As an avid consumer of e-commerce, I’ve seen how some portals manage to do such a great job of difficult things while others flounder with even simple tasks. Problems occur when e-commerce players focus on the good-to-have items before the must-have items.
Five ‘Must-haves’ (because these are the basics to attract any customer)
- Genuine products and pricing
This one is obvious, really, a sine qua non, for any player to last beyond the first sale. The customer is smart enough to realize if he is being duped by fakes. A baby-care e-tailer (not going to name it) got a bad name because the diapers it dispatched were not the genuine stuff. Similarly, inflated prices, even if discounted later, seem like a case of smokes and mirrors – not good for businesses in the long run.
- Logical suggestions and reviews
The appearance of a website is one thing but the suggestions that it throws up while the customer is still filling up her cart can do a fantastic job of driving up the margins. The reviews for each product add to the authenticity of the suggestions. @Amazon does a brilliant job here, especially where books are concerned, also tying in one’s search and purchase history while they are at it.
- Prominent contact information
This relates to one of my earlier posts. Make it easy for the customer to reach you; flash your contact information so that it is easily visible, ideally at the top of the page. Man your helpdesk with capable people who know your business and products well. @UrbanLadder has put an efficient team, which keeps all product information handy, at the other end of its sales helpline.
- Convenient order tracking
Allow the customer to track his order at his convenience. It gives them confidence that their package is actually moving towards them, especially where delivery times are long. @Flipkart details every step, including location of each delivery, on the customer’s account page.
- Reliable delivery
Deliver as per the time estimate provided to the customer. Here, the golden rule should be: ‘Under-commit and over-deliver.’ @FirstCry regularly delivers ahead of the delivery times provided, which are already shorter than those of most competitors.
Two ‘Good-to-haves’ (because these can be the differentiators to keep ‘em coming back)
- Great cataloguing and search engines
‘Sales’ is really about making it as easy and quick as possible for the customer to make up her mind about purchase. Without the benefit of a convincing personality to make the sale, the biggest tool you have at your disposal is making the product easy to find and come alive in how you describe it. A well-thought out catalogue goes a long way here. @Zivame, the lingerie e-tailer, is easily ahead of not just its direct competitors but also most of the diversified ones. Take a look at the @Zappos search widget and you’ll know what a long distance Indian e-tailers still have to cover.
- Easy returns and Fast refunds
A customer who is dissatisfied with the product she received (because of wrong size, wrong colour, wrong fit, damaged product, anything) doesn’t have to become a customer who will never return to your portal… as long as you manage the returns and refunds well. Make it as painless and as devoid of follow-ups for the customer as possible. @Jabong has managed to exploit this opportunity well. I’ve talked about it here.
@Bigbasket, by Innovative Retail Concepts, refunds an additional 50% of the amount of the product to be returned or one found defective, as part of its quality assurance policy.
Get customers not just to come to you but also to come back to you.
What the Health 