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You firmly believe that the products you sell are of high quality. If you didn’t, you wouldn’t be banking your financial success on them. But sometimes, the products we sell have certain flaws that go unnoticed, or perhaps another department in your company is doing something to sour the customer experience. 

This will inevitably lead to a dreaded one-star review. Bad reviews aren’t as uncommon as you might think, and while it can be a serious blow to the ego, it’s not the end of the world. In fact, bad reviews can be a blessing in disguise. You can take a bad review and turn it into a golden opportunity for your entire company. 

But how can bad reviews actually be good? Aren’t they potentially detrimental to acquiring new customers? What can you do to leverage bad reviews and turn them into strategic advantages? 

In this article, we’re going through the basics of bad reviews, helping you understand how to take this negative and spin it into a positive with five helpful tips. Let’s start with some basic information.

Why are online reviews so important?

You might think that the purpose of this article is to make you believe that online customer reviews aren’t a big deal. 

That’s not the case whatsoever. 

In fact, online reviews are critical to your continued success. Why is that? Because people read them and they trust them. If these reviews erode their trust in you, they’re not going to buy from you. 

A massive nine out of every ten consumers read online reviews before making a purchase. On top of that, 76% of modern consumers trust what’s reported in online reviews more than personal recommendations from friends and family members. 

That means even if their best friend is telling them your product is life-changing, a series of bad reviews could be enough to dissuade them from purchasing. And there are a lot of review sites out there where people can knock what you’re selling. Facebook, Yelp, and Google are the most popular and trusted, but they’re far from the only platforms out there, as showcased in the image below. 

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Everyone gets bad reviews. When you sell enough products, eventually, you’re going to come across someone who has a less-than-ideal experience. They’re going to rate you badly, and that’s something that you’re going to have to live with. 

There’s no sense in falling apart at the first sign of a negative review. Instead, you can take those bad reviews and use them to improve your company. There are some obvious ways to go about this, but there are a few tactics you can employ that you might not have thought of. 

5 tips to turn bad reviews into strategic advantages

Below, we’ve outlined five actions that you could take to leverage the bad reviews your company gets and expertly spin them into positives that fuel your growth. 

1. Respond publicly 

You can turn negative reviews into positive reviews by responding to them publicly. If you have a bad review, where a customer is spewing hate at your brand and talking about every way that you failed them, respond to that review and address the situation in a public forum.

This doesn’t mean you should get defensive and tell the disgruntled customer why they’re wrong. That’s probably the worst thing you could do and would only serve to make an already bad situation so much worse. 

Your reply should be apologetic. Even if you don’t feel that you’re at fault, you should try to apologize for the experience and express a desire to see the situation resolved. It might even be a good idea to say something about how you’ll address issues like these in the future. 

Here’s an example of a company responding to a review left by a disgruntled former employee. HubSpot showed a lot of class in responding to a particularly negative review with kindness, empathy, and an apologetic attitude. 

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All you see here is a simple apology. HubSpot doesn’t blame the employee or try to discredit them. This says to a reader that HubSpot has some humility and is willing to own up to mistakes. 

We all understand mistakes. Everyone makes them. Sometimes, showing a little humanity can go a long way toward breaking the “cold evil corporation” stereotype. 

2. Offer solutions to customer issues

Another way that you could take our last tip and expand upon it would be to offer solutions to the customer that might resolve their issue. 

Here’s a quality example from a Honda dealership that opened the line of communication to a disgruntled customer. 

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Honda of Thousand Oaks responds to Heather’s issue by asking her to call the dealership. The company representative apologizes and then expresses a desire to make the situation right. They then offer a phone number and express a desire to earn back her business by working with her to resolve the problem. 

Not only can this situation now be resolved if the disgruntled customer calls back, but potential customers can see the dealership’s attempt to resolve the issue in a public forum. That goes a long way toward establishing trust in a brand and showing that this company actually cares about its customers and the impression it leaves on them. 

What’s more, take a look at the date of the initial review and the company’s response. They’re only one day apart. That’s also a deeply positive aspect of this example. Honda didn’t let this review sit around for too long. As soon as they saw it, they responded to get out in front of the situation and control the narrative. 

If you do something like this and manage to help the customer, it doesn’t hurt to ask them to update their review. 

