Boost your CX with Customer Feedback Software | e-commerce

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Bad Customer Experience might cost you $62 billion

Yes, you've heard it right: bad customer experience can cost US businesses up to $62 billion annually. And this is just the potential loss several businesses across the globe are facing every year, but wait, we have more stats to cover.  

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According to a study by Grand View Research, the global customer experience management market was worth a staggering USD 10.65 billion in 2022. This figure is predicted to rise, with an anticipated compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 15.4% from 2023 to 2030. 

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Deloitte Digital further underscores the emphasis businesses are placing on CX, revealing that 88% of companies now prioritize customer experience within their contact centers. 

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Study found that businesses are investing in CX chiefly for three reasons: 42% aim to enhance cross-selling and upselling, 32% look to boost customer satisfaction, and 33% are driven by the desire to improve customer retention.

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However, a significant gap exists between customer expectations and their actual experiences. A concerning 81% of e-commerce customers feel valued by brands, indicating that only 19% believe customer service today exceeds their expectations. 

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Emplifi's data paints a similarly concerning picture, revealing that over 86% of e-commerce customers are ready to abandon a brand following just two negative experiences.

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Despite these challenges, there's a silver lining for businesses willing to innovate. Incorporating conversational AI bots, for instance, can result in substantial savings, potentially cutting over $1 million in annual customer support costs, and that's just for the chatbots. 

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Moreover, brands that consistently deliver exemplary online service can reap financial benefits, with 82% of customers willing to increase their spending if their CX needs are met.

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The race for better Customer Experience (CX) has begun, and you might want to get ahead and start seriously investing to optimize your client's experience. Unfortunately, hiring more or better CX specialists will affect your expenses, but there are plenty of budget-friendly options that will boost your customer service team's performance in a very short time while also making their work easier and stress-free.

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You might consider starting testing customer feedback software that offers you flexible integrations with your CRM, CMS social media platforms, and many more. 

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Customer needs in e-commerce

Apart from the essential technical aspects online retailers must prioritize—like great UX/UI design, optimized speed, and performance, leveraging the latest technologies, sticking to SEO best practices, and maintaining an updated catalog—there's another dimension of customer needs. Instead of approaching these from a purely technical perspective, we'll delve into broader considerations that are crucial for keeping pace with evolving consumer demands.

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Provide great customer service

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It's not a surprise that providing great customer service is at the top of the list; after all, who wishes to have a bad experience with the things we, as customers, are paying for?

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Providing live chat support, ensuring prompt response to customer queries, and furnishing comprehensive product details when needed is already a great start to meeting your client's expectations. Research by Salesforce indicates that 89% of consumers are inclined to make another purchase after a positive customer service interaction. Basically, a great first impression will do half of the job to bring back your customers to your store and make them loyal in the long run.

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Personalized shopping experience

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Using third-party providers, such as Prestashop or Shopify, gives you the advantage of giving personalized customer experiences to your users. 71% of consumers expect companies to deliver personalized experiences, according to McKinsey.

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Artificial intelligence or AI-powered product recommendations on the Product Detail Page level can highly impact your Average Order Value (AOV). A/B testing different promotional landing pages for your target audience can also help you gain valuable insights regarding your customers and users to develop more relevant content for your users.

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Unlock your e-commerce potential with ClientZen

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Imagine a scenario where we have an e-commerce platform made with Prestashop. Let's see how customer feedback software such as ClientZen can change how we perceive traditional e-commerce and customer data analysis.

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ClientZen's advanced customer sentiment analysis features can offer e-commerce businesses a robust set of tools to not only optimize customer engagement and experience but also drive sales and loyalty. Here's how the combination of these platforms can prove beneficial:

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Enhanced Product Strategy

By understanding sentiments behind customer feedback on products through ClientZen's automated tagging and sentiment analysis, e-commerce businesses can refine their product offerings, eliminate underperforming products, and highlight those that receive positive feedback.

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To get more out of this, let's see more practical examples and best practices that you can use by extracting and analyzing customer data with customer feedback software such as ours.

