In this age of instant online shopping and access to more products than consumers have ever seen, communication with customers has taken on a whole new level of importance.
It’s no longer good enough to accept an order, send confirmation and leave it there. Modern consumers expect – or often demand – updates throughout the order process. But that’s not always possible for smaller sellers (or even larger ones) because this process could consume so much time nothing else gets done. And that’s where automated messaging comes into play.
Below, we’ll look at just what you need to communicate to customers and how Amazon Business Integration’s custom EDI solution for Amazon businesses can help.
Confirmation
This might seem like an obvious step, but sending an automated communication to let a customer know their order is received and then out for delivery has real benefits.
When you send a confirmation message, you’re building expectation and excitement in the customer before their order arrives. This is the perfect opportunity to establish communication with customers and let them know everything is in hand. This is especially important when the order comprises a high-value product because a natural degree of anxiety will arise until they know their order is on the way.
But this is also a tremendous initial point of contact between yourself and customers. You’re not selling them anything; instead you’re showing them the human side behind the business and underlining why their purchase was a good idea.
Post-Delivery
It’s a good idea to send another automated communication two to three days after the product has reached the customer.
This is the time when you can capitalise on the fresh excitement they still feel about their purchase and check in that there are no issues with their order.
The goal here is to take that relationship you’ve established with the customer via your confirmation communication and leverage their satisfaction into something tangible – aka feedback.
This is the point when a customer is primed to extol the virtues of their purchase, and they might simply need a reminder – in a non-overbearing way – that they should leave you some valuable feedback. You have already established a line of communication and receiving feedback not only benefits your business with real praise but also helps you understand the most attractive aspects of a particular product – and all right from the horse’s mouth.
A Week After Delivery
Now that the customer has had a week to explore their purchase, they will know everything about its benefits and just how happy they are with the product.
This is the last opportunity you have to generate positive feedback from the customer, so this email should focus on customer support and checking the customer is still satisfied and happy. This communication should function to underline the qualities of your business via support offerings and show that you care about the customer beyond the conversion phase.
The process is crucial because it helps strengthen the relationship between customer and business, ideally turning them into a loyal consumer of your brand.
If you require a powerful, efficient EDI solution for your Amazon business, contact Amazon Business Integration today. Our fully-integrated platform enables you to provide automated communication to customers, hitting the right points during the entire sales and aftercare process.
