Digital immigration is there, right before our eyes. It has continued uninterrupted for two decades. At this pace, countless people who were just consumers decided to become the owners of an online store. Many of these e-commerce beginners, however, have not had adequate training on how to handle e-consumer complaints, which causes irreparable losses and consequences.
If you are one of these digital entrepreneurs, keep in mind that e-consumers who complain about your online store and/or your company as a whole are welcome, as they provide a kind of free and extremely sincere consultancy, which neither can always be obtained through paid professional services of the kind.
Furthermore, if you know how to properly handle dissatisfied online shoppers , you can even build loyalty and turn them into regular customers. This is great because retaining a customer costs on average four to five times less than acquiring a new one.
But how to properly handle e-consumer complaints? The Master in Business Administration, Alexandre Luzzi Las Casas, in his book “Marketing de Serviços”, points out four steps:
1. Listen to the customer
Just focus on listening to your consumer. Don't try to give him answers right now. Just listen. Use empathy, that is, put yourself in their shoes. Recognize and identify with your pain.
2. Get to know the details
Want to know how the problem occurred. Ask objective questions. Address your customer kindly. Try to understand what, in fact, this dissatisfied consumer's complaint is.
3. Solve the problem
As soon as you recognize your customer's frustration, resolve the issue immediately. Keep the posture of those who are there to help.
4. Thank you for the information
After solving the problem, thank your customer, who brought you valuable information. Work so that the same problem doesn't happen again.
Very good! But the whole thing doesn't end here. It is not enough to solve the problem. It is necessary to rebuild trust to retain loyalty. For this to happen, Las Casas lists some ideas, such as how to send:
– An apology letter to your e-consumer
– Discount coupons along with the apology
– Gift voucher along with the apology request
– A basket of company products
You can also send a gift, movie tickets or invite the consumer to get to know your production line or another interesting sector of your company, among other ways to atone for the mistake. In this way, you can turn what was a complaint into reasons for positive word-of-mouth advertising for your online store.
