customer service in your business, however small your business may be.
One popular marketing technique is “viral marketing”. The word “viral” actually refers to a virus that spreads from person to person. Word of mouth is a very good example of viral marketing.
It is the typical case of 1 person telling something to 5 other people and they in turn tell 5 other people, etc. One action can have a multitude of consequences, good or bad.
What about difficult and annoying customers? People that simply cannot communicate? People that you would rather not have as customers… Well, always be polite. Always try to help. You will never be able to keep all customers happy but the least you can do is try!
I often cringe when I hear comments from marketers such as “I simply do not have the time to reply to all my emails” or “I told the customer that he should not buy from me again because he is always complaining…” Unbelievable when you consider the potential impact that only one customer may have on your business.
Use customer service as a promotional and/or marketing tool. Use it to your advantage. By turning a potential problem into a positive experience for a customer you will not only keep the customer, build goodwill that can result in future sales to the same customer but also gain a valuable ambassador for your business.
Francois du Toit is a full-time internet marketer and the author of “Digging For Gold Nuggets — Lessons Learned In Internet Marketing” Visit Home Based Internet Marketing Business or click on the following link to claim a copy of this 100 page book while it is still being offered for free http://www.DiggingForGoldNuggets.com
Author: Francois Du Toit
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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