consumer support

Consumer Support

Consumer trust in your business
In the bricks and mortar world when we visit a small establishment, we seldom need to be concerned about consumer trust. We enter the store, see what they have, pick up what we need and pay for it at the counter.

When stores get larger, with more customers and more employees it is easy for small problems to develop. When these problems are not addressed te customer loses his trust. Usually some kind of consumer support function becomes imperitive so that consumer trust can be restored.

When it comes to the online business, customers often have the opposite thinking. Due to the many phishing scams and fake websites, it is often the small business owner that comes in for suspicion. If the company is a large well know store such as Amazon then there is no big problem when a customer thinks about making a purchase. This is not the case with a smaller company who is also trying to sell products. The small business has to earn the trust of potential consumer.

What the evidence shows
This synopsis is evident from the statistics that show that the vast majoirty of potential purchasers actually abort the buying process prior to completion. The figures also show that smaller businesses take a larger proprotional loss compared to more extablished websites.

If we compare these findings with what we personally feel when coming upon a new website, then we are not too surprised to see that the smaller online supplier has a bigger obstacle to overcome. The negative feelings are often grouped together by the term FUD.

FUD is short for FEAR,UNCERTAINTY and DOUBT.
That does not sound like a healthy environment to make sales in. So as small business owners, we need to change how customers feel just when it counts, on the sales page.

How to conquer FUD
When a potential purchaser aborts their buying procedure, it is usually because we have not done a good enough job in wiping out fear, uncertainty and doubt. One of the fears is that the consumer will lose their money. This fear can be combated by declaring a 30 or 60 day money back guarentee. If this is backed up by a consumer care pledge, then it becomes more believable.

Another fear to address is the fear that once purchased, if the product is not understood or more help is needed, then conatct will be difficult. Again this fear or uncertainty can be addressed by displaying the Support-Focus Trust Seal. Because the seal is aclickable one, the potential client can see that you have a customer support program and an email address which can be used. At the same time, they will see your consumer care pledge and your guarentee.

Using and promoting your Support-Focus Trust seal will reduce FUD. The reduction in fear will reduce these number of aborted purchases meaning that you enjoy higher sales and give better consumer support.