No matter how well you train your customer service representatives (CSRs), your buyers are never happy when they first reach out to them. A customer phone call, email, or chat is often a sign that something went wrong – both with the order and the customer’s ability to solve it independently. Customers increasingly prefer self-service channels where they can complete orders or process returns without sitting on hold or wondering whether a chat window brings them to an actual human.
The experience for customers with disabilities can be even more frustrating. Often, they reach out to your CSRs because the e-Commerce website isn’t navigable for them. If you create a poor customer service experience on top of it, you could lose the buyer entirely. Review your customer care accessibility policies and see if you need to make some changes. Here are a few tips to offer better service for customers with disabilities.
Offer several ways for customers to reach out
As you improve your customer service accessibility, you will find that many of your changes provide better experiences for all customers, not just those with disabilities. One of the main ways to make your customer service more accessible is to provide multiple channels for shoppers to reach out.
Every customer has unique preferences for contacting your care team. Some like to exchange text messages, while others prefer phone calls. Studies show that almost 40% of customers want to find answers on a website or email for simple inquiries. However, the majority want to speak to a live agent for complex problems.
From an accessibility standpoint, multiple communication channels increase the chances that customers with disabilities can reach out to you. Some people might find it easier to communicate via email, while others want a phone call. A few standard forms of communication you should have include:
- Phone service
- Face-to-face support (video calls)
- Email communication
- Text messaging and social media support
- Online FAQ and contact forms
- Chat functions
- Automated voice support
One common mistake companies make using some channels to push customers to one main option. Customers who reach out via chat or social media, receive an automated response to call the support center. Ensure each channel provides support and is empowered to resolve issues to accommodate all customer accessibility needs.
Train your staff on people-first language
Within the world of disability, there are two ways to address customers: people-first and identity-first. People-first language is considered more polite and is the accepted standard for communication best practices.
- People-first language places the person before their disability: the student who uses a wheelchair, the customer who is blind.
- Identity-first language places the disability before the person: the paralyzed student, the blind customer.
Accessibility.com has multiple guides on people-first language and how to use it. You can also check out other language guides to follow best practices for communicating with customers. For example, you can train your CSRs to avoid negative language that paints disability in a poor light.
For example, a wheelchair is an assistive tool that allows people who cannot walk to navigate the world. A person uses a wheelchair; they aren’t confined to it. Similarly, phrases like “he suffers from blindness” place a tone of pity and inability on the customer rather than stating facts about their visual abilities. It may be time to retrain your staff members on these concepts to provide respect to customers with disabilities.
Avoid speaking loudly and slowly
Many of the accessibility best practices you develop for eCommerce customer care will also benefit other community members. Both people with disabilities and customers who aren’t fluent in English often notice that CSRs tend to address them loudly and slowly. While some customers with disabilities, like people who read lips, may need you to speak a little slower, most people don’t want to be yelled at or spoken to like a child.
Often, this practice of overspeaking is done unintentionally – and it may be too subtle for the CSR to realize that they are doing it. Ask your department manager to listen to calls with customers with disabilities to see if this is an issue. While the CSR might not realize they are doing it, the customer certainly does.
Instead of speaking slowly, consider breaking up the CSR script. Rather than covering multiple topics in the same paragraph, break them up. This way, people with cognitive disabilities won’t get overwhelmed while screen readers and other assistive tools can translate clear communications.
Never finish sentences for customers
Another basic best practice for your customer care team that can go a long way with customers with disabilities is letting people finish their sentences. Customers with cognitive disabilities sometimes need time to process their thoughts and complete what they have to say. This also applies to customers who stutter or have trouble speaking. Well-meaning CSRs might try to finish customer sentences for them. They think they are making the process easier, but this is considered rude.
First, your CSRs aren’t mind readers. If a customer pauses after the phrase, “could you please help me with…” they could need assistance with anything from processing a return to looking up a tracking number. By jumping in and guessing what they will say, your CSRs interrupt and put words in customers' mouths.
Imagine how frustrated you would be if a waiter tried to guess what you were going to order instead of letting you state your menu selection. This is the same experience for customers who need more time communicating.
Provide multiple solutions to problems
In the same way that you can improve your e-Commerce accessibility by providing multiple customer service channels, you can also help your customers with disabilities by offering several solutions to issues.
It’s easier to use an example of an inaccessible solution to see how it hurts customers. Assume a monthly subscription service requires customers to cancel their accounts by printing out a cancelation form, filling it out, and mailing it in. This process is inaccessible to:
- Customers who are blind might not be able to read the forms without help.
- Shoppers who aren’t mobile and might not have postage or the ability to visit the post office.
- Buyers with physical disabilities who can’t manually fill out forms.
- Customers with cognitive disabilities who have difficulty processing small text or completing complex forms.
If it were easier to cancel the service, the company could accommodate customers with disabilities better. Spend time evaluating your processes and the solutions your company developed to various customer problems. You can create a better shopping experience and potentially increase retention by making it easier for customers to navigate your brand.
Strive to improve your e-Commerce website
For every customer who reaches out to your CSRs for help with accessibility, there are several who never bother to communicate with your team. Studies show that only seven percent of customers with disabilities reach out to retailers for help when they encounter an access barrier. If your customers can’t navigate your e-Commerce site, they will bounce.
You are losing customers and lowering your revenue by neglecting your e-Commerce site. Eighty-two percent of customers with disabilities said they would spend more on a retailer's website if it was more accessible. Instead, your customers are either bouncing or checking out as soon as possible – not bothering to linger and look at more items.
Good customer service is a long-term investment
You can make several improvements to your e-Commerce customer service policies to make them more accessible. However, keep in mind that good service is a process and requires regular maintenance. You will need to train new hires and retrain existing team members to communicate effectively with people with disabilities. You will also need to look for new tools and resources to provide accessible accommodations.
By ensuring every policy follows accessibility best practices, you can create a polite and effective customer service department that helps customers with disabilities.
Accessibility.com offers an online training and certification program on accessible customer service. This course is self-paced and offers engaging content that will reinforce the topics discussed. There are knowledge checks along the way. Learn more about our Accessible Customer Service course here.
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