Merlin Zuni is a digital design expert here at Liip. He has been designing websites for longer than he would like to admit. We are both excited to share three tips to help you stay in touch with your customers.
Go straight to the point
So, letās jump right into it! Actually, thatās our first tip: You need to get straight to the point. Accurate and useful information is key here. The path of least resistance is an optimal user experience.
Is your website up to date? Do your customers find information easily, especially on how the current situation might affect their relation with your business? Do your locations have different opening hours, or do your customers have to take specific actions when visiting you? How can your customers reach out to you? Has your delivery policy changed?
Consider your website from the point of view of your users. We are all overwhelmed by a lot of information related to the coronavirus. A lot of us are still working from home, while (part time) homeschooling our kids when not taking care of the chores or gardening (serious stuff thoā). Your users need to find what they are looking for in no time. Display only what has an impact on their journey.
Going straight to the point and adopting a user-centred approach should be done in any context ā not only these days. Curious to read about projects during which we reduced the content to minimum and organise information from the user perspective? Have a look at:
- Use case about sg.ch and the content guidelines
- Jugend und Medien - the portal for youth and media literacy
- The Zentralbibliothek library
Build trust
What are the needs of my customers? How can I help them and bring value? These are the questions you should start with, when (re)designing your website, regardless of the situation youāre in. Convenience and safety might be your focus now, more than ever. If you started to offer your customers online orders and payment, having a clean funnel and a reliable payment solution is a must. There are high chances that the users leave their cart if thatās not the case.
This is how Amigos help people at risk during these social distancing times.
And if your business is affected by the current pandemic because your products or services cannot be sold now seize it as an opportunity to build trust with your customers. Strive to help them first. Building a strong relationship of trust will help you sell in the future. As a travel agency or tourist information office, you might want to support your customers cancel or reschedule their journeys. Inspire them with travel stories that can be consumed from the sofa. It might be the right time to release a VR experience. ;-)
Evolve the tone
Your customer might certainly be affected at least to some extent by the crisis. Empathy is key! Your customer service team might work remotely. Furthermore, you might face some issues and challenges as a company too. Donāt forget that your users might be in a similar situation. Being empathetic and taking the needs of your users seriously also helps you to build trust.
Evolving your tone doesnāt mean that you have to change your organisationās values, voice and way of communicating. Providing reassurance and guidance to your customers remains key in such uncertain times.
Want to learn more about the power of voice and content, these three blog posts might delight you:
- Tone of Voice – 3 Steps to a Strong Voice
- How to create a content strategy
- Content Governance – the basis of all editorial planning
Thanks for reading! This was the second issue of our new format āLiip tipsā. Are these insights helpful? Weād like to give you ideas on what to do next. And weāre always happy to support you in digital challenges. Feel free to get in touch with us for any thoughts, ideas, or feedback!
Thank you very, very much to Merlin and Sylvain for the production and post production. You rock! And thank you to Jenny for your endless support!