3. Showcase negative reviews

While your first reaction might be to hide your negative reviews and try to draw attention away from them, we’re telling you to do the opposite. When customers find negative reviews of a company, it’s almost like a “gotcha” moment for them. They’re finding something they believe you were trying to keep out of the public view.

That’s why you should gather some negative reviews that you were able to turn around using our second tip above. Show these reviews in a blog post and talk about what you as a company did to address the issues raised and help preserve the customer experience. 

You could even show a few reviews where the customer didn’t respond to your outreach. In this situation, point out what you learned from the review and how you changed your company to address the issues and create a better experience for everyone.   

4. Use negative reviews to determine business issues

Negative feedback can be a critical window into the customer experience. Your customers will encounter issues with products that you never expected. However, if they’re silent about it and just stop doing business with you out of the blue, you will never find out what happened. 

Negative reviews can point out areas where your company is lacking. Let’s say a customer service interaction really upset someone, and they left you a poor review on Google. That’s an issue that needs to be addressed right away. 

Customer service is a hugely important aspect of any business. Hence, hiring a customer service virtual assistant can help bloom your business and keep you away from negative reviews. A third of consumers said they’d switch companies after one bad customer service experience. 

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Suppose your reviews show that you have a customer service issue. In that case, you can hop onto an educational platform like StuDocu, Course Hero, or StudyStack to access online study materials on customer service and other business topics. You’ll then be able to approach these uncovered issues in an informed manner. 

5. Use bad reviews in employee training

As we just explored, negative reviews paint a picture of what your customers really don’t want. Not only can you use those opinions to make meaningful changes within your organization, but you can also show those reviews to new employees as part of their training. 

It’s as important to train employees on what customers don’t want as it is to train them on what they do want. Provide them with several examples of things customers have complained about in the past, and then teach them how to avoid those mistakes. 

An important part of customer service jobs is being able to handle complaints from customers and resolving them before they turn into a negative review. 

By analyzing negative reviews and training your employees to diffuse the situation, similar reviews will be avoided in the future and you will improve customer retention. 

This strengthens the customer experience by arming new employees with knowledge. 

Conclusion

No one likes to see a negative review, but it’s not the end of the world. On the contrary, negative reviews can create a window of opportunity, providing you with strategic advantages that can improve your business going forward. 
By responding to reviews publicly, offering solutions to customers, showcasing negative reviews, using them to discover issues, and leveraging them through new employee training programs, you can turn a negative into a positive, improve your company, and give future customers a five-star experience.

Featured Image by Elisa Ventur on Unsplash

The post Dealing With Bad Online Reviews? 5 Tips to Turn Those Into Strategic Advantages appeared first on noupe.

Hope you’re ready to power on—and take on—the next generation of customer support.

Enter gamification: a game-changing strategy that has transformed businesses across the globe.

The Mario-inspired work dream has become a reality. We’ve entered a dimension of excitement, innovation, and intelligence when it comes to motivating not just customers, but especially customer service agents.

Imagine, for a moment, a world where customer support isn’t just a task, but a competition that breeds excitement and higher performance.

If you can picture this scenario, you’ve just unlocked the first level of understanding the universe—and potential—of gamification in customer support. ??

Step aside, traditional customer service. There’s a new player in the game. And this is a whole new arena. One filled with challenges, levels, rewards, and achievements, all geared toward enhancing customer engagement and agent performance.

Hold onto your controller. This will be a wild ride through levels of loyalty, side quests of satisfaction, and bonus points of brand engagement. All are focused on the power that gamification holds for your company’s customer support.

1. Understanding The Magic Potion Of Gamification

What is Gamification?

Gamification is the wizardry of incorporating game-like elements into non-game scenarios. Think about earning points, leveling up, or unlocking achievements—all wrapped up neatly in the customer experience. It’s like turning a mundane task into something like a Mario Kart race.

But gamification isn’t just about adding game mechanics to boring to-do lists. Nor is it just about making work fun, either. Behind it all is very real science.

Gamification relies on human psychology, tapping into our innate desire for competition, achievement, and recognition. Striving for victory, to achieve more, to be recognized—it’s a universal language that transcends age and geography.

This unique mix of fun, competition, and rewards helps to make even the most mundane tasks more exciting. Turning your customer support agents into next-level performers and your customers into long-term loyalists.

Why Use Gamification in Customer Support?

Because since Atari, 40+ years of history have shown us that people like games. Sometimes they love them.

