Etailers Do: Customer reviews

Bravo to the etailers with customer reviews on their websites. It counters one of the biggest obstacles to online shopping - the inability to touch, feel, and try on the products. In fact it offers something more, because sometimes people leave their comments after they've worn or used the items a few times, you may also get information on things like comfort and durability.

The first purchase I made that was partially encouraged by positive customer reviews was some Camelbak water bottles from Wiggle. The pros definitely outweigh the cons.

Reviews are especially useful for items like shoes where fit is important. Endless captures detailed fit information from its customers.

When you click on size, width and arch support, you can see the split of the votes (66% felt fit was true to size, 18% felt sizing ran 1/2 size small etc).

There are also detailed reviews.

Dorothy Perkins is another etailer with a good customer review platform.

I like that it gathers ratings by fit, appearance, quality and value. On my first order with Dorothy Perkins, one of the dresses runs large according to several reviewers so I bought one size smaller and it was the right call.

Sometimes I think etailers are brave to show customer reviews as inevitably some products will rate lowly. I guess the benefits they gain from building up confidence of prospective buyers outweigh potential reduction in sales of lowly rated items.

As a shopper I definitely like to hear others' opinion of the items I'm interested in, although I may put too much weight on negative reviews. Sometimes I'd decide against a product because of one poor review, even if the rest are positive. I need to remember that some people are impossible to please!

Do you like reading customer reviews? Are you more likely to shop from etailers that offer them? And do you give back to the system, i.e. write reviews?

Below is my contribution - for the Juicy Couture princess studs I bought recently.

P.S. I made an impulse midnight purchase last night! Will blog about them when I receive the parcel ;-)

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Etailers Do: Creative merchandising

Just like the window display at brick-and-mortar stores, the home page of an e-store is vital in attracting prospective shoppers. If an etailer can create content in the home page that engages its audience, they are more likely to explore, and some will eventually click on the "add to cart" button.

Shopbop's home page yesterday piqued my interest and I made a note to have another look.

The heading ("The Ultimate Closet"), the uncluttered display, the quality of the 14 pieces selected, and the prospect of playing mix and match ... what's not to like?

If I want to look at any of the items on display, one click and a dialogue box pops up with product details and I can buy it straight away.

I can also choose to "shop the lookbook" and see the stylist using the 14 items to create different looks.

It's like the mix and match features in magazines, with the added bonus of immediate purchase. Anything to show the versatility of an item gets a tick from me.

It looks like I'm not the only one who likes this "shop front" because a few of the items are sold out already.

How much are you swayed by what's on display at an e-store's home page?

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Etailers Do: Tweet me right

In previous posts I wrote about etailers that get it wrong. It's time to turn the table and give credits to those that are doing it right.

Some of you know that I'm active on Twitter (@EtailQueen). I love tweeting with like-minded people; there is a real sense of community there. Increasingly Twitter is also a channel to get in touch with companies.

A key strength of Twitter is speed. If you ask a question on Twitter you often get an answer straight away. This is fantastic for customer service. I don't have to be placed on hold waiting for "the next available customer service operator", or refresh my inbox every 5 minutes hoping for a reply. One 140-character message is all I need to get the ball rolling.

There are some positive customer service I experienced on Twitter.

• Sometime last year I went to withdraw money from a Westpac ATM. The transaction appeared to process as normal but no cash came out. I called my bank (not Westpac) but they were unable to help. Frustrated, I tweeted about it referencing @Westpac. To my pleasant surprise Westpac tweeted back asking for more details so they can investigate on my behalf. I don't remember what they did exactly (I think they hold me that they had no record of the transaction) but they were proactive and I have fond memory of their service to this day.

• I ordered this Too Faced eyeshadow pallet from ASOS. 

After waiting over 2 weeks for the parcel I received an e-mail from ASOS saying that the parcel was returned to sender due to non-delivery. It didn't sound right to me (it was meant to be delivered to my work address). At first I e-mailed ASOS and received the pro-forma reply about being in touch within the next 24 hours. I was impatent so I tweeted @ASOS_HereToHelp* and I received a reply soon after. The customer service rep was able to identify the issue quickly (error by the courier). Unfortuantely the item was sold out by then so they offered me a full refund. As an apology they gave me a 10% discount code for my next purchase with free express shipping. Even though it wasn't the outcome I wanted they did the best they could given the situation, and overall it was a positive experience for me.

*It's a smart idea for companies to set up a dedicated Twitter account for customer service, so they can distinguish regular twitter reference to the company from tweets sent by people who needs help.

As an aside, I stalked the ASOS product page for the palette hoping for the returned palette to show up and it did! I bought it with the 10% discount and it arrived quickly this time around. And I love it. The colours are great, and Shadow Insurance is da bomb.

• Before I launched The Etail Queen I sent early drafts to a few tweeps for feedback. The lovely Jade left a comment on the blog before I installed Disqus. I sent Jade a tweet asking her to repost the comment, and in a flash @disqus tweeted me the instruction to export the comment. Problem solved! I was impressed by their service - and I'm not even a paying customer!

• A while ago someone tweeted about poor customer service she received from her credit card company. I replied saying that I had a great experience with American Express' call centre. A little while later I received a tweet from @AmericanExpress thanking me for the positive feedback. Such a simple thing to do (well not that simple on their part I'm sure) and it reinforced my happy sentiments with the company.

Twitter represents a great opportunity for companies to connect directly with their customers, and those who "gets it" with timely and effective customer service will build loyalty. It may even win new customers because of positive word of mouth - it's easy to share good news with fellow tweeps, and I have made many purchasing decisions based on recommendations on Twitter.

Did you have any good Twitter customer service stories to share?

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