Seeking Advice - Best Practices for Dealing with Unhappy Customers
A while ago, we had a very interesting conversation on Seller Forums around this topic, and I thought it would be beneficial to refresh the discussion.
As an Amazon seller, providing exceptional customer service is crucial for building a loyal customer base and maintaining a stellar reputation. In this thread, let's dive into the best practices that you use to keep your customers happy and your business thriving.
What is your advice on effectively handling situations where customers are unhappy with a purchase?
Please share your tips, strategies, and success stories from the world of Amazon customer service! Let's keep the conversation going and learn from each other's experiences!
30 replies
Seller_ZJhFeE3tNKzfh
What is your advice on effectively handling situations where customers are unhappy with a purchase?
Well, if its an Invoice by Amazon customer, the answer is...you can't help.
Seller_76AUwmqvSyRIM
Amazon Customer Services - refund straight away, willy nilly, they don't care, it's not their money!
Seller Customer Services - engage with the customer to resolve the issue. Refund or replace as necessary
Seller_d8YGbIjNqwFxn
I really don't get many unhappy customers I think to a large degree you can avoid unhappy customers by ensuring your products are described correctly and you despatch items on time.
The small number of unhappy customers I do get are mostly down to delayed or lost items. Not much you can do about these except apologise then ask them to wait or refund.
Part of the problem is that Amazon remind customers the item maybe lost which creates more customer contact. Often the item isn't lost and it is just that Royal Mail have failed to scan the item on delivery.
I notice with the new messaging system it sometimes has a yellow banner on the message saying that the customer is unhappy with your last response and the issue is not resolved. I am not sure what we are supposed to do with this information. Often you ask them a question about the delivery and they haven't replied. You are also not told in anyway the customer is unhappy with the response unless you go into your messages and check.
Seller_iYCrwoyqEYtxD
We now find it difficult to deal with dissatisfied customers in any way other than to get them to return it to us (where appropriate) and refund. This is not ideal.
We would like to offer replacements where an item is faulty or the wrong size, but the Amazon system just doesn't allow for this. If we receive a return we can't use Buy Shipping to get a second label to send the replacement item. Plus Amazon would probably refund the order in any case leaving us doubly out of pocket.
So all we can do is refund and ask the customer if they want to place another order for a replacement/different size.
Seller_ZVAz3d5lZuGid
There was a recent thread where CS had opened an A-z for the customer when they DID NOT request that, and they were unable to close it - WRONG.
Seller_fLViBrSW573Aj
Worth keeping in mind the customer isn't necessarily always right. We sell an item which requires the user to follow the instructions closely for optimal performance. This is mentioned in the bullet points and A+ content, however roughly 1 in 10 customers fail to read this or the instructions provided in the box and then complain the product doesn't work. This causes a lot of returns so we have to reflect this in our pricing.
So - no matter how accurate your product listing, there will always be a few customers who ignore this and complain.
Seller_tRuvBEHDedp4q
I agree - but this is where the Amazon catalog system lets it down.
For example, I have often found products where the GTIN/EAN is for the wrong size or wrong colour. Probably a simple mistake by whoever created the listing. But getting the listing changed so that it described correctly is often impossible.
If I have already created an offer on the item and ask for the mistake to be rectified, I will get the standard response that only the Brand owner can authorise the change - but no details as to who the brand owner is. Sometimes I even contact my supplier (who are officially the brand owner as they manufacture the item) but even they cannot get the listing changed. It is often who created the listing to begin with and not the brand owner I need to contact. It would help enormously if Amazon told us who to contact to rectify the mistake in this situation - but they do not. Or failing that allowing us to send pictures of the labelling/GTIN showing the mistake so that it can be rectified. I have many products this has happened to me on.
If I have not created an offer on the item and spot the mistake beforehand there is no method in getting it rectified. I have tried several ways from using the 'Report an issue with this product' link on the product page (never once has this generated a response or a change) to going straight to Seller Support where they refuse to do anything because I am not currently selling the item!
So my choice is to either not list or list and get an unhappy customer because they wanted a white one (as that is what is shown in the picture) even though the GTIN, item description and item attributes all say it is a Black one.
There needs to be a drastic overhaul in getting listing mistakes corrected - because at the end of the day this just creates unhappy customers.
Seller_KQwXr5kY5oIPO
Absolutely this... Our primary is home based cleaning products, Manufacturers are notorious for frequent label changes or ingredient changes and not being the brand owner or the listing creator means we cant update anything to bring the listing up to date and that causes a lot of problems.
Seller_jG3UXOpPuTUgN
Julia - why don't you ask the same question to sellers, how should amazon deal with THEIR sellers?
Seller_9EVIA75XXLsLl
I am more than happy to take time out from running my own business to offer Amazon advice on how to provide exceptional customer service.
Please contact me directly for my fee schedule.
