The growth of e-commerce platforms and stores is accelerating at a rapid rate.
Research has readily predicted that e-commerce’s convenience and accessibility would increase for the year 2020 as a result of the convenience and accessibility of online shopping. Nevertheless, unavoidable events have led to an even higher volume of internet purchases, resulting in consumers turning to the internet for almost every good or service they can think of.
Businesses have been left scrambling to hire more employees, to beef up production and shipping capabilities, in response to this situation. In the case of a small to mid-sized enterprise (SME), however, it is very difficult to meet all of those objectives.
It’s for this reason that one of them needs to be outsourced. Fortunately, just as e-commerce is growing, so is the market for outsourcing customer service, and we’ll explain why and how you should use these services.
Customer service is an essential part of any business
There has been nothing that has showed the importance of e-commerce stores more than the extreme events that have taken place in 2020 that have kept countless consumers homebound. In the world of the knowing consumer, online window shopping has created an entirely new kind of consumer.
In today’s world, shoppers are now scouring the Internet for every bit of information they can find before making a decision to purchase a product or service from you. First, they determine which products best suit their needs, then they decide where to buy these products from. In spite of having the majority of the information at hand, it’s likely that they’ll still contact support if they need more confirmation.
Online shopping – despite the fact that it is now commonplace – still poses quite a lot of doubt and risk to consumers.
There is no way for them to determine the legitimacy of a SME without seeing a physical store or physically feeling a product to know its quality. Instead, genuine, human customer service and reviews are the only way they can tell whether an SME is legit.
In this regard, we are sure that you can spare a little time to make sure that the customer service you provide is exceptional. You are asking these folks to give you their payment information based solely on what they see on their screens including images and text.
What are the benefits of providing effective customer support?
Assiduously addressing individual concerns and establishing trust among your clientele will benefit you in the long run.
Guests who get in touch with us receive excellent customer service that is personalized for them. There’s a directness to this message, it’s responsive, and it’s written in a way that’s easy to understand by the intended audience.
As a result of talking with an empathic representative, the customer experience can be improved and possible business opportunities can be opened. There is considerable evidence that positive customer experiences have the power to convince consumers to commit to buying your product at the last minute. It is true that customer service is not an all-or-nothing proposition.
Additionally, this system has also been shown to turn your clients into brand advocates, get them to spend more in your online (even physical) stores, as well as let them become loyal customers who will recommend you to other people.
As crucial as customer service can be to the future of your SME, it is crucial that you devote more time to customer service than simply checking Facebook messages in between work breaks. What if you simply cannot devote time to it? Then it is a good idea to outsource it.
Here are some reasons why you should outsource your e-commerce store’s support to a third party
The following list provides more than a few compelling reasons why outsourcing might be a good decision for your business. These reasons include:
The management of your customer support team is taking up too much of your time.
If you have a dedicated customer service team, of course, this assumes that you even have one. Small businesses and start-ups may typically have a “support team” made up of one or two people or “whichever core member is available at the time.”
This practice becomes unsustainable as demand for your products grows. It is possible for various members to attempt to balance customer inquiries with their own workload, eventually leading to oversight. The worst thing that can happen to an e-commerce company is a missed order or deadline.
Also, when it comes to e-commerce stores, customers don’t give much thought to operating hours. During the day and in the evening, your customers expect to be able to contact your customer support team. Outsourcing support and covering those off hours will not only keep your customers happy, but it will also ensure that your in-house team is well rested and at their best for the day.
Having employees in-house takes time and is expensive.
It might be difficult, if not physically impossible, for you to interview candidates and onboard them now, even if you decide to scale your human resources.
For the inexperienced, it’s not easy to switch from a client support system to a remote service system, even if you hire individual freelancers.
Additionally, the creation of training modules and additional training add to your workload. What should you do? Hire a full-service outsourcing company. The company will take care of all of these activities for you.
The volume of orders is on the rise.
As consumers turn more and more to e-commerce stores and online orders increase, it is a better time than ever to scale and expand your business model.
A dedicated team of customer service outsourcers allows you to better serve your customers and frees you up to plan and execute new strategies to grow your business.
The ability to think ahead helps you to rise above the competition.
There is a decrease in volumes.
When business is slow, outsourcing can also be considered. To save on costs, outsourcing support, technical support, and even billing may be the answer if volumes decrease significantly.
Is there a possibility of short-term decreases? You can outsource for them as well. Outsourced work usually has a predetermined duration, as is the case with most projects. It is usually much cheaper to hire outsourced staff for a busy holiday season than it is to hire permanent employees. Particularly if you do not expect the same level of demand afterwards.
The good news is that positive customer experiences now will result in fewer customer support calls in the future.
By
trusting your brand and assurance, consumers might skip the additional inquiries and purchase right away, saving you time and money.
Outsourcing companies: what you can do
In essence, outsourcing means letting a third party manage every inquiry that comes your way – ideally one that specializes in customer service.
In both situations, it is important to find a trustworthy partner.
Searching for offshore companies can lead you to companies that have experience in the industry at a lower price. Including all the necessary support services and whole teams in their packages, IntelligentBee is an example of a local company that offers this service. Your human staff might even be relieved of some of their responsibilities by chatbots!
What to look for in an outsourcing company
However, one thing that needs to be emphasized is that budget alone does not determine which outsourcing company is best for your e-commerce store. To get a quote, you should ask yourself what your current needs are.
What steps have you taken to ensure your brand guidelines and voice are followed by your team? Is someone hired to handle holiday orders quickly? Can your long-term goals be met with a team you can trust 100%, even with little supervision from you?
If you are looking for outsourcing companies, you can find them in the same way customers find your products.
Use Google or a social media platform to find them. Research company prices, reviews, and services. Try out their customer support to find out how well they work and how quickly they respond, and find the right outsourcing company with the same discerning eye of an informed online shopper.