Off the top of your head, can you give me a wild estimate as to how many people can a single online complain reach? With everyone nowadays connected on the internet to a certain degree, it’s quite a scary scenario right? Would it even scare you more that the rough estimate is around 244 million? And the clincher is, that figure was back in May of 2014. Can you imagine it’s damaging potential now?

Now if we take my fear mongering introduction and relate it to your business on Amazon, that one negative feedback/review suddenly isn’t so passe anymore, right?

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not trying to scare you, but rather just pointing out that in the world of online retail, you can never please everyone. And no matter how hard you try, there will always be that one person that will rain on your parade.

So if getting a negative feedback/review on Amazon is inevitable, how do you address it?

Act Like A Big Business

No, I’m not telling you to sound or act like a corporate stiff, what I’m referring to is the try and mimic how big business do business.

How you ask?

• Be precise/honest with your products
• Be professional with everything you do that is tied to your business
• Practice after sales support
• Create a bond with your customers

Product Presentation

Most complaints on Amazon stems from the customer not satisfied with his/her purchase. Now given that you’re not one of those shady sellers on the platform, you should make it a habit, no wait, you should ensure that each of your product is described down to the T.

Make sure that each noticeable detail of your product is mentioned and described. If you’re selling a second hand vintage camera, inform your would be buyers if there are any dents on it. If it’s working but no in perfect order, say it.

This may be overkill for some, as the usual reply I get is “It’s already visible on the images I took of the product anyway”. And most often than not, they get a complaint from the buyer.

The point is, the images are there to entice, the description is there to inform.

Being Professional

This is self explanatory, but for the sake of heeding my own advice (referring the section you just read) let me expound.

Professionalism is a complete package. From how you present your products in terms of imagery, how you create your description, and how you talk to your customers.

So don’t post an image that looks like it was shot without any thought. No, you don’t need to hire a professional photographer to do a product shoot. All you need is a white background, ample light, and you putting on your artistic hat. A bit of patience can do wonders as well.

And when it comes to writing your descriptions, don’t just say “This is my Dad’s camera. It still works. Just needs a little cleaning”.

Be flowery with your words; “The original owner of this camera is my father. And though it has seen better days, everything is still functional. A testament to the craftsmanship of old”.

So tell me, which is better?

And with regards to communicating with your customers never sound needy or forceful. Remember that the idea is to try and establish a “business relationship” with your buyer. Keep in mind that in business, “a sale is a gateway to another opportunity”.

And about this, I have a killer Amazon business tip for you later. So keep reading.

After Sales

After sales refers to the actions a business does after a purchase has been made. It entails ensuring that the product bought is delivered on time, to the correct address, and without any damage.

Of course, you have no control over the delivery unless you deliver it yourself. But what you can do is try and connect with your buyer and assure him/her that;

• His/Her order has been processed and shipped
• You are ready to address, and most importantly, resolve any issue that might arise from its delivery until he/she receives the product

Fact: The mere fact that you don’t have any control about how the product he/she ordered is delivered and handled, you need to make your customer believe that you are on top of things.

This goes hand in hand with customer care. And just like what I said earlier, if big businesses spend millions in hiring people to address the issues of their customers, so must you. Even if it’s in a much smaller scale.

Create Loyal Customers

Earlier I mentioned something about a sale being an opportunity. This is what I’m trying to drive at.

You have a customer, you’re happy that he/she bought something from you. Are you content with that single sale and wait for a new one? Won’t you rather have that same customer buy another item from you in the future?

Of course some would argue that if the customer is satisfied with the product he/she bought, then he/she will most likely buy from the same seller again. True, the is a logical argument. But answer me this.

Let’s use a bar/pub for this analogy. Would you prefer having a few beers at a bar that you like, or a bar where the owner knows you personally? You get my drift?

By trying to create a relationship with your customer, you indirectly foster familiarity with him/her. And do you know where familiarity leads to…. trust! And in business, trust is everything.

So we’ve talked about how to project yourself positively towards Amazon users…. your would be customers.

Effective Customer Interaction

First thing you need to understand is the difference between projection and interaction when it comes to business.

Everything you’ve read so far pertains to you projecting yourself, and your business as, professional, accessible and trustworthy. Now, we will talk about how you can turn a buyer into a loyal customer.