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Feedback-Driven Product Descriptions:

• Situation: Let's say customers consistently mention that a certain shoe runs small based on ClientZen's sentiment analysis.
• Action: Update the product description to advise customers to order a size up. This would reduce returns and improve customer satisfaction.

Homepage & Featured Product Placement:

• Situation: ClientZen's tagging reveals overwhelmingly positive feedback for a specific line of eco-friendly products.
• Action: Highlight these popular products on the homepage, or even create a dedicated "Eco-Friendly Favorites" section, leading to increased sales of top-rated items.

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Tailored Marketing and Promotions

User segmentation based on feedback allows businesses to create personalized marketing campaigns. For example, customers who've shown dissatisfaction might be targeted with special discount offers, while happy customers might receive loyalty rewards.

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Email Marketing & Promotions:

• Situation: ClientZen identifies that certain products have a split sentiment - some love it for its design, while others dislike it for its functionality.
• Action: Launch a targeted email campaign offering a bundled discount when that product is purchased with another complementary product that addresses its functional shortcomings.

Tailored Marketing Campaigns:

• Situation: ClientZen identifies a segment of users who gave negative feedback about the high prices.
• Action: Launch a limited-time discount campaign targeting this segment, offering them exclusive deals or bundle discounts to encourage purchases.

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Improved Customer Support

By analyzing the emotions and sentiments behind customer feedback, customer support can prioritize issues, addressing those that evoke strong negative sentiments promptly. This can lead to faster resolution times and higher customer satisfaction.

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Proactive Communication:

• Situation: ClientZen identifies a recurring issue in feedback regarding confusion over shipping times.
• Action: Instead of waiting for customers to reach out, your customer support team could proactively send out clear and detailed emails or notifications explaining the shipping process. This email can also include an FAQ section addressing common concerns. Not only does this reduce the number of support tickets, but it also assures customers that their concerns are being heard and addressed.

Knowledge Base Enhancement:

• Situation: Analysis of customer feedback reveals frequent queries about how to use certain features of a product, indicating that users are not finding the existing resources clear or comprehensive enough.
• Action: Create or enhance a knowledge base or "How-To" section on the website using easily accessible language and multimedia (like images or short videos). By directing customers to this self-help resource, businesses can decrease the load on their live support staff while empowering customers to find solutions on their own.

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Data-driven Decision Making

Insights discovery can guide business decisions. For instance, if there's a consistent negative sentiment around a specific feature of a product, businesses can focus on refining that feature.

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Product Listing Optimization:

• Situation: ClientZen's sentiment analysis identifies that many customers feel certain products are miscategorized or have inadequate product descriptions.
• Action: Without major overhauls, the e-commerce store can refine product categories and invest some time in improving product descriptions based on feedback. By adjusting tags, adding relevant keywords, or simply providing more detailed descriptions, customers can find what they're looking for more easily, leading to improved sales.

Enhanced User Experience:

• Situation: Feedback consistently mentions that the checkout process on the site is cumbersome, with many steps or redundant information requests.
• Action: Using this data, the e-commerce platform can streamline the checkout process. This might mean removing unnecessary form fields, introducing a one-page checkout, or integrating faster payment options. Even small changes, informed by data, can lead to increased conversion rates and enhanced customer satisfaction.

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Financial Prioritization

By understanding the MRR behind each piece of feedback, businesses can prioritize addressing feedback that comes from high-value customers or segments that have a substantial financial impact.

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Prioritizing High-Value Customers:

• Situation: ClientZen's analytics identify that a small percentage of customers contribute to a large portion of the Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR) — these might be customers buying in bulk, purchasing high-end products, or simply shopping frequently.
• Action: Allocate resources to cater to these high-value customers by creating exclusive loyalty programs, offering special discounts, or providing dedicated customer service for them. This doesn't necessarily mean spending more but redirecting existing resources to ensure maximum customer satisfaction for those driving the most revenue.

Inventory Management Based on Feedback Value:

• Situation: Analysis from ClientZen highlights that products receiving negative feedback have low sales and are causing storage costs. On the other hand, items with overwhelmingly positive sentiment are frequently going out of stock, potentially leading to lost sales opportunities.
• Action: Adjust inventory investments based on this feedback. Reduce stock levels or discontinue underperforming products and divert those funds to stock up on popular items. This ensures that money is not wasted storing products that aren't selling well and that there's always enough stock for bestsellers, optimizing financial outcomes.