More often than not, even if they don’t, they add a little more personal “oomph” to their efforts when it comes to getting results. No one wants to finish in last place—in Pong, in Tetris, in the contact center. Or even in the middle of the pack.

From points and badges to leaderboards and challenges, gamification elements can truly blend into a potent potion that can awaken a whole new level of customer and agent engagement. For more on this subject, take a look at this recent post on the LiveVox blog.

It makes the process of problem-solving more engaging for customers. Plus, you’ll never hear an agent, and by extension, a customer, say: “I had a boring time getting my issue resolved.”

2. The Epic Quest of Enhancing The Customer And Agent Experiences

Points + Rewards

Ah, rewards! Who doesn’t love to collect shiny things? Incorporate a system where customers earn points for engaging and watch how they turn into relentless treasure hunters.

Every customer ticket turns into a quest. Every resolution into a victorious battle. Your agents aren’t just solving problems anymore. They’re on an epic journey to provide the ultimate customer experience.

And what’s a quest without a guide? Agents also become the wise mentors, the skillful support ninjas, guiding customers through challenges.

Challenges + Missions

By creating challenges and missions for customers to solve, they are no longer mere users but valiant heroes on an epic quest. Check out how businesses are doing this right now!

It’s not just the customers who are on this quest. Agents are motivated by rewards, leveling up, and public recognition, fostering a more collaborative and positive work environment.

Leaderboards + Achievements

Incorporating gamification requires state-of-the-art technology that enables seamless integration of game mechanics into customer support processes.

In the customer support space, especially inside call and contact centers, dynamic Wallboard solutions like the ones we offer at LiveVox help agents and managers visualize KPIs in real-time. And literally keep everyone eyeing the same goal.

Successful, industry-leading brands have successfully implemented gamification in their customer support efforts. See how they’ve done it in this in-depth article from G2.

3. The Eternal Bond Of Customer And Agent Loyalty

Make Customers Part of Your Kingdom

Treat your customers like royal citizens in your corporate kingdom. Gamification in customer support ensures that every interaction is a celebratory feast, fostering an eternal bond of loyalty.

Gamification builds a deeper, longer-lasting bond between your customers and agents. And the more engaged everyone is, the more loyal everyone becomes to your company.

Beyond enhanced customer loyalty, there are other results that make this strategy worth plugging into—namely, increased engagement and motivation, both of which we’ll cover in more detail below.

The Power of Community

By encouraging customers to compete and cooperate, you create a thriving community. Like a guild in an MMORPG, they rally together, defend the brand, and share experiences.

Gamification has the power to create an exclusive community between your customers. One that shares experiences, challenges, and rewards. It’s a connection that can, and often does, goes beyond mere transactions.

Data-Driven Analytics Insights (A.K.A. The Oracle’s Wisdom)

The wisdom of analytics in gamification is like having a prophetic oracle. It provides insights into customer behavior, preferences, and trends, guiding you like the North Star.

Through smart analytics, you can see how gamification positively impacts customer satisfaction and agent performance. It’s an insightful glimpse into the inner workings of your magical new world. For a look into the future of analytics trends for gamification, GrowthEngineering has you covered all the way until 2025.

It’s Time To Set Your Sights On The Final Boss Level For Your Customers And Agents

We’ve ventured through the magical land of gamification in customer support, and it’s clear that this isn’t just a trend—it’s the future. It’s about making customer service more than a duty or requirement or need-to-have.

This is the chance for you to make support an adventure filled with challenges, rewards, and camaraderie. For everyone involved with your contact center.

In this day and age, you’re no longer just a company. You’re a game master, orchestrating epic adventures for your customers and agents. Now, isn’t that something to strive for?

With gamification, we’re not just solving problems; we’re engaging minds, capturing hearts, and creating loyal brand warriors. So, pick up that virtual sword, shield, or customer support tool, and join the revolution.

The realm of gamification is here, it’s real, and it’s taking the customer support world by storm. It’s more than just about making things fun. It’s about creating unforgettable experiences, nurturing everlasting bonds, and turning both customers and agents into champions of your brand.

This is a time-tested, yet innovative, strategy for boosting your customer ROI, exciting your agents, and seeing more positive results from everyone at the same time. Now go forth and conquer the world of customer engagement like never before. ?

featured image by Berkeley Communications on Unsplash

The post Gamification in Customer Support: Leveling Up Customer Engagement and Loyalty appeared first on noupe.

