We’ve all had that one moment with a company: that “I’m-so-frustrated-I-have-smoke-coming-out-of-my-ears” moment. But what drives a customer to feel that way? As marketers, we sometimes need to take off our business caps and remember what it feels like to be a customer and what frustrates us. And then do the opposite.
Research has shown that it takes 12 positive experiences to make up for one unresolved negative experience. You don’t want your business to get stuck in that trap. This list is only a start, but check it out to see if you’re making any of these 10 mistakes that frustrate your customers:
1. Not having a phone number to call.
How frustrating is it when you visit a website with the sole purpose of finding a phone number to call a business, but it’s nowhere to be found? Not having a phone number prominently displayed on your website only serves to frustrate customers and make your brand appear inaccessible. What’s more, Google reports that 33% of mobile searchers would be less likely to refer a brand if there was no call option.
2. Sending too many emails.
With an average of 88 emails in our inboxes every day, not only is there a greater chance your message will get lost in the mix, but the last thing customers want is more messages than necessary from your business. Do some A/B testing to determine what an effective weekly email cadence is for your business. Maybe it’s daily or maybe it’s weekly. Figure out what gets you the best response and work from there–but remember to keep testing!
3. Emails that aren’t formatted for mobile.
67% of emails are now opened on mobile devices. It’s no longer a bonus when a brand has mobile-optimized emails – it’s essential to enhancing a customer’s experience and reducing frustration. No one wants to pinch and expand the screen of their mobile device just to read your email – they’ll be more inclined to press delete without reading it.
4. Web forms that are too long.
Customers abandon web forms for a number of reasons, but chief among them is that many web forms simply take too much time to fill out. Determine which fields are most important and cut out any “nice-to-have” information (for now). Tip: Make sure you have your phone number prominently displayed on landing pages to capture customers who may abandon your web form but still want to contact you (and, according to BIA/Kelsey, phone calls convert to revenue 10x more frequently than web forms).
5. Ineffective voice notifications.
There is enough ill will geared toward automated call campaigns to last for a while, so there’s no reason to add to it by frustrating your customers with too many, or unhelpful, voice notifications. Ensure your customers don’t feel like you’re spamming them by crafting messages that provide utility: appointment reminders, delivery notifications, reorders, and the like.
6. Not responding to messages quickly on social media.
Social media platforms are fast becoming customers’ go-to place to lodge complaints – and they want responses fast. In fact, 42% expect a response to a complaint they’ve made on social media within 60 minutes. Your company better be ready to respond quickly, especially if the complaint was made publicly.
7. Having an outdated or complicated IVR.
Imagine you reach a company’s IVR (interactive voice response) system and either the system uses outdated technology or some options are old and no longer applicable to the business. Or worse yet, the menu system is so complicated you get lost and end up at a dead end where the IVR ends your call. If you use an IVR, it’s the first thing a customer experiences with your brand when they call, so you want to make it as easy as possible for them to navigate.
8. Inefficient call routing rules.
89% of customers who experience poor service with your brand will leave for your competition. Contextually routing a customer’s call is invaluable to improving a customer’s experience with your brand and improving retention. No more bouncing callers around from agent to agent until they reach the right person to help them (that is, if they didn’t hang up first).
9. Not responding to negative customer reviews.
I’ve done it before, and you probably have too: Reading online customer reviews prior to making a purchase is now commonplace. 85% of consumers said they read up to 10 reviews for local businesses when making a decision. With so many customers relying on reviews of your business, it’s imperative that you respond to any negative ones in order to gain back the trust of your customers and show prospects you care.
10. Keeping callers on hold too long.
One study found that 60% of customers would not be willing to wait one minute on hold for customer service. But it’s not always possible to connect customers with representatives immediately. Analyze a customer’s call path to see if there are any points that can be streamlined (e.g. improved IVR or better call routing) or if you can improve the call waiting features you use (e.g. music or promotional messages).
Interested in learning more about how conversation is the key to good business? Check out this infographic.
