You can't do anything on the Internet that you can't do in real life, but
the Net lets you do it faster and in view of global audiences. When you're
doing somewhat great, that's good. When you're making a gigantic mistake,
it's less good. From a consumer's perspective, here's some suggestions that
would help induce me to reach for my credit card.
Guideline #1: Your Web site should compliment your real-life business. As
an example, I offer you the story of the florist shop with the beautiful Web
site. It was a couple of days before Christmas and I had left my shopping
till the last minute. An Internet search revealed a florist shop situated in
my friend's home community. The Web site was excellent. Fast download, well
laid out, easily navigated. Their floral designs were pictured on the site,
identified by code numbers and with pricing information clearly visible.
Obviously, it was the work of a professional designer and obviously it was
not done on the cheap. I was impressed. I copied the phone number and dialed
up to place my order. Then things got sticky. The salesperson didn't know
there was a Web site, had no idea what floral arrangement I was trying to
order, or at what price. If you're going to the trouble of being on the Web,
be sure that your sales personnel are giving a consistent message.
Guideline #2: Answer Your E-mail. If you are going to make your email
address available to your customers, make sure that somebody answers the
e-mail that you receive, and make sure that the person who does this is
knowledgeable and able to communicate through that medium. Nothing will tick
your customers off faster than sending an email that is ignored. And please
note: the webmaster or the programmer in your organization is not usually
the best person to be handling your marketing material or fielding questions
about your product. You've gone to a lot of trouble to attract potential
customers. Try not to annoy them too much through ineffective email practices.
Guideline #3: The Price Is Not a Secret. I'll be honest. This practice
annoys me a lot, and it has me mystified. It's the peculiar online sales
tactic of making the customer work really hard to discover what something
costs. You go to a Web site or you receive a piece of email promoting a
particular product or service. However, no pricing information is available.
It may not even be readily apparent that the item is for sale. You click
your way through a big Web site, finally to locate pricing information in
tiny print in an obscure corner. Sometimes there's just an invitation to
phone them or to send an email for more information. I dunno…It seems to me
the customer should not have to work really hard to buy something. However,
I'm open to hearing opposing viewpoints. If someone out there knows of a
good reason why it's best to avoid mentioning money when conducting
e-commerce, I'd be pleased to hear what it is.
Guideline #4: Forget the Jargon. I received a press release that went like
this: "Our remarkable new solution that promotes integrated data management
of media content that will realize better return on investment (ROI), and
that, in fact GISTICS has evaluated potential ROI to be as high as 16:1.
(GISTICS, 1997) with general benefits …." Nuff said. If anyone understands
what the devil they're selling, let me know.
About the Author
June Campbell, "How-to" Booklets, Guides, Templates, & eBooks
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