Ecommerce retailers lose nearly $18 billion in sales every year because consumers abandon their online shopping experience before checking out. On average, nearly 70% of online shopping experiences are abandoned before the consumer checks out. And these are things that consumers want to buy. For companies in the credit and collection industry, those statistics are even worse. Understanding the consumer experience and being able to make changes, in as close to real-time as possible, is incredibly important to optimizing your site for maximum usage and activity.
Amazon uses big data to improve customer experience by adjusting prices based on shopping patterns, competitors' prices, and product demand. This dynamic pricing strategy ensures that customers receive the best possible deals, enhancing their shopping experience and loyalty. Similarly, debt collection agencies can use data insights to offer personalized solutions that meet each customer's unique needs, improving their experience and increasing recovery rates.
Here are seven tips to help you enhance your consumer experience:
- Utilize AI and Machine Learning for Real-Time Decision Making. For as good as your best analyst is, AI is still going to be able to process more information faster. Understanding trends and responding as quickly as possible will minimize the chances of consumers abandoning your portal before making a payment or committing to a payment plan.
- Personalize Communication. Share what you know about someone when they are visiting your website. Retailers use algorithms to make suggestions for other products consumers may like. Use that same strategy to suggest payment plans or settlement amounts that a consumer is likely not to reject.
- Offer Flexible Payment Plans. Every retailer these days offers consumers the chance to pay in full or make installments, among other payment options. Meet consumers where they want to be met by offering payment plans and multiple payment options.
- Enhance Communication Strategies with Real-Time Data. Live data insights can inform your communication strategies, ensuring that your messages are timely and relevant. For example, if a customer recently viewed their account online, a follow-up email or text message can encourage him or her to take action.
- Monitor Customer Interactions. Everything consumers do, or don’t do, is data that can help you better understand who they are and what they will respond to. Behavioral patterns can help you refine your strategies, ensuring that your approach aligns with customer preferences and improves their overall experience.
- Enhance Customer Segmentation. The objective of any scoring or analysis is to create segments or buckets that consumers can be grouped into, according to different characteristics. Using AI-driven segmentation to create detailed customer profiles enables more personalized interactions, which can significantly enhance the customer experience and improve recovery outcomes.
- Foster a Data-Driven Culture. Data is what drives the world these days. Every decision you make should be based on data and insights from how your consumers are responding to your communication and collection efforts. Getting your entire staff to buy into this type of strategy is key to making it effective across all levels of your organization. A culture that values data will naturally lead to more informed and effective strategies, enhancing customer experiences and recovery rates.
Losing sales because consumers abandon their visit to your portal is inevitable. But learning from those experience, you can minimize those losses and maximize the amount of money generated through your portal.