OK, you’ll excuse the bad pun in the headline, but there’s just too great stuff out on the ol’ Interwebs this week, Big Thinkers. How ’bout we let byegones be, well, y’know and get right to the links:
Have a great weekend, BIg Thinkers. We’ll see you back here next week.
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The headlight on my wife’s car burnt out the other day. Instead of
taking it to the dealer – overpaying for a simple repair – I
decided to do it myself. One quick Google search later, and I learned
exactly how simple the repair is. It just takes a replacement bulb.
Cheap. Easy. Happy. Right? Not exactly.
A search for the part took me to an online auto parts store, a brand I’ve
never heard of. that’s OK. They get good ratings, have reasonable
prices, and the part is in stock. But what’s this?
(Note: This is just a representative display in order to protect the guilty)
Why do they show the same part with two radically different prices? Is
one higher quality? Will it last longer? Or is the higher priced item
simply a 10-pack? The site doesn’t tell me. Damn. What if I make a
mistake?
And that’s the key. Your customers don’t want to buy the wrong thing. They don’t want to deal with returns. They don’t want to hate the experience. They don’t want to feel stupid.
What do you do about it? You can act like Zappo’s and make the return
process painless, to ease the customer’s decision. Offer reviews.
Improve your copy. Provide click-to-call or chat to answer any questions that the customer might have. But every company, every site
must do something.
Or you can lose the sale. Just like those auto parts guys did.
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marketing? Addthinks to your favorite reader now and learn more every
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Many small business websites – ecommerce or service related – can do a better job to help customers find what they want. Big ones, too. This morning I wanted to see what I could get with my credit card rewards points, so I clicked on the big image labeled ShopAmex shown here:
It didn’t work. Nothing. Nada. Bupkis.
No, to actually shop Amex, you’ve got to click that little, bitty link at the bottom. It’s a pity I missed it at first.
Now, look closely at this picture:
Notice anything interesting about it? The retailer (Macy’s in New York) didn’t just merchandise the shoes, by complementing them with a bag and sunglasses. No. Macy’s did something else, too. They labeled the glass of their display window, telling customers exactly where to find the shoes. And the bag. Almost like a link to the floor.
When you make it easy for customers to do what they want – whether it’s find shoes, find a matching bag, or find a bargain – you make it easy for you to get what you want: the sale.
Heard any good tips for getting the sale – online or offline – lately? Tell us about them in the comments. And subscribe to this blog` for more ecommerce and interactive marketing strategy information every day.
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