September is just around the corner, and that means it’s time for some new wallpapers! For more than twelve years already, our monthly wallpapers series has been the perfect occasion for artists and designers from all across the globe to challenge their creative skills and dive into a little project just for fun. Telling the stories they want to tell, using the tools they love. This always makes for an inspiring and unique collection of wallpapers each month anew, and, of course, this month is no exception.

In this post, you’ll find wallpapers for September 2023, created by the community for the community. The designs come in versions with and without a calendar and can be downloaded for free. As a little bonus goodie, we also compiled some timeless favorites from past September editions at the end of this post. Maybe you’ll spot one of your almost-forgotten favorites in there, too? A big thank-you to everyone who shared their artwork with us — this post wouldn’t exist without you!

• You can click on every image to see a larger preview,
• We respect and carefully consider the ideas and motivation behind each and every artist’s work. This is why we give all artists the full freedom to explore their creativity and express emotions and experience through their works. This is also why the themes of the wallpapers weren’t anyhow influenced by us but rather designed from scratch by the artists themselves.
• Submit a wallpaper!
  Did you know that you could get featured in our next wallpapers post, too? We are always looking for creative talent.

Palette Of Autumn

“The stunning transformation of nature during the fall season, with its rich hues and textures, served as a primary inspiration. Capturing the essence of autumn’s beauty in a digital format was a central goal.” — Designed by Farhan Srambiyan from India.

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• without calendar: 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1400×1050, 1440×1200, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440

Rainy Flowers

Designed by Teodora Vasileva from Bulgaria.

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Science Is Magic

“Science is like magic, except it’s real.” — Designed by Bhabna Basak from India.

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Get Fired

Designed by Ricardo Gimenes from Sweden.

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• without calendar: 640×480, 800×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1366×768, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440, 3840×2160

Made In China

Designed by Ricardo Gimenes from Sweden.

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• without calendar: 640×480, 800×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1366×768, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440, 3840×2160

National Lazy Mom’s Day

“Because every now and then, we deserve the right to enjoy a lazy day! No chores, just a day to oneself.” — Designed by Storyville Tales from the United Kingdom.

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• without calendar: 320×480, 640×480, 800×480, 800×600, 1024×768, 1024×1024, 1152×864, 1280×720, 1280×800, 1280×960, 1280×1024, 1400×1050, 1440×900, 1600×1200, 1680×1050, 1680×1200, 1920×1080, 1920×1200, 1920×1440, 2560×1440

Oldies But Goodies

Whether it’s memories of summer vacation, the approach of fall, or, well, cats — below you’ll find a selection of September goodies from our wallpapers archives that are just too good to be forgotten. Please note that these designs don’t come with a calendar. Enjoy!

Autumn Rains

“This autumn, we expect to see a lot of rainy days and blues, so we wanted to change the paradigm and wish a warm welcome to the new season. After all, if you come to think of it: rain is not so bad if you have an umbrella and a raincoat. Come autumn, we welcome you!” — Designed by PopArt Studio from Serbia.

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Terrazzo

“With the end of summer and fall coming soon, I created this terrazzo pattern wallpaper to brighten up your desktop. Enjoy this month!” — Designed by Melissa Bogemans from Belgium.

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Funny Cats

“Cats are beautiful animals. They’re quiet, clean, and warm. They’re funny and can become an endless source of love and entertainment. Here for the cats!” — Designed by UrbanUI from India.

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Cacti Everywhere

“Seasons come and go, but our brave cactuses still stand. Summer is almost over, and autumn is coming, but the beloved plants don’t care.” — Designed by Lívia Lénárt from Hungary.

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Stay Or Leave?

Designed by Ricardo Gimenes from Sweden.

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Listen Closer… The Mushrooms Are Growing

“It’s this time of the year when children go to school and grown-ups go to collect mushrooms.” — Designed by Igor Izhik from Canada.

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Flower Soul

“The earth has music for those who listen. Take a break and relax and while you drive out the stress, catch a glimpse of the beautiful nature around you. Can you hear the rhythm of the breeze blowing, the flowers singing, and the butterflies fluttering to cheer you up? We dedicate flowers which symbolize happiness and love to one and all.” — Designed by Krishnankutty from India.

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Summer Ending

“As summer comes to an end, all the creatures pull back to their hiding places, searching for warmth within themselves and dreaming of neverending adventures under the tinted sky of closing dog days.” — Designed by Ana Masnikosa from Belgrade, Serbia.

