By Twenty4

07/26/2013 The world of e-commerce is fast paced, and at times difficult to keep up with. One day your customers want something, the next day they don't. This doesn't mean you should be changing your offering but perhaps consider why they are changing their mind.Essentially, every business has four types of customers: new, repeat or high spend, abandoned purchases and refund seekers. Each is different in not only their characteristics, but their expectations - so take a little time getting to know them, and plan out how you can best interact with them.
New Customers
Firstly, this is always good news for any business - new customers mean you're doing something right. Getting to know your new customers can be a time consuming process; you want to look at their purchase decisions as early as possible so you can determine the driving force. It will allow you to get the most accurate inter-operation of what it is that converts these leads into sales. You should consider the following factors:
What did they purchase?
Why did they choose you over another business?
How did they find you? - Your traffic analytics should be able to help you here.
High Spend Customers
Woo! Money! Your high value customers can offer valuable insight into the parts of your business that are operating effectively. It's important to look at what they are purchasing, and when they are purchasing it. Are there seasonal trends? And why are they purchasing so regularly, or in high quantities? The more you understand these customers, the more you can work out how to target these people even better.
Abandoned Purchases
This is always an interesting group to learn about; they're the people who decided you weren't worth purchasing from. It's a sad, brutal truth - but one you can learn much from. When you know why people didn't want to purchase, you can potentially fix the problem. Surveys are a great way to do this, as long as you keep them short.
Refunds
You know the saying - you can't please everyone. But you do have to wonder what is causing people to request refunds or cancellations. A survey can serve well here, and key questions to ask include:
What caused them to change their mind?
What changes could you make to keep their business?
Will they be switching to a competitor? If so, who?
But remember, surveys aren't always the best approach - maybe a form would suffice with succinct questions that give you the answers to the issue(s).