Create An Email Marketing Campaign

I guess it is safe to assume that we all are familiar with how powerful email campaigns are. If they aren’t, what use would email providers have for a spam folder right?

Joking aside, email marketing campaigns is an avenue that you really need to exploit. Again, don’t get me wrong. When I say exploit, I do mean it in the most professional of ways. So never, I mean, NEVER, engage in spam. You’re not only wasting your time, but also damaging the reputation of your business.

When sending an email, you need to remember to “add value”. Use emails as a way to break the ice, and formally introduce yourself to your customer. In short, “humanize your business”.

How To Create An Email Marketing Campaign And Get Customer Feedback

An effective marketing email needs to have 3 things. First, it needs to create a bridge between buyer and seller. Second, it needs to address and appease any questions the buyer may have. And lastly, it needs to create brand recall for the business.

Now when it comes to sending emails to my Amazon customers, I like to send out 3 emails. One after a sale is made, another one a day after the product arrives, and third would be a week after the product was delivered.

Structure for first email:

Since this will be your first contact with your customer, keep it short, happy and straight to the point.

I guess you’re wondering why I mentioned “happy” right? We’ll, this has something to do with projection. What you’re trying to do is indirectly make your customer feel that he/she did you a favor by purchasing one of your products. This in turns make him/her feel a bit special, thus the idea that he/she is talking to a business person is somewhat lowered or even forgotten.

If you can make a customer believe that he.she is just having a regular conversation with another person, can you imagine your power over him/her?

Evil I know…. Nothing personal, just business.

Tip: Don’t forget to assure the buyer that you will address and resolve any issue that might arise, and that he/she can contact you at anytime if he/she has any concerns.

Structure for second email:

Since I send this email a day after the buyer has received the product, it’s content leans more towards probing questions.

Are you happy with the product? Were there any issues in terms of shipping? Do you have any other concerns?

Simple questions that indirectly forces them to give an answer. Now remember, even though I have been babbling here about making people see you as a good guy, the endgame is for you to not to get a negative Amazon feedback. And by allowing your customer to send you a reply through email, you now have an idea if he/she is satisfied with your product or not.

If he/she isn’t, then promise him/her that you will address the problem. And make sure you follow through with it.

But most likely, and if you sell quality products like me, he/she will be satisfied. And that’s why on this email, I slip in a seller feedback request. And it reads something like;

“By the way, would there be any chance that you could spare a few minutes of your time to give me a seller feedback on Amazon? Small businesses like mine thrives on positive feedback. You giving me one will go a long way in helping my business grow.”

I tell you, this usually gets me a feedback most of the time. But if not;

Structure for third email:

This email is really no different from the first two. So when creating this email, try to replicate the feel of the first two. But at the same time, try to add a bit of marketing as well.

Maybe you can slip in a catalog of you other products, maybe you can send a how to guide for the product the customer bought through a PDF file. You can basically do anything you want.

But again, make sure that you are never needy and pushy.

Now if you followed everything on this article religiously, I am certain that the only feedback you’ll get is a positive one. But you’re not yet out of the woods.

Yes, I may have helped explain to you how to project yourself as a good, reliable business person to Amazon users. And yes, I may have given you a tip or two on how to discreetly convince your customer to give you a positive feedback. But the fact still remains that you still need to send them emails.

Not a problem you say?

Yeah, 3 emails is really not worrisome. But remember, that’s just for “1” customer. What if you get 2, 5, or 10 orders per day? And if the orders scale up and imagine getting 50, 100, 200 orders a day. How to make sure you reach all of them without much headache?

Send Emails Through An Email Sequencer

Think of an email sequencer as your private virtual email marketing department. What it does is automate the entire process that I mentioned above. Though you still need to write the contents of the emails yourself,( or use the templates that already proven! ) sending them is completely automated.

• Connect your Amazon seller account with email sequencer (we have one? how about trying it?)
• Upload the email content that you’ve written
• Assign when and what emails will be sent

Easy yes?

To end, I hope that my fear mongering didn’t put you off. We’, thankfully it didn’t, or else you won’t be reading this part of the article. Anyway, if you think that this article is of any help to others, please do me a favor and share it with your network.

And the last advice I would like to give you is, do try and have an awesome day!

Cheers!