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Hungry

Designed by Elise Vanoorbeek from Belgium.

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Never Stop Exploring

Designed by Ricardo Gimenes from Sweden.

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Bear Time

Designed by Bojana Stojanovic from Serbia.

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Geometric Autumn

“I designed this wallpaper to remind everyone that autumn is here.” — Designed by Advanced Web Ranking from Romania.

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Maryland Pride

“As summer comes to a close, so does the end of blue crab season in Maryland. Blue crabs have been a regional delicacy since the 1700s and have become Maryland’s most valuable fishing industry, adding millions of dollars to the Maryland economy each year. With more than 455 million blue crabs swimming in the Chesapeake Bay, these tasty critters can be prepared in a variety of ways and have become a summer staple in many homes and restaurants across the state. The blue crab has contributed so much to the state’s regional culture and economy, in 1989 it was named the State Crustacean, cementing its importance in Maryland history.” — Designed by The Hannon Group from Washington DC.

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Batmom

Designed by Ricardo Gimenes from Sweden.

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Still In Vacation Mood

“It’s officially the end of summer and I’m still in vacation mood, dreaming about all the amazing places I’ve seen. This illustration is inspired by a small town in France, on the Atlantic coast, right by the beach.” — Designed by Miruna Sfia from Romania.

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Long Live Summer

“While September’s Autumnal Equinox technically signifies the end of the summer season, this wallpaper is for all those summer lovers, like me, who don’t want the sunshine, warm weather, and lazy days to end.” — Designed by Vicki Grunewald from Washington.

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Lucha Libre

“This month is Mexico’s independence day and I decided to illustrate one of the things Mexico’s best known for: the Lucha Libre.” — Designed by Maria Keller from Mexico.

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Early Autumn

“September is usually considered as early autumn so I decided to draw some trees and leaves. However, nobody likes that summer is coming to an end, that’s why I kept summerish colors and style.” — Designed by Kat Gluszek from Germany.

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Wine Harvest Season

“Welcome to the wine harvest season in Serbia. It’s September, and the hazy sunshine bathes the vines on the slopes of Fruška Gora. Everything is ready for the making of Bermet, the most famous wine from Serbia. This spiced wine was a favorite of the Austro-Hungarian elite and was served even on the Titanic. Bermet’s recipe is a closely guarded secret, and the wine is produced by just a handful of families in the town of Sremski Karlovci, near Novi Sad. On the other side of Novi Sad, plains of corn and sunflower fields blend in with the horizon, catching the last warm sun rays of this year.” — Designed by PopArt Studio from Serbia.

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The Rebel

Designed by Ricardo Gimenes from Sweden.

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National Video Games Day Delight

“September 12th brings us National Video Games Day. US-based video game players love this day and celebrate with huge gaming tournaments. What was once a 2D experience in the home is now a global phenomenon with players playing against each other across statelines and national borders via the internet. National Video Games Day gives gamers the perfect chance to celebrate and socialize! So grab your controller, join online and let the games begin!” — Designed by Ever Increasing Circles from the United Kingdom.

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Elon Musk recently announced his intentions to create a direct competitor to LinkedIn. Musk’s grand plan is to make his version more trendy and ‘less cringe’, thereby attracting users who find LinkedIn totally uncool—or something like that.

The turn of the millennium was a major cultural shift, and the Y2K aesthetic emerged as a visualization of what the future could hold, capturing the zeitgeist of an era eager to move forward while still valuing the colorful tapestry of past decades.

Amazon, one of the world’s largest companies, recently launched a TV poster that many users presume was made with AI art. It’s terrible, it’s weird, and it’s sent the internet into a frenzy. How many strange anomalies can you spot?

WhatsApp recently unveiled its new redesign. The new look promises a more vibrant color scheme, advanced filter features, and more.

First, the good news: If you are doing the work of generating blogs, articles, and newsletters to attract readers to your website, you’re already ahead of the game. Adding content to your website regularly and sending newsletters and marketing emails to subscribers is a great way to bring attention to your business.

But now it’s time to take the next step: converting those readers into customers. Here are 14 techniques to convert leads into customers.

1. Make sure your website is user-friendly

Don’t lose the race out of the starting gate. Your website does not have to be elaborate, but it should be easy to use, especially when it comes time to make a purchase. And because most people access internet content via their phones, optimize your content for mobile, too. 

