When considering local internet marketing for your online business, do not forget about the basics, such as customer service. By providing a good experience for your customers, offering them an informative, easy-to-use website with shopping cart, and making them feel confident about their purchases, your business is sure to thrive both offline and online. Take those concepts a step further and minimize risk to your clientele by offering a money back guarantee on the products or services you sell. Here are five reasons why this gives you the advantage.
1. The Trust Factor
Anytime you're starting a business, you are sure to encounter objections from buyers. Perhaps the most common objection is that your company is an unknown. It's always a bit risky to make a purchase from an unfamiliar entity and if you're selling a new product or service, the buyer's objections are doubled. How can someone be assured that the items they buy from your company are going to perform as promised?
One of the best ways to get past that objection is by offering a guarantee, preferably a full refund for any purchase that does not live up to the customer's expectations.
2. Beat the Competition
What about your competitors? Do they refund the purchase price for any dissatisfied customer? Chances are any big retailer selling the same or similar products does. When competing against other "small guys", the satisfaction guarantee identifies your company. When competing against the big retailers, it levels the playing field. Either way, it's a must.
3. Sales Copy
Wondering what to say about your products or services online? Why not mention the satisfaction guarantee? This is a great way to introduce your product and make potential customers confident in making a purchase. The inclusion of a guarantee just might be the difference between thinking about buying and actually making a purchase.
4. Good Business
When it comes down to it, guaranteeing the satisfaction of your customers is just good business. The last thing you want to do is annoy, frustrate, or anger someone by refusing to refund their money. And that could lead to a lot of bad PR - and future lost sales. Avoid the possibility by cheerfully reimbursing the purchase price and moving on to find the next customer through local internet marketing.
5. The Customer's Advantage
But, you might be saying to yourself, what about those people who make a business out of buying things, using them for a while, then returning them? There will always be a few of those in every bunch and unfortunately, it's just a part of doing business. Rest assured that the majority of your clientele will only go through the hassle of a return because they are truly dissatisfied. In this case, go ahead and let the customer have the advantage.
Do not forget that an integral part of local internet marketing objectives good customer service, and a money back guarantee is just one aspect of that. It cultivates trust in your company, allows you to compete with other businesses, and may even serve as the ultimate purchase incentive.