Can Your Customers Contact You?
Today I spent a large part of my day updating a lot of 'old things' on my websites and I had to contact a lot of website owners about information for different things. The part that took the absolute longest was finding email addresses?!? I couldn't help but, think What if I were a customer wanting some information? How much time would I take to find contact info?
Some of the things I came across...
1) No email address. This one really shocked me. They had their mailing address and phone number listed but no email. I don't understand why you would have an online business and not list an email. Wouldn't it be so much easier if the person is already online? Not to mention some folks don't feel comfortable on the phone and well, we all know how long mailing takes. They don't call it snail mail for nothing.
2) No contact info at all. I guess the only way you could contact this person would be to order from them. Nope, don't think I'd be doing much business there.
3) Information is there but it's basically hidden. One site I was on they had a link to the 'Contact Page' and only had a phone number listed. I almost gave up but, did manage to find it listed way at the bottom of their "About Me" page.
4) Contact form. Well, this I guess is better than nothing but some of the contact forms were only found on pages to become consultants or reps. My question I had for them had nothing to do with that. I just felt uncomfortable using the form.
I can't express how important it is to make sure your customers can reach any way, any time. Always, Always, Always make sure you have a "Contact Us" page. The best thing to do would be to make sure your Contact Us page is accessible from every single page of your website. It would also be good to list your Name, Mailing Address, Phone Number and Email Address. This makes it easier for the customer/client to choose which method they prefer. I know some don't like to list their mailing address. If you really feel that uncomfortable; rent a PO Box. Just make it easier on your Customers. Don't loose out on a possible sale just because someone couldn't find your email address to ask a simple question. The FAQ just doesn't always cut it.
Some of the things I came across...
1) No email address. This one really shocked me. They had their mailing address and phone number listed but no email. I don't understand why you would have an online business and not list an email. Wouldn't it be so much easier if the person is already online? Not to mention some folks don't feel comfortable on the phone and well, we all know how long mailing takes. They don't call it snail mail for nothing.
2) No contact info at all. I guess the only way you could contact this person would be to order from them. Nope, don't think I'd be doing much business there.
3) Information is there but it's basically hidden. One site I was on they had a link to the 'Contact Page' and only had a phone number listed. I almost gave up but, did manage to find it listed way at the bottom of their "About Me" page.
4) Contact form. Well, this I guess is better than nothing but some of the contact forms were only found on pages to become consultants or reps. My question I had for them had nothing to do with that. I just felt uncomfortable using the form.
I can't express how important it is to make sure your customers can reach any way, any time. Always, Always, Always make sure you have a "Contact Us" page. The best thing to do would be to make sure your Contact Us page is accessible from every single page of your website. It would also be good to list your Name, Mailing Address, Phone Number and Email Address. This makes it easier for the customer/client to choose which method they prefer. I know some don't like to list their mailing address. If you really feel that uncomfortable; rent a PO Box. Just make it easier on your Customers. Don't loose out on a possible sale just because someone couldn't find your email address to ask a simple question. The FAQ just doesn't always cut it.
posted by Anita @ 4:35 PM
2 Comments:
At 5:21 PM,
Carrie Huggins said…
Great post Anita!
Just the other day I was hunting around on a bunch of sites for link exchanges for a new site, and couldn't find contact info on a lot, or it was outdated (email bounced). Frustrating!
At 9:08 AM,
Anita said…
It is very frustrating. And since I've made this post I've since gotten alot of my emails have bounced. Those could have very easily been lost sales :( I'm sure customers would search elsewhere for the merchandise if they can't talk with the owner.
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