2. Identify your audience

Consider this: When tasked with telling a scary story to a teenager, you wouldn’t tell the same story to a 5-year-old, would you? Not if you ever wanted that child to sleep through the night on their own. 

This is the challenge of audience, and it’s one of the first steps to converting readers to customers. Identify your target audience clearly so you know who you’re actually writing for.

3. Focus on quality content

It can be daunting to face down the wall of internet search results. Scaling it requires lots of content. But the quality of the content matters, too. Simply churning out words that are poorly written (or written by AI) isn’t the way to go.

Write well and post consistently. These two tactics alone will give you a leg up.

4. Don’t ignore SEO

Contrary to what some internet tricksters would have you believe, search engine optimization (SEO) is not dead. In fact, it’s still the way that Google bots know how important (and trusted) your site is. 

If you don’t know the basics of SEO, find someone who does. They can get you started and teach you to make the most of SEO moving forward.

5. Provide a solution to a problem

Your readers have problems, and the best way to engage them is by providing a solution (or many solutions) to them. Few things are more frustrating than visiting a website and not finding the answers you want. Relieve your readers’ stress by helping them solve the problem that brought them to you in the first place.

6. Give it away

You have found the solution, now give it away. Don’t give it all away, of course, but offer something your audience wants in exchange for an email address or other contact information. The most common giveaways online are free PDFs or e-books, but you can also offer discounts or trials of your services. Make sure it is something they actually want. 

7. Use what you’ve gained

As you begin to build an email list, focus on targeted email marketing. Many email services allow you to set up an automated series of emails (really the best use for AI here). Be careful not to get too spammy with your emails (either in content or frequency). Consider a series of emails, spaced five or six days apart, welcoming the reader and offering your expanded services to solve the problem you hinted at earlier.

Remember to abide by the rules for email marketing to build long-term relationships with customers, not alienate them.

8. Include a call to action (CTA) in all correspondence

What, exactly, do you want readers to do when they are on your site? You might be surprised to note that many websites, emails, and other marketing materials don’t include a simple call to action, directing readers on their next steps. This could be something as simple as a button that says “click here” or “buy now,” or it might be part of a story that leads them deeper into your website. 

Marketing pros know that the longer visitors stay on your site, the more relevant your material is and the more likely they are to make a purchase. 

9. Include testimonials

These days, consumers want proof and good reviews before they make a purchase or engage a service. As your business grows, ask for reviews of your goods or services, and post them to your website. You can also include them in email marketing materials and newsletters and on social media. 

Reviews from real people build your credibility and position you as a trustworthy leader in your industry. This type of social street cred is critical for millennial and Gen Z consumers, and it’s exactly what converts readers to customers.

10. Add links

It may seem strange, but adding links to your website content actually builds your authority. It tells readers that you have a deep understanding of the topic, so much so that you are familiar with other authorities on it. Plus, remember SEO? Google loves links to high-authority sites.

Google also loves backlinks, and as your authority grows, other sites will link to you. It’s a win-win.

11. Add a chatbot

Artificial intelligence is getting a lot of press these days, and one of its best uses remains adding a customer service chatbot to your website. This simple tool can be programmed with answers to frequently asked questions. Early adopters of this technology include loan companies with a variety of services — this simple tech allowed customers to get tailored information quickly (instead of wading through a complicated bank website).

12. Follow up with retargeting

If a website visitor adds items to a cart and then leaves without purchasing, having their email address makes it easy to remind them to check out. This simple retargeting process can result in increased conversions.

13. Guarantee your work

One of the best ways to convert readers into customers for your business? Guaranteeing your product or services. Offering a 100% satisfaction, money-back guarantee means that they can purchase without worry. This is especially important for people engaging a company for services when they are not in the same area (for example, if you’re hiring movers for a long-distance move who are not local).

14. Get personal

You want to build a customer base that lasts a long time, so start with relationships. In a global economy where everything behind the screen seems faceless and not attached to an actual person, personalized experiences are valuable and can go a long way.

Featured Image by Daniel Thomas on Unsplash

The post 14 Techniques to Convert Readers Into Customers appeared first on noupe.

When you look around the world we live, everything is subjected to constant change. The world doesn’t look the same today as it appeared a few years back. This is cushioned by technological evolution. Small businesses, in particular, face unique challenges due to their limited size and resources. There comes a point where they have to make the best use of whatever they have. This is precisely when technological assistance steps in to bridge the gap.