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Optimized Product Releases

With release impact tracking, businesses can gauge how new product features or updates are received by customers. This can guide future product development strategies, ensuring that new releases align with customer preferences and increase satisfaction.

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Beta Testing with Feedback Integration:

• Situation: ClientZen's sentiment analysis indicates that previous product releases often came with issues that customers found frustrating. For instance, customers complain about the durability of a newly launched line of backpacks.
• Action: Before a full-scale product release, consider launching a beta version or a limited-edition release to gather feedback. Incorporate this feedback into the final product design. For example, reinforce the backpack at stress points, then emphasize these improvements in the final release marketing. This approach reduces returns and negative feedback on the main launch, thus ensuring better customer satisfaction.

Release Feedback Loops:

• Situation: After releasing a new software product or an updated version of an existing one, there's a mixed bag of feedback when you're conducting customer behavior analysis. Some users love the new features, but some are struggling with a few changes.
• Action: Instead of waiting for the next major update, consider introducing micro-updates addressing the primary concerns raised. Announce these updates and thank users for their feedback. For instance, if a new navigation feature in your app is causing confusion, release a guide or tutorial video or consider a slight redesign to make it more intuitive. By addressing these concerns in real time, you demonstrate commitment to user satisfaction and improve the reception of product releases.

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Increased Customer Loyalty

By actively addressing feedback and making visible changes based on customer sentiment, businesses can show that they value their customers' opinions, leading to increased trust and loyalty.

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Loyalty Programs based on Feedback Patterns:

• Situation: ClientZen's sentiment analysis reveals that a segment of customers frequently shops and provides constructive feedback, both positive and negative, showing their engagement with the brand.
• Practical Action: Create a loyalty program rewarding not just purchases but also engagement activities like writing reviews, sharing products on social media, or referring friends. For instance, for every review posted, customers might earn points that can be redeemed for discounts. This encourages both continued engagement and additional purchases, further deepening their connection to the brand.

Personalized Thank You Notes and Offers:

• Situation: A subset of customers consistently purchases from certain product lines or brands, indicating a strong preference.
• Action: Recognize and appreciate these customers by sending personalized thank-you notes (digital or physical) after their purchases. Include exclusive offers related to their preferred product lines. For instance, if a customer frequently buys organic skincare products, send them a thank-you note with a discount on their next organic product purchase or a sample of a new organic product. This not only makes them feel valued but also encourages repeat business.

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Boost in Sales

Enhanced customer experience often leads to positive word-of-mouth referrals. When existing customers have a good experience, they're more likely to recommend the store to others, driving organic traffic and sales.

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Recommendation Systems based on Feedback:

• Situation: ClientZen's sentiment analysis identifies through client feedback that certain products are consistently rated highly and often bought together by customers.
• Action: Implement a recommendation system on your e-commerce platform that suggests complementary products to customers based on their current selections. For instance, if a customer adds a camera to their cart, recommend a popular camera bag or SD card that has received positive Feedback. You can effectively upsell and boost the average order value by tailoring suggestions based on proven preferences.

Promotions Based on Product Feedback:

• Situation: ClientZen's sentiment analysis identifies certain products with overwhelmingly positive Feedback, indicating high customer satisfaction and potential demand.
• Action: Organize promotional campaigns highlighting these top-reviewed products. Showcase real customer reviews and ratings in the campaign to build trust and encourage potential buyers. For instance, if a particular dress has multiple glowing reviews about its fit and fabric quality, run a limited-time promotion on it, using actual customer testimonials. This validates the product's quality and capitalizes on positive Feedback to drive sales.

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Refinement in Search and Navigation

By analyzing sentiments around site navigation and product search, businesses can refine these aspects in PrestaShop to offer a smoother shopping experience.

