 |
|
||||||
|
|
ComputerLink articles by Brian Pitre The best-designed Websites are built for the Customer Just think of your last experience at Amazon.com or other successful site that you have visited; they are simply designed first and foremost for the customer’s convenience. If you’ve visited a successful Internet site recently, you’ve probably noticed their most important feature: convenience. Businesses that thrive on the net make customer convenience their first priority. The Old Way The information systems community used to build systems designed to streamline companies’ internal business processes. Companies thought that if their internal information systems were convenient and efficient, the time and cost savings would "trickle down" to the consumer. Before the proliferation of the Internet, businesses assumed that customer service would improve incrementally with advancements in internal technology. With the advent of the World Wide Web, systems professionals and businesses need to take a new approach and view of their Websites. On the Web, we must build systems to streamline the customers’ needs and desires in order to effectively attract and maintain business. Build from the Customer’s View Successful Web architecture and design must keep a few things in mind. Think of the things that you have wished for while surfing the Web. At one time or another we have all thought:
Good Website design requires that each of the above issues are directly addressed from the customer’s point of view. If your site meets all the aforementioned objectives, you are on the road to a great Website. Target your Audience Successful Web design requires us to target audiences and learn as much about them as we can. Gaining an understanding of who is coming to your site is critical. Are they individuals, corporate customers, first-time visitors, returning customers, information seekers, or even international visitors? The target audience is further defined by what is in the minds of the visitors when they arrive. They may be browsing the site, looking for specific information, trying to find a product, looking for customer support, trying to check order status, attempting to return a product, interested in fulfillment and delivery, or perhaps seeking a job. By constructing the entire list of likely visitor profiles, your company can help design a site that is organized and efficient. This way, the customers can easily go directly to what they want. The combination of knowing target audiences and understanding the visitor mindset will help construct the best user interface possible. Outsource to the Customer Allow customers to help themselves at your site or outsource the data entry and update processes directly to your customer. By allowing the customers to enter personal or company information themselves, your site significantly reduces data entry errors. It should be obvious that customers always know how to spell their own names and addresses correctly. Create a self-service customer profile that’s updateable by the customer. This will allow customers to:
By creating a self-service customer service center, you will attract more new customers. You can also treat your existing customers to improved levels of service and convenience. By making business transactions as easy as possible on your Website, you will keep the customers coming back. Lock-in the Customer Think of it this way, I currently purchase books at Amazon.com and have my personal information and profile already in their databases. Now, as a second time customer, I begin to utilize one-button ordering that is simple and convenient. One-button ordering takes the ordering transaction to a new level of convenience. It simply requires pushing one-button on the Website, and a book shows up in my mailbox a few days later. There is no reentering of any information, no hassles, no typing in credit information. Just click one button, and the book shows up like magic. Soon I realize that one-button ordering makes shopping a lot more convenient. When I desire another product, I’m inclined to return to Amazon.com. For another example, let’s say I want to buy an audio CD. Because of the convenience I’ve already enjoyed, I’m far more likely to return to Amazon.com, which has recently begun to offer audio CD’s. Even though CDNow.com offers CDs as well, I’m sticking to the service that has already demonstrated convenience. My motivation for returning to Amazon.com is that I do not have to re-enter my bill-to, ship-to, and credit card information again. Essentially, they have raised the level of switching costs to a new high! So, if you are ever wondering why Amazon.com stock value is rising so quickly in the stock market without the company turning a profit, it’s because they are gaining significant market share and retaining customers due to the high cost of switching vendors. Retain Customers If you create a dynamic e-Commerce and Customer Service Center you will be able to retain your customers longer. The longer you retain them, the more money you make from them and the less those customers cost you to serve. Long-term customers also invest more in your products and services. Furthermore, they cross-sell and up-sell themselves easily. The more you create a self-service, efficient, customer-oriented Web environment, the better your E-business will do. First, by creating a self-service environment, you’re more likely to learn what customers want and need in the future. Second, by outsourcing to the customer, you will reduce the internal resources your company must expend and be able to reallocate those resources to more important areas. The ultimate results are dramatic reduction of the costs associated with supporting the customer and a real boost in profitability.
|
|