As per Forbes’ small business statistics, over the last 25 years, small businesses have generated a staggering 12.9 million jobs. This showcases their significant contribution to the economy. However, it’s essential to acknowledge that despite this success, the reality is that 1 in 5 small businesses face failure within their first year of operation. So, it becomes obvious to focus on nurturing their growth and ensuring sustainability.

As a solution to this, a wide variety of online tools have emerged that can help small businesses on a daily basis, starting from platforms to host their brand to provide better customer service. Technological invasion is very much essential for small businesses to stay on the path of their growth. 

So, in this blog, let’s go deeper into-

• “Why small businesses need new technologies?” 
• “How technology supports their constant growth?”

What is the Role Of Technology In Small Business Operations? 

There are many transformative advances that technology could bring to business growth. It can make running a business comparatively easier than it was when everything needed manual attention. The recent advancements contribute to business growth in different ways such as: 

1. Streamlining Business Operations 
2. Expanding Market Reach 
3. Improving Productivity
4. Collaborate Online For Classes And Services
5. Enabling Online Payments 
6. Data-Driven Decision Making
7. Strengthened Security 
8. Improving Customer Engagement 

Let’s have a look at these in detail now, 

Streamlining Business Operations

Nowadays everything screams automation. When it comes to business, task management tools help to streamline day-to-day tasks. It takes care of all the repetitive tasks that employees would have to do diverting the workforce to tasks that contribute to the actual growth of the organization. Digital tools such as appointment scheduling, automating bills, automating payments, employee scheduling, and more, make it easier for business admins to handle time-consuming and error-prone manual work. With this, business owners can focus on improving the quality of services, reducing administrative heavy lifting to a vast extent. 

Expanding Market Reach 

You may run any kind of business, yet the key to keeping your brand name shining out from others in the market is efficient branding and marketing. Technology serves a big role in not just establishing a strong online presence but also creating strong brand visibility for any new business. We can witness continuous developments in the area of marketing such as social media marketing, Search Engine Optimization, and email campaigns because of the use of the right technology. 

Small businesses can use social media tools like Buffer, Hootsuite, Sprout Social and more to improve engagement with target audiences, build their brand, and promote their businesses. 

Also, there are booking and scheduling solutions and online marketplaces that help in building a virtual storefront where customers can directly contact businesses. These storefronts help in showcasing new services as well as exploring services, booking appointments, and more. These software are a cost-effective way of marketing and spreading the word about any service-related business. 

In addition to this, there are lots of marketing automation tools like Mailchimp, Hubspot, Zoho CRM etc. help to run your campaigns with not much effort. 

With this, the traditional costly advertising methods have become unnecessary, as these help businesses reach their customers better with a much more targeted approach.

Improved Productivity

The integration of technology in team management significantly reduces the business processing time in half. There is a lot of software solution available in the market that helps in effective team management by keeping track of the tasks that needs to be completed every day. For example, tools like Slack, Jira, Monday.com, Asana and ClickUp help businesses to manage their teams a lot more effectively.  

Other tools that help in effective communication between employees foster a more productive work environment. For example, cloud-based collaboration tools enable collaboration with team members, this helps in faster access to information and facilitates employees to respond faster and better to inquiries. This helps in achieving higher levels of productivity, ultimately leading to greater business success. 

Collaborate Online For Classes And Services

As the passion economy is gradually thriving, people have started to capitalize on their talents, which appear as a very good means of income. This also brought in the need for video conferencing tools. For example, when you ideate to provide home fitness training, it can be easily achieved via video conferencing tools such as Zoom meetings and Google Meet. Even booking and scheduling platforms such as Omnify offer native Zoom integration, simplifying online classes for both trainers and clients.

These tools help businesses to effortlessly reach a global level, enabling easy global reach and attracting a diverse clientele from all corners of the world. By imparting adaptivity, the technology helps businesses to fly to new heights and stay interconnected with clients across the world.

Enabling Online Payments

Secure and easy payments are always looked forward to in any business transaction. As we transitioned from cash payments to cashless modes of payment there are a lot of developments that streamlined the payment methods. These modern methods not only offer convenience but ensured safe and secure transactions throughout. Clients can now have a  painless queueless payment experience, settling bills from anywhere they could.

