The World Wide Web has changed how we act as consumers. In less than two decades the web has changed how we do business. We now expect to go to a business web site and get the support we need when we need. There is no more closed for the night. The expectation is 24/7 support. When I buy a product I don’t keep the printed materials any more. I throw them out because I expect the manufacturer to have online documentation for their products when I need it. The other day I found a universal remote laying around that I purchased 2 years ago. I wanted to re-program so I went online and found the manufacturers web site. From there I punched in the product name and within minutes I found the product documentation and we re-programming the remote.
So has your business adjusted to this new technology and the changing consumer requirements? A business web site at the least should allow me to check the hours of operation and location. Quickly find contact information and perhaps see any specials or promotions going on. The next level should be support, especially if the business sells a product. Do you offer your customers a quick and easy way to locate their product by brand name and then link to all available documentation for the product? It’s actually not that hard to do. Most web sites today can economically offer the ability to download PDF support documents and have simple search engines with product libraries. Too many times we think of E-Commerce as taking credit cards for orders but I think it means much more than that. E-Commerce should offer customers after purchase support any time of the day.
If you don’t have the mechanisms to offer product documentation then offer a quick and easy contact form specific to the customer’s needs. Perhaps add a box on the home page that allows visitors to send you a text message for quick response. All of these solutions can be quick, economical ways to improve your customer support and increase your sales.
Michael Park
System6 Software, Inc.
parkm@system6software.com
(607) 738-3282