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Adaptive Search Algorithms:

• Situation: Through ClientZen's sentiment analysis, feedback suggests that customers often struggle to find specific products, even though they are available in the inventory.
• Action: Refine the platform's search algorithm based on the terms customers are using in their feedback. For instance, if customers are searching for "winter boots" but the inventory lists them as "snow boots," the search algorithm can be adjusted to show "snow boots" even when "winter boots" are entered. This reduces customer frustration and increases the likelihood of a completed sale.

Navigation Path Improvements:

• Situation: Feedback reveals that customers find the website's categorization confusing, making navigating to desired product categories difficult.
• Action: Based on the feedback, reconsider the website's category structure. For example, if customers consistently mention difficulty finding eco-friendly products scattered across different categories, introduce a dedicated "Eco-Friendly" category or filter. This allows users to locate these items more efficiently, improving their browsing experience and potentially increasing sales.

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Inventory and Stock Management

Feedback sentiment can also influence inventory decisions. If a product receives consistently negative feedback, it might be wise to limit its stock or discontinue it, while popular items should be adequately stocked.

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Product Popularity and Stocking:

• Situation: ClientZen's sentiment analysis points out certain products that are consistently receiving positive feedback and endorsements.
• Action: Prioritize stocking higher quantities of these well-received items. For instance, if a particular line of sustainable clothing is being praised for its quality and eco-friendliness, it might be wise to ensure ample stock to meet potential demand. This prevents missed sales opportunities due to stockouts and enhances customer satisfaction as they can always find their favorite products in stock.

Discontinuation of Low-Sentiment Products:

• Situation: Some products receive consistently negative feedback regarding their quality, functionality, or relevance.
• Action: Consider phasing out these products or seeking alternative suppliers that offer a better-quality version. For instance, if a certain brand of electronics is frequently returned due to defects and garners negative feedback, it's more cost-effective in the long run to either discontinue it or replace it. This reduces return and customer service costs and ensures that only well-regarded products fill the inventory.

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AI-enabled Customer Service

Though lately, everything is buzzing around AI, we're still not there to use artificial intelligence in all aspects of the customer journey or customer service cycle. Of course, this doesn't mean that we can't use artificial intelligence in most of this process to automatize our workflow and engage customers with the latest technology. Just to name a few low-hanging fruit that you might already use (maybe you're already using it) and start implementing to engage with your customers already:

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Predictive Customer Support: Using AI to analyze user behavior, search patterns, and previous interactions, e-commerce platforms can predict common queries and provide instant solutions even before a customer raises a concern. A few tools that are designed with capabilities to offer predictive customer support by leveraging AI are Intercom and Zendesk. 

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Sentiment Analysis: By analyzing customer feedback, reviews, and interactions, AI can provide insights into overall customer sentiment, helping businesses adapt accordingly. ClientZen uses AI to identify customer pain points faster compared to what we have at this point in the market. 

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MRR (Monthly Recurring Revenue) behind Feedback: This financial layer of analysis ensures that feedback is not just addressed on its face value but is also weighted based on the financial impact. It can guide customer service teams to prioritize high-value customer feedback. Several analytical tools might offer you this feature, but you'll need technical people to make this integration. In case you want a hassle-free solution, ClientZen is the best option for this. 

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Automated Tagging & Insights Discovery: These AI-powered features enable businesses to categorize and understand feedback without manual intervention quickly. It streamlines the feedback analysis process, making it easier for customer service teams to act on the feedback. MonkeyLearn and ClientZen are designed to track these types of data. 

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Conclusion

So, what have we learned from this article? Well, for starters, we've seen just how crucial customer experience is—not just for e-commerce. If we don't tune into our customers and meet their needs, we risk losing them, watching our revenue drop, and even hurting our brand's reputation.

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Some might say that improving customer service is too expensive. That may have been true a few years ago, but now there are tons of affordable solutions that can make a big difference. You don't need to change everything overnight. Just start by making a few tweaks to how you deal with your customers.

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We've talked a lot about what our product, ClientZen, can do to help, but we also mentioned other tools that can boost your e-commerce. Curious? Why not try out ClientZen for free and see the difference for yourself? If you're still finding your way in the world of Customer Experience or Sentiment Analysis, check out our other articles. Or, if you've got a burning question, just set up a call with Ovi. If email's more your thing, reach out to us at sales@clientzen.io.

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