Not only that, businesses can easily track their financial transactions. So, no need to maintain a separate log for every single transaction in the business. It’s no doubt that the shift to secure and easy payments has undoubtedly revolutionized the way we conduct transactions. 

Data-driven Decision Making 

We all know that in a business, all that truly counts is data. However, before the presence of real-time analytics, businesses needed to take many chances before they knew where they went wrong. This is also taken up by new tools such as Google Analytics, which collects and tracks real-time data. These data serve as cruise control, offering vital information to steer the business toward growth. 

Now, businesses can keep track of their daily growth status. For example, if you’re using a booking and scheduling software like Omnify, which offers inbuilt dashboard analytics, it helps you keep track of the number of bookings, revenue earned, refunds, cancellations, client check-ins, and more, enabling businesses to make better decisions day by day.

The provided reports make it easier to monitor disengagements, abandonments, and no-shows, empowering businesses to tailor their services to meet the needs of their customers effectively. Real-time analytics has emerged as a guiding light, helping businesses navigate the path to success.

Strengthened Security

When you run a business of any scale you are responsible to let your clients know about the safety and security policies of your business. For this, electronic waivers come in handy, it serves as an e-signature. Draft these waivers in a manner that provides a transparent overview of all legal liabilities and related risks conveyed to your clients.

By incorporating these technologies, businesses can guarantee an unbreakable reputation for their brand among customers, contributing towards unhindered growth and success for the company. Trustworthiness is the starting point for the journey towards customer loyalty for a growing small business.

Improve Customer Engagement

Customer satisfaction is the ultimate goal of a business – the coveted end of the funnel of every business. Technological advancements like Customer Relationship Management systems (CRM) help you to improve the way to respond to your clients and customers and improve their overall experience. This is very important for targeted marketing, as they help you to comprehend customer preferences, purchase history and feedback. 

Businesses will have valuable data that helps to come around in targeted marketing. With this invaluable data in hand, businesses can build stronger connections with their customers, which is essential to sustain in this competitive business environment. 

Challenges Faced By Businesses While Adopting New Technology

As much as technology is essential to run any business these days, businesses do face challenges in integrating them. Let’s have a look at the three common challenges faced by businesses. 

1. Choosing The Right Software 
2. Difficulty In Integrating Existing Systems
3. Adopting New Technology 

Let’s get a better idea by reading further- 

Choosing The Right Software

There are a variety of software solutions available in the market with almost similar features. Businesses will have a hard time figuring out which one will be suitable for their business needs. It is important to know about the products in the market and choose the best-suited option out there. Businesses should ensure that these platforms serve as an all-in-one solution for their essential needs. There is no point in investing in multiple platforms when they can effectively manage everything under one comprehensive solution. 

So, analyze and choose the best platform that could simplify your business operations, saving you much more time.

Difficulty In Integrating Existing Systems

Some businesses may be using a particular technology for a long time and become accustomed to it. However, such technology may have become outdated, posing difficulties in integrating it with new platforms due to compatibility issues. Additionally, the process of data migration and maintaining data integrity throughout this transition presents a significant challenge for businesses. 

Overcoming these hurdles requires careful planning, a willingness to embrace change, and a commitment to staying up-to-date with the latest advancements.

Adopting New Technology 

Whenever a business decides to adopt a new technology it is a long process. Initially, introducing the team members to the tool’s features and providing them with the necessary training for daily usage demands considerable dedication. However, once the ice breaks the technology will start to blend in with your business operations. 

As the team becomes familiar with the new tool and adapts to its functionalities, everything starts falling into place. Breaking the initial challenges to easy adoption is essential to ensure smoother workflows and enhanced efficiency in the long run. That’s why it’s crucial for businesses to consistently offer thorough onboarding to all team members, helping them to grasp the ins and outs of the technology way more quickly.

Conclusion

So, technology has become inevitable in each and every step we make in a business. When used right, they could impart unimaginable developments to your businesses. But the trick lies in the most suitable platform for your business. Businesses should consider the investments, features, and ability of the tool to blend in with their business and ease up administrative activities. Adopting new technology is not merely an option for businesses; it’s strategically essential for a small business to thrive in a competitive environment.

Featured image by RDNE Stock project

The post The Role of Technology in Small Business Operations appeared first on noupe.

Yahoo just released a new ‘Shopping Saver’. The feature tracks unused coupons in your email inbox to help you save money when buying online. The tool is currently available in the Yahoo Mail’s AI beta experience.